Second Chances

Chapter 54 

Aria’s funeral was a subdued affair. The Wilson family had seen better days, and the attendance was sparse, with few relatives or friends present. Zoe was confined to her bed, leaving only Nora and Mateo to attend the graveside service. 

Tears streaked Nora’s face as she watched a woman emerge from a black luxury car on the cemetery road. Her eyes, red and swollen from crying, widened in anger. “It’s you! You’re the reason Aria is gonel How dare you show up like this? I’ll make you pay!” she shouted. 

Emma’s choice of attire was no accident. She often wore black and white, but today she had chosen a striking deep red dress, complemented by sunglasses and an unusual touch of red lipstick. Her outfit was more of a statement than an expression of grief. 

“I dressed this way on purpose, but believe me; I had nothing to do with Aria’s death. If you want someone to blame, go after Sebastian. Go ahead; kill him. Get your revenge, and see where that gets you.” Emma replied, her voice icy. 

“Enough, Emmal” Mateo interjected, raising his hand as if to strike Emma, but her bodyguards quickly stepped in to hold him back 

Emma’s sneer was cutting. “We both are your daughters. When Aria was causing me trouble, where were you?” 

Mateo’s response was muted. He knew he had been unjust to Emma for various reasons, and his quilt made him avoid her. Even now, he favored Aria. “Aria was always with me. She was the closest to my heart. She was my daughter, not you,” he said, his voice strained. 

Hearing this confession, Emma felt a sharp pang in her heart, but she masked her pain with a colder, more mocking smile. “That’s sad because Aria never really saw you as her father.” 

Her words became increasingly pointed. “You may have provided for her, but after she was released, she couldn’t even be bothered to call you. But of course,” Emma continued, her tone cold and detached with a hint of malice, “the dead are beyond our reproach. Arguing about it now is useless. She’s gone, and she’ll never have the chance to show you any gratitude.” 

Nora, driven to madness, lunged at Emma but was swiftly restrained by the bodyguards. 

Emma stood calmly, arms crossed, a cold smirk playing across her lips. Hidden behind her sunglasses, her expression remained a mystery, but the curve of her red lips hinted at a chilling amusement. 

She held her posture, tall and defiant. “Mateo, what a tragedy. Fate gave you two daughters, and yet you’ve lost them both. Now, you’re left with nothing but this selfish, heartless woman by your side. You’re going to pay for your fault with those final words, Emma turned and walked away 

Behind her, Mateo hurled insults at her retreating figure. “You and your mother are nothing but monsters! I regret ever having anything to do with her, just for the company, and having a daughter like you” 

Nora’s laughter rang out, sharp, and unsettling, as she shifted from grief to verom. “Aria may be gone, but she knew our love for twenty years! Your mother, on the other hand, never saw a good day. Do you know how miserable she was? She suffered a thousand times more than Aria. I’ll tell you. I was the one who killed her! I knew about her depression, so I messed with her meds. I taunted her daily with massages and pushed her toward suicide. I watched her jump! That was real misery!” 

A scream suddenly shattered the eerie laughter, Nora hadn’t anticipated the sharp pain that shot through her arm, the feeling of something 

her flesh. “My arm, my hand… it hurts! Someone helpsl” 

At that moment, Emma seemed like a vengeful spirit from the depths of hell, her mind a blank slate overtaken by raw matice. It was as if she was on a battlefield, where everything was obliterated in a haze of blood. 

The air in the cemetery was heavy with the scent of blood. Mateo stood frozen, overwhelmed by fear. “How dare your 

“Since you’ve confessed to killing my mother, that’s just perfect, I won’t let you die quickly. I’ll tear you apart. Today it’s the arm, tomorrow it might be more. I’ll take you apart piece by piece!” Nora was in agony, her right arm a bloody mess, blood pouring out. It hurts someone 

helps!” 

Emma looked on as the woman who had caused her so much pain now squirmed in agony, like an insect in its death throes. With a powerful kick, she sent the nearly Nora sprawling onto Aria’s grave. 

Nora screamed as her back slammed into the ground, the shock knocking her unconscious. She slid off Aria’s tombstone, leaving a smear of blood across the grave. 

Back at the Icovine Estate, Liam found the atmosphere oppressively heavy. He had offered to go with Emma to the cemetery, but she had. insisted on facing it alone. Now, he sensed that something was terribly wrong. 

In the wine cellar, Emma sat alone and slumped over, clutching a glass, half a bottle of whiskey already consumed. “Aren’t you happy?” Liam quietly approached. 

“Yes, I am. Because Aria is dead,” Emma responded. 

Liam looked at her; clearly, she was drunk, her cheeks flushed, a smile playing on her lips, but her eyes revealed a profound loneliness. 

Compelled by her sadness, he reached out and gently stroked her head. 

Emma held herself together until Liam’s hand touched her, then she broke down, tears streaming down her face. “Today, I found out that my mother had died because… Nora deliberately messed with her meds. Damn it! Why didn’t I realize sooner? I just can’t accept that!” 

She now found a way to move on, but her mother would never return. Even if Aria and Nora suffered a hundred deaths, it wouldn’t bring her 

mother back. 

Liam cradled Emma in his arms, her body limp from the alcohol, her defenses completely down. 

“Liam, I’m not a good person,” Emma confessed, staring blankly at the ceiling. “But I want to be a good daughter and a good wife.” 

Her hands were stained, she knew that. If killing Nora could somehow bring her mother back, she wouldn’t hesitate. And even without the possibility of resurrection, she craved revenge enough to consider it. 

Liam took her hand gently. “I don’t need a ‘good‘ person or a ‘good‘ wife. I just need you, Emma,” he said, pressing a kiss to her forehead. Emma closed her eyes, her senses dulled by alcohol. 

As Liam carried her upstairs, Emma suddenly murmured, “Don’t worry about me. Go on ahead…” 

Liam’s brow furrowed as he held her closer, thinking she might be caught in a nightmare about Stella, But her next words sent a chill through him. “I like you… I don’t deserve you… I’m not good enough for you,” she slurred, half–asleep,