chapter 4
1457 Words
“Today is my burial.”
Natalie's voice came out barely above a whisper.
She stared at Mark's phone.
Her name was on the screen.
Her picture was there too.
Natalie Lancaster.
Dead.
Buried.
Today.
She couldn't breathe.
For several seconds, Mark didn't notice how badly she was shaking.
He was still scrolling through the news.
“It's crazy,” he muttered. “The whole city is talking about it.”
Natalie slowly sat down.
A week.
She had been dead for almost a week.
Her parents had spent days mourning her.
Her friends had probably cried for her.
People had already said goodbye.
And she had been lying in Anna Miller's room, trying to understand why she had woken up in another woman's body.
She looked at Mark.
“I need money.”
He looked up.
“What?”
“I need money.”
He gave her an irritated look.
“Didn't I come here to ask you for money?”
“I know.”
“You said you weren't giving me anything.”
“I didn't say that.”
Mark frowned.
Natalie forced herself to remain calm.
She needed to think.
She needed to get to New York.
And she needed money to do it.
“Listen,” she said. “I know you came here because you need money.”
“Exactly.”
“But I need to leave.”
“Leave for where?”
“New York.”
Mark stared at her.
“Again with New York?”
“Yes.”
“Why?”
“I have something I need to do there.”
“What?”
“I can't explain it.”
Mark shook his head.
“Anna, you're acting crazy today.”
“Maybe I am. But I still need to go.”
He looked at his phone again.
Natalie watched him carefully.
Then she had an idea.
“You said you need money because you owe someone.”
“Yes.”
“How much?”
“But I told you already.”
“Just tell me again.”
Mark hesitated before giving her the amount.
Natalie almost laughed at the huge amount he mentioned.
“Okay,” she said.
“Okay what?”
“I'll give you the money.”
His expression immediately changed.
“Really?”
“Yes.”
“But I thought you said you needed money.”
“I do.”
Natalie looked straight at him.
“You want the money, don't you?”
“Yes.”
“Then help me first.”
“With what?”
“I need enough money to get to New York.”
Mark stared at her.
“You're still asking me for money?”
“You came here asking me for money. I'm not asking you to give me anything for free. I'm asking you to help me get there.”
“And then?”
“I'll give you what you asked for.”
Mark looked suspicious.
“How?”
“Once I get there, I'll sort everything out.”
“Anna, you don't even know what you're saying.”
Natalie stepped closer.
“You said you need the money today, right?”
“Yes.”
“Then help me get to New York today, and I'll make sure you get yours.”
Mark rubbed his chin.
He clearly didn't like the idea.
But he needed the money too.
Natalie could see that.
“You said you trust me,” she added.
“I do.”
“Then help me.”
After a long moment, Mark sighed.
“How much do you need?”
Natalie told him.
He stared at her.
“That much?”
“Yes.”
“That's a lot.”
“So is the money you came here to collect from me.”
Mark looked away.
He was thinking.
Finally, he pulled out his wallet.
“I can give you something.”
Natalie's heart jumped.
“Enough for the trip?”
“Probably.”
“I am waiting.”
Mark hesitated.
“You'd better keep your word.”
Natalie almost scoffed.
“I will.”
He gave her some money.
Natalie counted it.
It was enough.
She looked at him.
“Thank you.”
Mark stood up.
“So now you're going?”
“Yes.”
“Today?”
“Yes.”
He shook his head.
“I still don't understand you.”
“You don't have to.”
She grabbed Anna's bag.
Mark watched her.
“Anna.”
She stopped.
“When are you coming back?”
Natalie looked at him.
She had no answer.
“I don't know.”
“Don't disappear on me.”
She didn't respond.
She walked out.
The moment she stepped outside, she took a deep breath.
She had done it.
She had gotten enough money to leave.
She didn't know what waited for her in New York.
She didn't know how her parents would react if they saw her.
She didn't know whether anyone would believe her.
But she couldn't stay there.
Her family was mourning her.
She had to go home.
She found a bus heading toward New York and bought a ticket.
Only after she sat down did she realize how far she was actually going.
The journey took hours.
Nearly four hours passed before the city finally began appearing outside the window.
Natalie sat upright.
New York.
Her heart started racing.
She was going home.
The bus finally arrived in the evening.
By then, the sky was dark.
Natalie stepped off the bus with Anna's bag over her shoulder.
She looked around.
Everything felt familiar.
She found her way toward the place where the burial had taken place.
But when she arrived, the crowd was already gone.
People had left.
Only a few remained, clearing things away.
Natalie stopped someone nearby.
“Excuse me.”
The woman turned.
“Yes?”
“Where was Natalie Lancaster buried?”
The woman looked at her.
“Are you a fan?”
Natalie forced a small smile.
“Yes.”
“She was loved by so many people.”
Natalie lowered her eyes.
“Can you show me where she was buried?”
“Of course.”
The woman pointed ahead.
“It's over there.”
Natalie thanked her and walked away.
As she approached, she saw several people wearing clothes with her pictures on them.
Some carried flowers.
Some were still talking about her.
One woman was holding a framed photograph of Natalie.
Natalie stopped.
She stared at the picture.
It was her face.
Her former face.
The face she had known all her life.
Her chest tightened.
She continued walking.
Then she saw it.
Her grave.
Her name was written across the stone.
NATALIE LANCASTER
She stopped.
Her eyes filled with tears.
Slowly, she walked closer.
She touched the stone with trembling fingers.
“My body…”
Her voice broke.
“My face…”
She swallowed hard.
“Everything is gone.”
She didn't know what she looked like anymore.
She touched Anna's face.
This was the face everyone would see from now on.
Not hers.
Not Natalie Lancaster's.
She wiped her tears.
Then she stood.
She needed to see her parents.
She needed to see them with her own eyes.
She made her way to the Lancaster mansion.
When she arrived, the gates were still open.
People were coming and going.
She entered with the others.
Inside, photographs of Natalie were everywhere.
Flowers filled the room.
Then she saw her mother.
Evelyn sat quietly, her face swollen from crying.
Natalie's heart broke.
“Mom.”
She didn't even realize she had moved until she was standing in front of her.
Evelyn looked up.
Natalie couldn't stop herself.
She hugged her.
Evelyn froze.
Natalie held her tightly.
“Mom…”
Her tears fell.
“I’m here.”
Evelyn stared at the unfamiliar woman holding her.
A security guard immediately moved toward them.
“Ma'am, please step away.”
Natalie couldn't let go.
“Please…”
The guard gently pulled her back.
Natalie stumbled away, crying.
Then she saw her father.
Richard.
He looked broken.
The sight of him nearly destroyed her.
She remembered the day he had given her the inheritance.
The way he had looked at her with pride.
The property.
The money.
Everything he had worked to give her.
Now she was standing in his house as a stranger.
And somewhere in that house was everything she had left behind.
Natalie looked around.
Her mother was there.
Her father was there.
But one person was missing.
Her husband.
She looked toward the hallway.
Then the staircase.
Nothing.
Her heart began to pound.
She wiped her tears.
“Where is my husband?” she whispered
Where was Lucas?
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