Regretting the Wife He Threw Away

Chapter 91

The police had received a tip from a concerned citizen: someone had found a cell phone and a pair of shoes by the river.

By the time Briony and Stella arrived at the station, the officers were already reviewing security footage.

A young female officer handed Briony a sealed evidence bag. Inside were the phone and the shoes, and she asked Briony to identify them.

The phone was Julia's.

And those shoes... Briony recognized them instantly. She'd just bought them for her mother on a shopping trip a few days ago.

Briony's heart dropped, but she shook her head in denial. "These aren't my mom's. They're not..."

"Bryn, please," Stella said, choking back tears as she tried to comfort her. "We have to cooperate with the police—maybe Julia just went somewhere else afterward, okay?"

Briony stared at the phone and shoes before her. After a moment, she closed her eyes in despair. "They're my mom's."

The officer offered a gentle reassurance. "Don't panic. We're reviewing all the security footage along the river. As soon as we know something, we'll tell you."

Briony nodded numbly, her hands clenched together so tightly they had turned white.

There were several cameras installed along the riverbank, and the police soon confirmed what they feared: Julia had jumped into the river at 7:19 p.m. the night before.

showed Julia standing at the water's edge for over an

getting dark; the camera couldn't capture

her mother

wondered, in that endless hour, what had her mom

give

been wandering the

planning an itinerary. She had meant to take her mom on a little

before she could even buy the tickets, Gina had

over the railing,

splash. The water rippled, then

that,

her eyes, clutching her chest as she slowly sank to the

world

down and threw her arms around her.

say anything else. What comfort could she offer? Tell her not

in the world who had truly

gaze was vacant and hollow, as if her soul had slipped

her

cold. She hated the cold. Star, I have to find her. I

apart in her arms. Sobbing, she hugged her even