Tear to wither away

Chapter 5

Chapter 5: The Younger Shadow

Enter Aria, a fresh-faced intern at Vincent’s firm. At 22, she was everything Anne felt she no longer was—youthful, ambitious, unburdened by a decade of compromises. Aria had just graduated with a marketing degree, all glossy highlights and confidence, striding into meetings with ideas that made the older agents sit up straighter. Vincent mentioned her casually at first: “Aria’s got great ideas for the new campaign. Really sharp kid.” But soon, texts from “A” lit up his phone at odd hours—11 p.m., 2 a.m.—with emojis Anne didn’t recognize. She discovered a receipt in his coat pocket for a lunch at *La Belle Époque*, the fancy French place downtown. The bill was for two, no clients listed, just a heart doodled in pen beside the total.

Heart pounding, Anne confronted him in the kitchen, waving the receipt like evidence. “Who’s A?” Vincent barely looked up from his laptop. “Aria. We grabbed lunch to brainstorm. Jesus, Anne, it’s work.” His tone was dismissive, annoyed, like she was a child asking silly questions. She confided in Sarah over the phone that night, pacing the living room in her socks. “Spy on him,” Sarah urged, voice crackling with indignation. “Put a tracker on his car. Hire a PI.” Anne refused, clinging to denial like a life raft. “He’s not cheating. He’s just… stressed.” But in her sketchbook, she drew Aria without ever seeing her—long hair, sharp cheekbones, a smile like a blade.