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Chapitre 3 : For the mouse, the cat is a tiger*

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Vanessa was sitting in her car facing the cemetery. Two weeks had passed since Mrs Chastain's death. Two weeks during which Vanessa had turned round and round, relentlessly, waiting for something to happen, for the fateful news to come. But nothing came. She never heard from anyone, neither from her boss, nor even from Officer Tremblay.

Yet, the autopsy should have been occurred, since the funeral of her former patient held this morning. She learned it in the obituary column from the newspaper that Rémi read every morning. This confirmed that if the burial could take place, the autopsy had been performed. Then why was she there, in front of the cemetery and not handcuffed in the city police station?

She had hesitated to come, Rémi had even tried to dissuade her, fearing the retaliation of Mrs Chastain's relatives, but Vanessa wanted to come, needed to come. She was responsible for her death, she knew it. So, paying tribute one last time to the old lady seemed necessary.

However, she wasn't reckless enough to go to the religious ceremony and she preferred to wait patiently in her car in the small parking lot facing the church and the cemetery. She had seen Mrs Chastain's relatives enter the building: they were a few. Her children, grandchildren, nephews and nieces were probably present. Which was not a lot of people, maybe fifteen.

I was a beautiful winter day, the kind of day Vanessa liked the most. The cold stinged the skin but the sky was immaculate blue and the sun was shining brightly, reflecting its light on the frozen road.

For the first time in two weeks she felt calm, serene. A page was about to turn and soon this awful story would be behind her. At least, it was what she hoped.

These past few weeks had been psychologically grueling. Vanessa couldn't stay still, haunted by the old lady's death. She had never believed in ghosts. Yet, the spirit of the deceased pursued her every day. She couldn't help but dwell every moment on this fatal morning, when the shell fruit had ended up in Mrs Chastain's soup. Besides, she stopped eating it. Instead, to overcome her boredom and loneliness, she allowed herself to be hypnotized by the television set without remembering any information.

Rémi had worked hard every day and she almost never saw him. When he was at home, he barely spoke to her, too busy making several phone calls to his lawyer.

She was grateful for his involvement and his support, albeit discret, in this matter. However, one morning she had thought he would betray her, when she saw him near the window, feeding the old back and white cat, whom she held responsible for her misery.

"What are you doing?!" she had yelled.

"I'm feeding the cat," he had simply replied.

Seing his wife's afflicted look, he had even added, "Mrs Chastain is dead. The least we can do is feed her cat."

She tried to explain her point of view but eventually gave up, knowing it wouldn't change anything. Since that day, Kitty hadn't shown himself and she thought, with relief, that he had probably found a new family to live with.

This last two weeks also gave her time to finally call her mother. She remembered the joy she heard in her voice. As she didn't want to worry her, she decided to act as if nothing had happened, which provoked an argument between her and her husband.

"Can you imagine her reaction if the situation doesn't turn out to your advantage and she finds out? You won't protect her by lying to her!"

"If the situation doesn't turned out to my advantage? What do you mean? That I'm going to go to prison? " She replied upset.

"That's a possibility that we shouldn't forget, yes."

When she heard her partner's words, Vanessa rushed out of the room crying loudly, while Rémi made an umpteenth phone call to his lawyer.

The following days passed and looked alike. The couple was drown in a complete mutism, managing in their own way the tragedy that had happened and the eventual consequences that they would have to face.

The night before, unable to bear this suffocating silence anymore, Vanessa, who was circling under her sheets, sundenly lit her bedside lamp startling Rémi who was about to fall asleep.

"Do you love me?" she asked him out of the blue.

"What are you talking about?"

Rémi, half asleep, turned to her waiting for an answer. Vanessa straightened up on her pillows and stared at him, decided to know the bottom of her husband's mind.

"Do you still love me?"

Rémi sat up in the bed and sighed, shaking his head, "Yes. Of course yes. You fucked up, you really did. But yes, I still love you."

Vanessa sighed with relief, everything wasn't lost. Rémi gave her a shy smile, spreading his arms to let room for his wife to slip into his embrace. Her head on his chest, she listened to the sound of his heartbeat and finally fell asleep.

So yes, for the first time in two weeks Vanessa felt serene, ready face her future although uncertain. Rémi would be at her side, he had proved it to her last night. A ray of hope grew in her chest, lightening a bit the weight that trapped her breastbone.

The bells began to ring in the distance, indicating the mass in honor of Mrs Chastain had just ended. Vanessa stayed in her car though, and saw the first people going out of the church and heading slowly toward the cemetery. Leading the small group, Vanessa could see two people supporting a third : Élise. She was the youngest of Mrs Chastain's children, she must have been barely older than Vanessa. From where she was, she couldn't see her face but according to her posture, she guessed that the youngest of the siblings was hardly standing.

It broke Vanessa's heart, both at the thought of seeing Élise devastated by her mother's death and knowing that Mrs Chastain had never realized how much her youngest daughter seemed to love her.

Behind the small group that walked toward the high walls of the cemetery, four men came out of the church carrying the heavy oak coffin.

Vanessa waited another five minutes, making sure that no one would see her, before getting out of her vehicle.

When she put her heel on the ground, gravel screeched under her weight, breaking the soothing silence of the place. Vanessa approached the entrance of the cemetery, trying to make as little noise as possible so as not to be noticed.

She spotted Mrs Chastain's relatives standing in a circle around her grave about fifty meters from her. Stealthily, Vanessa took refuge under the tall yew of the cemetery. From there, she could observe the scene quietly without being seen.

As the coffin sank underground, each took in a bucket on the ground, petals of white roses that they threw into the pit as a last farewell to the deceased.

