SCORNED EX WIFE Queen Of Ashes (Camille and Stefan)

Chapter 158

Rose sat in the dingy motel room, the glow of the television casting harsh shadows across her face. Her newly dyed black hair hung in wet strands around her shoulders, dripping onto the worn carpet. The cheap hair dye had stained her fingernails dark, making them look dirty no matter how she scrubbed.

"Breaking news in the Grand Plaza Hotel bombing," the anchor announced. "The FBI has released security footage clearly identifying the main suspect."

Rose leaned forward, breath caught in her throat.

Her own face filled the screen, not her current disguise, but her real face, captured in perfect clarity as she placed an explosive device near the hotel's kitchen. The footage showed her checking her watch, attaching the bomb, and then looking up briefly, giving the camera a clean shot of her features.

"The FBI has identified the suspect as Rose Lewis, 28, the adopted sister of Camille Kane, whose Phoenix Foundation was hosting the charity gala targeted in the attack."

Rose grabbed the remote and turned up the volume.

"A nationwide manhunt is now underway for Lewis, who is considered armed and extremely dangerous. The bombing killed six people and injured more than forty others. Sources close to the investigation say Lewis had a long-standing grudge against her sister."

Photos flashed across the screen, Rose at social events, Rose with Stefan, and finally, a photo of Rose and Camille together years ago, before everything fell apart. The sight of that last image made Rose's stomach turn. She had been smiling at the camera, arm around Camille, looking for all the world like a loving sister while secretly plotting her destruction.

"The FBI has released these images to airports, bus terminals, and border crossings nationwide," the anchor continued. "Citizens are warned not to approach Lewis if spotted, but to contact authorities immediately."

Rose muted the television as they switched to an interview with a terrorism expert. She stood and moved to the grimy window, peering through a gap in the curtains at the nearly empty parking lot. No police cars yet. No flashing lights. But it was only a matter of time.

She'd been careless. Too focused on ensuring the bombs were placed perfectly to notice the security cameras. Too confident in her disguise. Too eager to watch Camille's triumph turn to ash.

And now her face was on every screen in America.

Rose turned back to the television, which now showed footage of Camille leaving the hospital, Alexander Pierce at her side, both surrounded by security personnel. The caption below read: "Bombing victim Camille Kane visits her adopted mother, Victoria Kane, who remains hospitalized after the attack."

So Victoria had survived. And Camille was still standing, still moving forward despite everything Rose had taken from her.

hot and ugly twisted in Rose's chest. No matter what she did, no matter how perfectly she planned, Camille always emerged from the ashes. Always found a

just break?" Rose whispered at the screen, at Camille's composed face

angled to shield her from the cameras. And then the broadcast cut to footage of Victoria Kane, being wheeled into the hospital days earlier, Camille clutching her hand as

the hotel, the physical things Camille had built, she hadn't destroyed what truly

new family Camille had built to replace the one Rose had stolen. The source of her strength, her resilience, her

flowing faster than her pen could capture them. Not buildings this time. Not foundations or projects or material things. Those could be rebuilt. Those losses could

time she would strike at the heart. At the two people who gave Camille the strength

had written. "Take them away, and

had been after being forced from the Lewis family, after

Security guards stood at

So many ways in, if you were clever enough. So many vulnerabilities,

appearance again. The black hair wasn't enough. She opened her bag and pulled out the items she'd purchased at a discount store

with possibilities. Victoria Kane was already weakened by cancer, made more vulnerable by the bombing. One well-placed push might be enough to finish what the smoke

determined to protect her. His very devotion made him predictable. Made him

foundation to rebuild. No strength to rise again.

Rose whispered, examining her newly cropped hair in the bathroom mirror. With the right makeup, the colored contacts,

returned to the main room, unmuting the television just as they switched to a press conference. FBI Agent Diana Chen stood

remains in the greater New York area," Agent Chen was saying. "We're asking the public to

Lewis had spent her entire life hiding in plain sight, pretending

Her phone vibrated

with a news

opened it to

detailed. Rose' past, including interviews with former associates who described her manipulative behavior. Stefan Rodriguez was quoted saying he "deeply regretted" his relationship with Rose and called

room, satisfaction flaring when it

had betrayed her. Added his voice to the

for her list. Another target for later, after