Chapter 9  I swore I’d bring them down before I left this awful city, cutting ties forever. Everything was falling into place until Chase walked out on the wedding, and Nicole didn’t even bother showing up. What was the point of my big reveal without the bride and groom?  I had to hit pause on my plans and wait for another perfect moment. However, I never imagined that night would be my last or that I’d be stuck as a ghost watching Chase and Nicole’s betrayal unfold. I lost, completely and utterly lost.  How can a ghost fight the living? I couldn’t win Chase’s heart, nor could I avenge my child. This love affair was a total disaster. Even in death, Chase couldn’t care less about what happened to me.  I trailed him, seeing him carry on as if my presence never mattered. Years of devotion were all wasted. I regretted ever falling for him! That night; the Kennedy family threw a dinner party. Nicole showed up in a soft pink dress, all smiles, sweetly calling out to Chase as she looped her arm through his. Chase, uneasy with their closeness, gently pushed her away. “Nicole, quit it. Amanda would be jealous.” Our parents chuckled, trying to lighten things up. “She’s always so petty and even jealous of her own sister. Who knows what she’s hinking?”  My brothers playfully ruffled Nicole’s hair, “Yeah, she’s not as pure and sweet as Nicole.”  Listening to them praise Nicole while belittling me, I felt so absurd. Who ever heard of a girl trying to seduce her brother–in–law on her sister’s wedding night being called pure and sweet? Too bad they couldn’t hear me, and all the evidence I had vanished with my phone. Chase scanned the room, asking, “Where’s Amanda? Has she not come back?” All day, he thought I had just gone home. How would he know my family treated me like an outcast? Home wasn’t home anymore, and why would I go back there when I was hurt? Mom looked puzzled. “Is she still sulking? I thought she was back with you.”  No one cared about the trip to the police station. It was heartbreaking to see how little my death meant to them despite never having wronged them.  My eldest brother, uneasy from the police’s words, suggested, “Maybe Amanda did something drastic. Should we check with the police for clues?”  Nicole sniffled, “It’s all my fault. I shouldn’t have called Chase yesterday. I didn’t mean to mess up their wedding. I didn’t think she’d disappear in a huff.”  They all fussed over Nicole and treated my absence like a little tantrum, quickly forgetting any concern they had for me. Chase’s brow furrowed, for once not joining in on the blame game. After dinner, he wandered into my room, a shadow over his face. Did he remember me at all?  He lit a cigarette, dialing his assistant through the haze. “Any news? Did you find Amanda’s body?”  Chapter 10  Chapter 10