Chapter 5 - The Queen Returns
Six months later.
The premiere of The Last Horizon was held in Los Angeles.
The red carpet stretched for an entire block.
Evelyn Parker stepped out of a limousine wearing a stunning emerald-green gown.
The cameras erupted.
Fans screamed her name.
She didn’t look like a scorned wife.
She looked like a queen reclaiming her throne.
During the interviews, no one asked her about Grant.
They didn’t have to.
The world already knew the story.
Grant Holloway had been ousted as CEO of his own company after the board deemed his personal scandals too damaging to the brand.
His mother had retreated to Connecticut, humiliated by the social circles that had once revered her.
And Brooke Lane?
Her tabloid interview had backfired.
Hollywood didn’t like actresses who betrayed the women who built their careers.
She had been dropped by her agency and blacklisted by every major studio.
Evelyn smiled for the cameras.
She walked down the carpet, stopping to sign autographs and speak with young actresses who looked at her with awe.
Later that night, she stood on the balcony of her hotel room overlooking the Hollywood Hills.
Her phone buzzed.
An unknown number.
She answered.
“You looked beautiful tonight.”
Grant’s voice.
It sounded hollow.
Defeated.
Evelyn looked out at the glittering lights of the city.
“Thank you,” she said simply.
“I watched the live stream,” he said. “You looked exactly like you did the night I met you.”
“I’m not.”
“I know.”
A long pause.
“I miss you, Evelyn. Every day.”
Evelyn took a breath of the warm California air.
For eleven years, she would have given anything to hear him say that.
Now, it meant nothing at all.
“Goodbye, Grant.”
She didn’t wait for his response.
She ended the call.
May you like
She blocked the number.
Then she turned her back on the past and walked inside, ready for the rest of her life.
