Chapter 90 Visit

• Victoria stood in front of her latest piece, the one that had taken her the longest to finish, tracing the edges of the brush strokes with her fingers as she waited for the guests to arrive. The gallery was alive with the hum of soft chatter and the clinking of glasses, but Victoria felt like she was in a bubble—detached from it all. She hadn’t expected anything to be easy anymore, but tonight felt different. More tense.
• When the doorbell chimed, she looked up, expecting another visitor to wander in, but her heart sank when she saw Rita.
• Rita sauntered in, her heels clicking sharply against the floor, and a small smirk spread across her face as she surveyed the room. “Quite the crowd tonight,” she said, her voice dripping with sarcasm.