Bury My Ashes

Everyone in the city of Crestfall knew that Atticus Howard lived and breathed for me.

At a high-profile auction, he'd dropped a fortune on a pair of matching, priceless rings, just for us.

For my eighteenth birthday, he rented out an entire private island.

This was the man who adored me.

And yet, when my sister was bullied to death, he did nothing.

Worse, he protected the one who did it.

I knelt before him, tears streaming down my face, begging him to get justice for my sister.

He gently wiped my tears away, his voice a soft caress.

"Seraphina," he murmured, "I would give you the world. But this this one thing I cannot do."

"Faye is my sister. I can't be the one to send her to her ruin."

Atticuss voice was a velvet whisper, but his words were a dagger to my heart.

He held out a legal settlement.

"Be a good girl and sign this. I'll make sure your family is well compensated."

"Seraphina, you know I spoil you. Just this once, please? For me?"

I took the document, my eyes scanning the cold, printed words.

My voice trembled as I read them aloud.

"Following an investigation, the death of Faye Moore has been ruled as natural causes. Blaire Howard is considered an innocent party. The plaintiff agrees to this settlement, absolving her of all wrongdoing. The defendant agrees to pay the plaintiff twenty million dollars in compensation. Both parties consider the matter resolved."

"Well?"

Atticus asked, his tone expectant.

My hand shook, and a tear splashed onto the page, blurring the ink.

I looked up at him, my voice raw.

"Atticus, are you even human? My sister was bullied to death by Blaire. How can you call that 'natural causes'?"

He reached out, his thumb brushing away a tear on my cheek.

"Seraphina, Blaire is only sixteen. She's just a child."

"She didn't know what she was doing. Can't you find it in your heart to give her a second chance?"

Sixteen.

What a pathetic excuse.

A bitter laugh escaped my lips.

"And wasn't my sister sixteen? Who's going to give her a second chance? You think saying 'she didn't know what she was doing' erases what she did?"

"Seraphina!"

His eyes flashed with a warning.

I knew that look.

It was the one that always made me back down.

But not this time. Not with Faye.

I wiped my tears away with the back of my hand.

"So, you're not going to help me. Is that it?"

"I would do anything else for you, Seraphina. You know that. But not this."

His voice hardened.

"And twenty million is more than enough to cover your sister's entire life. Even if she had lived, graduated, gone to college, gotten a job even if she made a hundred thousand a year, she would never have earned this much. It's the same thing, Seraphina."

"What did you say?"

My heart stopped. I stared at the man in front of me, a complete stranger.

Was this the same man who cherished me, who would move mountains to see me smile?

I stood there, frozen, letting the tears fall unchecked. A chill crept over me, deep and unsettling.

Atticuss expression softened again, his voice dropping to a coaxing purr.

"Come on, Seraphina, don't be difficult. Once this is all over, I'll make it up to you. I'll get you something special. Okay?"

A sob caught in my throat.

"And what about my sister? She adored you. She used to follow you around, calling you 'big brother.' Is this how you repay her?"

The pain in my chest was so intense I could barely breathe.

"I'm devastated about Faye's passing too," he said, his voice laced with false sympathy.

"But we can't bring her back. There's no need to ruin another life. Blaire is young. She can't have this stain on her record. Seraphina, please try to understand."

Ruin another life?

A bleak emptiness spread through me.

"If you won't help me, I'll find a lawyer myself."

I turned to leave, but he grabbed my arm, his grip like iron.

His face was cold.

"Seraphina, are you sure you want to do this?"

"Yes."

My voice was unwavering.

"I can guarantee," he said, his tone dropping to a deadly whisper,

"that if you walk out that door, not a single law firm in this city will touch your case. You know I don't make idle threats."

My breath hitched.

I ignored him and walked out.

He was right.

For days, I went from one law firm to another, covering every corner of Crestfall.

No one would take my case. The moment they saw me, their faces would close up, their doors would shut.

"Miss Moore, please, don't put me in this position. Mr. Howard gave specific orders."

"You should try somewhere else, Miss Moore."

"Miss Moore"

I sat on a park bench, the file of evidence for my sister's case heavy in my lap. I pulled out my phone, and a new social media post popped up.

It was from Blaire.

The caption read: [My brother's sending me abroad!

Yay!

~]

Below it was a selfie of her posing with a new Chanel bag.

A moment later, a

"like"

appeared on the post.

From Atticus.

My hands were shaking so badly I could barely hold the phone. Blood rushed to my head, and the image of my sister's broken body flashed in my mind.