Then, little by little, Mrs Chastain's relatives left the place and soon only the three children remained near their mother. They mourned for a few moments, holding hands, their heads bowed to their mothers' grave. When they turned to leave too, Danielle and Patrice looked up toward Vanessa. She stepped back and tried to hide behind the trunk of the yew.

Too late.

Patrice was already walking to her, his fists tight and a murderous look on his face. However, he stopped short when his older sister put a hand on his shoulder. She leaned over him to whisper something in his ear. Patrice nodded and turned around immediately followed by his sister. Both caught up with their little sister and left the place.

Vanessa sighed with relief. She quickly reached her car now eager to leave. As she was about to put her hand on the handle of her car, a rough voice stopped her in her gesture.

"You've got some nerve to come here!"

Vanessa gulped and turned to face the cold and merciless eyes of Danielle, Mrs Chastain's eldest daughter. The sixty year old woman wore a flawless black suit, her grey hair slicked back in a high bun gave her a surly look, the same as her mother.

"I-I," Vanessa stuttered, "I just wanted to pay a finale tribute to your mother."

"My mother died because of your negligence."

Hurt, Vanessa felt her cheeks burn with shame and looked down at the ground. Rémi was right, she shouldn't have come.

"It was an accident," she whispered.

Vanessa heard Danielle's footsteps getting closer. She looked up at the woman who was now less than fifty centimeters from her, invading her personal space. Uncomfortable, Vanessa crossed her arms around her while tightening her coat as if she tried to shield herself.

Danielle stared straight into her eyes, her brown, almost back, pupils glimmered with anger.

"I have no intention of making a scene here, my family's grieving and I don't want to upset them more than they already are. Élise is so... vulnerable."

Danielle shook her head as if to chase away the emotions that started to take over her. She spoke again.

"Be aware, though, that you won't get away with it. I plan to file a complaint against you."

She said all this in a low voice, barely audible, which made her threat event more terrifying.

Danielle didn't give Vanessa time to react and turned her heels to go back to her siblings. Vanessa, as for her, slipped behind the steering wheel, shaking. Danielle's words had just taken away the little hope that remained in her.

With a heavy heart, she started her car and slowly drove home. She saw patches of ice shining on the road and didn't want to risk an accident. So it took her another quater of an hour to returned to her accommodation.

When she arrived on the parking lot she perceived at the bottom near the place where she usually parked, flickering blue lights. She immediately understood what it was. Not knowing what to do, she parked on the first place she saw.

Her brain was racing and yet no clear idea could form in her mind. Why her? Vanessa wasn't a bad person. Anxiety and despair prevented her from breathing properly and she already imagined herself spending the rest of her life behind bars.

Vanessa hadn't turned off the engine and could hear it growling under the hood. For a few seconds she had the idea of running away. Far, far away from here starting a new life under a new identity. But she knew it was impossible. And then, there was Rémi. Could she be happy without him? No. She had to face the consequences of her acts.

So, Vanessa shut off the engine and opened the door of her car. As she walked toward her apartment she heard only the echo of her heels on the asphalt, beating in unison with her heart.

She saw Officer Tremblay's head sticking out of the roofs of the cars, Rémi was with him. As soon as he saw her, her rushed toward her and embraced her. Vanessa grabbed his back and buried her face in his neck. She tried to focus on every part of her body in contact with his, to impregnate herself with his perfume fearing it was the last time she could snuggle up in his arms.

Rémi tilted his head so that his mouth was near to Vanessa's ear and whispered, "I am sorry honey, Officer Tremblay just told me that you were being indicted. You'll have to follow him to the police station."

"So this is over?" she asked in a sob.

"No," Rémi sounded determined, "I'm going to call the lawyer, we'll fight, Vanessa."

He held her tighter against him and put his hand in her long blond hair. After a few seconds he gently moved away from her.

"You need to go now," he said placing a furtive kiss on her lips.

Vanessa crossed his gaze. She had never seen him like this. It was a mix of pain, anger and challenge. The next few months were going to be a real battle, but she had the certaincy that he wouldn't forsake her.

As they arrived next to the police car, the officer headed to her as Rémi returned to their apartment. With her eyes fixed on his back, Vanessa watched him as long as she could, trying to enjoy his presence. She heard, as if coming from far away, the voice of the policeman without understanding what he was saying. Yet, she was well aware of the meaning of his words.

Officer Tremblay put his hand on Vanessa's back to encourage her to approach the car. Surprised she looker at him her eyes and cheeks reddened with sorrow.

"You're not handcuffing me?"

Officer Tremblay laughed with no joy and answered, "No. Mrs Perrin you're not a criminal. You committed a serious mistake and will be judged accordingly. Hopefully, you'll get a conditional sentence."

Vanessa just nodded and they both headed to the vehicle. As she walked, Vanessa couldn't help but think about Kitty. Would her fate have been the same if Mrs Chastain hadn't had a pet? Anyway, it was too late now to imagine what could have been.

Officer Tremblay opened the back door of the police car. Vanessa was about to sit on the old cloth seats when she felt it.

There, between her ankle, the same sweet and pleasant sensation she had two weeks earlier, standing in front of the casserole in Mrs Chastain's kitchen.

She lowered her eyes and crossed the triumphant gaze of the being responsible for all her misfortune.

He hadn't disappeared in the end. He was there, free, mocking her between her ankles.

That damn cat!

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*Persian proverb

Thank you for reading ❤️ if you liked the story, please let me know by voting or leaving a comment.

So? Do you think the culprit was Vanessa or the cat?