Today Is My Husband’s Funeral. I Received An Anonymous Note Telling Me Not To Go. I Followed The Address In The Note And Found Him Having Breakfast With My Sister. What Should I Do Now?
The Meeting of Victims
They met in a quiet coffee shop far from the city center. Sophia was a woman in her forties, elegant but not ostentatious. Her gaze had the hardness of someone who had seen too much and learned to doubt everything.
“When he told me his wife died of cancer, I cried with him,” Sophia began without preamble. “He took me to a fake grave. He brought flowers. He kissed me while he wept. He made me believe his pain was real.”,
Chloe said nothing, just listened as if picking up the pieces of her own story in every word.
“He borrowed $50,000 to invest in a piece of land. He showed me papers, blueprints. Everything looked legitimate. I never thought it was a scam until he disappeared.”
“Where did you meet him?”
“At a Chamber of Commerce event. He introduced himself as Reese Valarius. He said he owned a construction materials company. He said he had just moved after his wife died.”
Chloe took out a page from the black notebook and showed it to her. That name was among Ethan’s contacts. Sophia read it attentively.
“This one, Carlos El Pñena… he mentioned him. He said he was his trusted architect, but I don’t know if he ever really existed.”
They spent the afternoon sharing details. Sophia showed photos, bank receipts, emails. Each one fit perfectly like a piece of a larger puzzle. Before they parted, Sophia said something that made Chloe’s blood run cold.
“There’s someone else. Her name is Jocelyn. She’s a private investigator. I hired her after Reese disappeared, and she already knows about you.”,
Chloe bit her lip.
“What does she know?”
“She’ll find you. She’s building a case to sue him. She has access to bank movements, images, wiretaps. She doesn’t just want justice. She wants to bury him anyway she can.”
Building the Case
That night, Chloe only slept for three hours. The next day she received a call from an unknown number. A cold, professional voice.
“This is Jocelyn. I know who you are and I know what you’re looking for. Are you ready to see this through to the end? There’s no turning back.”
They met in an apartment with sealed windows and drawn curtains. Jocelyn had everything laid out on a table: folders, hard drives, USBs, printed photos.
“He’s used at least five identities in the last eight years. He’s faked his death twice. He was involved with three women simultaneously, and he’s been moving money to accounts in Panama, Uruguay, and Switzerland.”
Chloe was stunned.
“You have proof?”
“I have everything I need to destroy him. I’m just missing one thing. Your testimony.”,
Chloe handed her the black notebook. Jocelyn examined it with forensic precision.
“This is gold. It has dates, names, roots. It’s a criminal’s logbook.”
They spent hours organizing the information. For the first time, Chloe felt useful. She was no longer just the betrayed wife. She was part of something bigger. Jocelyn pulled out a thick file. Inside were copies of bank transfers. One of them caught her eye. A large sum sent to an account in the name of Vera Rivas.
Chloe felt her feet go cold.
“How much?”
“$25,000 transferred one month before Ethan’s death, from an account linked to Reese Valarius’s insurance.”
“Look at this.”
Jocelyn handed her a copy of the policy. Ethan had named Olivia as the sole beneficiary. Issue date: three months before the fake accident. Cause of death: car accident.
“How did she get it? The payment was frozen. An alert was triggered for possible fraud, but someone pulled some strings. The file is still under review.”
Chloe closed her eyes and took a deep breath. When she opened them, she was no longer the same person.
“We’ll sue him.”
“Not yet,” Jocelyn corrected. “We’ll build the case. We’ll leak it to the press. We’ll expose all of them: Ethan, Olivia, the doctor, the notary, the funeral home. If we attack them legally, they’ll hide. But if we make them public, they’ll have nowhere to run.”
Chloe nodded. Silas arrived later. When he saw all the information they had gathered, his eyes welled up.
“I never thought we’d get this far.”
Chloe looked at him.
“And we’re just getting started.”