Blaire had pushed her from the fifth-floor window of their school.

The coroner's report detailed multiple injuries sustained before the fall.

Just hours before she died, Faye had texted me, promising to bring me a cupcake after school.

By the time I got there, her body was gone. Under pressure from Atticus, the school claimed the security cameras were broken.

Blaire had looked at me with smug triumph.

"So what if my brother spoils you? When it comes to my future versus your sister's life, there's no comparison."

Rage coursing through my veins, I decided to go to the most prestigious law firm in the city.

They were powerful.

Surely, they wouldn't bow to Atticus's influence.

I went to the bank and withdrew every penny I hada million dollars in cash.

I walked into the law firm, ignored the receptionist's protests, and dumped the entire bag of money on her desk.

"I need to file a lawsuit. Is a million dollars enough?"

The receptionist recognized me and fell silent.

A moment later, a partner came out.

"Miss Moore, I'm afraid we can't"

"If a million isn't enough, then take this."

I ripped off my emerald earringsthe ones Atticus had bought for ten million at that auctionand threw them on top of the cash.

That had to be enough.

The partner just shook his head.

"Please, Miss Moore, you're making this very difficult."

"Still not enough?"

I tore the diamond necklace from my neck and the bracelet from my wrist, thrusting them at him.

"How about now?"

"I I can't accept these," he stammered.

Suddenly, his eyes flickered to something over my shoulder.

"Mr. Howard. Miss Howard."

My heart plummeted. I turned around.

It was Atticus and Blaire.

Blaire smirked at me, a look of pure victory on her face. The memory of my sister's death choked me.

Atticus strode forward, his brow furrowed, and grabbed my arm.

"Seraphina, are you trying to give away my gifts?"

he demanded.

I wrenched my arm free.

"Yes. Do you want them back?"

"You"

He looked furious, but then seemed to collect himself.

He pulled me into his arms.

"Seraphina, stop this tantrum. I told you, no one will help you without my permission. Why can't you just be reasonable? Sign the settlement, and all of this will be over."

"I even brought Blaire here to apologize to you."

He pushed Blaire in front of me. She bowed her head, her expression a mask of perfect contrition.

"Seraphina, I'm so, so sorry. I never meant for it to happen. Faye and I were just playing around, I didn't think"

She went on and on, then leaned in close, grabbing my hand.

Her voice dropped to a conspiratorial whisper.

"You should have seen the look on her face when I made her drink toilet water. That little bitch. She kept crying for her big sister while I was hitting her. You really are a good sister, aren't you, Seraphina?"

Her eyes were dancing with amusement, locked on mine. A demon whispering in my ear.

The horrific images of Fayes last moments played on a loop in my head, tearing me apart.

"Enough! Stop talking!"

I shoved her away and slapped her hard across the face, twice.

"Seraphina, what are you doing?!"

Atticus lunged forward and yanked me back.

I lost my balance and fell, my head cracking against a large ceramic planter by the door.

A starburst of pain exploded behind my eyes.

The world spun.

I staggered to my feet, leaning against the wall for support.

Blaire was already nestled in Atticuss arms, her face a mask of terror.

Tears streamed down her cheeks.

"Brother, I'm so scared. I don't know what happened, Seraphina just attacked me."

Seeing her performance, a fresh wave of hatred burned through me. I lunged for her, but Atticus threw me aside again.

I landed in a heap on the floor.

"Seraphina," he said, his voice dangerously low,

"sign the settlement and apologize to Blaire. I won't ask again."

A cold, bitter laugh escaped my lips.

"Atticus, are you insane? She provoked me! Is a human life really worth less than Blaire's reputation?"

"I told you, you will be compensated," he said, his voice like ice.

The man who had once promised to love me forever was a stranger.

Blaire peeked out from behind Atticuss shoulder, a triumphant smirk on her face, as if to say, See?

Compared to me, you're nothing.

Rage and grief intertwined in my heart.

I clenched my fists.

"You want me to sign that settlement? In your dreams."

I pushed myself to my feet and looked past him, directly at Blaire.

"Murder is murder," I said, my voice ringing with conviction.

"You can't hide it. Even if no one in this city will take my case, I won't give up."

If I couldn't find a lawyer in Crestfall, I'd go somewhere else. There had to be someone in this world who wasn't afraid of Atticus Howard.

"Seraphina, are you sure you want to do this?"

His eyes were cold with warning.

I met his gaze without flinching.

"I will never stop fighting for my sister."

"Fine. Don't say I didn't warn you."

He took Blaire's hand and left.

A few minutes later, the law firm threw me out.