The water was still warm when the screaming stopped.
Somewhere beyond the floor-to-ceiling hotel window, the city sparkled like a lie—so many lights, so many lives, none of them hearing the echo that had just died inside this room.
Inside the penthouse suite, everything was silent now.
Too silent.
The kind of silence that only came after something holy had been broken.
The air still carried the scent of jasmine perfume and spilled champagne, mixed with a sickly metallic note that didn't belong in luxury. Blood always had a smell. No matter how rich the towels, or how clean the marble—it lingered. It haunted.
She was beautiful.
Even like this.
Even floating, half-submerged in the ivory bathtub, her golden hair fanned out around her like a halo made of thorns. Her skin was pale, but not yet gray. There was color left in her lips, and her hand—the one that once held the world—now hung limp over the rim of the tub, fingers pointing to nowhere.
The gown was ruined. Or maybe it wasn't even a gown. Just silk. Ivory. Wet. Clinging like it had been poured onto her body. It no longer mattered what it was supposed to be. It wasn't clothing anymore. It was a shroud.
And just beneath the drain, the engagement ring had come to rest—its diamond face down, as if even it couldn't bear to look at her. It glittered cruelly beneath the water like a broken promise.
"She said no."
The voice was low. Not angry. Not hysterical. Just… surprised. As if still trying to process the truth aloud.
"She said no, and now she's…"
The words choked off. Not in grief. Not even in guilt.
It was something deeper. A numbness. The hollow disbelief of someone who expected to win every argument, every deal, every woman.
The figure in the doorway didn't move. Only watched.
The room was dim, lit only by the flickering chandelier above the tub. Crystal strands cast fractured light across the white tiles. The shadows looked like claw marks crawling up the walls.
She hadn't meant to die.
They hadn't meant to kill her.
Just silence her. Just one more fight. Just one more push.
But you don't get to hit rewind on real life. And no amount of money can un-drown a girl who stopped breathing six minutes ago.
The figure stepped inside. Slowly. Not like a killer in a movie. No panic. No rushed cleanup. Just a strange, cold stillness, like everything had already been decided before she went under.
A quiet breath. A curse under it.
They knelt beside the tub, one knee pressing into the heated marble floor, as if reverent, or exhausted.
A hand reached into the water and gently touched her wrist.
Still warm.
Still human.
Still gone.
"Damn."
There was a bruise on her temple. Barely visible now, but it would bloom. A delicate purple shadow already forming beneath the pale skin. That wasn't part of the plan.
"You said you'd keep quiet, Serena."
The voice was bitter now. Like old wine turned to vinegar.
"You always thought you were smarter than me."
Their fingers touched the edge of the tub—no gloves. They weren't thinking about evidence. They weren't thinking about jail. Because people like this didn't go to jail.
They bought silence.
They buried mistakes.
And Serena? Serena had become both.
The chandelier above shivered slightly, maybe from the wind outside, maybe from something else. The suite was twenty-six floors up, and the wind was always stronger here.
"You had everything," the figure whispered. "And still, you chose chaos. You chose secrets. You chose threats."
The voice paused, thoughtful. Almost regretful.
"You should've just married him."
A bitter chuckle.
"I guess you always wanted the spotlight. Even in death."
The figure stood.
No rush. No fear.
There were no security cameras in this suite. No staff on this floor tonight. No trace of the argument that happened twenty minutes ago. No record of the hand that pushed her head down beneath the surface. Just champagne glasses on the counter. A chair knocked over. And a body floating like a forgotten saint.
The door clicked softly behind them as they left.
Outside the window, the city glowed like a false memory.
And in the tub, the water finally turned red.