The Last Judgment

Chapter 1

My ex, Chad, hated me.

I dumped him the year he hit rock bottom.

Years later, he struck gold, and just like I used to do, he waved a wad of hundred-dollar bills in my face.

He forced me to be his mistress while flaunting other women.

I never got mad.

Never interrupted his little games.

He’d grab my throat, eyes bloodshot, asking, “Why doesn’t it hurt you? Are you even human?”

But I’m almost out of here, so why would I feel anything?

1.

“I hear Tiffany here is a real piano virtuoso. Why don’t you play something for us, Tiffany? Liven things up?”

That was Brittany, Chad’s latest arm candy.

She was sprawled all over him, giving me a nasty look.

Everyone in the VIP booth turned my way, smirks plastered on their faces.

Chad sat there in the middle of it all, eyes dark, not saying a word.

I knew what that meant.

Nobody in this room would dare say a word to me without his okay.

I didn’t fight it.

Just went to the piano and started playing.

Everybody knew the story.

I, Tiffany Sterling, former debutante, dated Chad when he was a broke nobody. Then, when things got boring, I kicked him to the curb.

Even threw money at him when he begged me not to leave.

While he waited outside my apartment, I was out partying with other guys, no strings attached.

Then my family lost everything. Parents got sick. All that was left was debt. Friends disappeared.

I went from playing at international competitions to tickling the ivories in a karaoke bar for a hundred bucks a pop.

Chad, on the other hand, became the hotshot everyone wanted a piece of.

First thing he did when he got back was buy me.

Payback’s a bitch, right?

I knew he hated me.

Brittany smirked, like she’d won something.

As if the ice queen of yesteryear was nothing more than a pushover.

But Chad wasn’t exactly thrilled.

He was practically crushing his glass, pushing Brittany off his lap.

She looked confused, like a kicked puppy.

“Chad, honey, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to put Tiffany on the spot. I know, after all these years, you still have feelings for her.”

Brittany started crying, all fragile and innocent.

I guess Chad really did care about her.

He wiped her tears, ruffled her hair.

Then, he looked at me, his eyes like ice.

“Tiffany? She’s just a plaything. Dating her was the most embarrassing thing I’ve ever done.”

“Pick whatever you want. The lady can play anything.”

I kept playing, but my mind was somewhere else.

Chad said dating me was embarrassing.

But he was the one who used to say being with me was the best thing in the world.

The one who promised to protect me.

The one who couldn’t stand anyone saying a bad word about me.

The one who knew how much my piano meant to me.

Now, he was the one humiliating me.

I laughed, a sharp, brittle sound.

“Mr. Thompson is right. I’m just here for the entertainment. Whatever Ms. Brittany wants, she gets.”

Even though I was playing along, Chad’s hand tightened into a fist, like he wanted to smash his glass.

Honestly, I didn’t care anymore what he did.

I buried my parents.

There was no one left who mattered.

I was free to go.

2.

I put on the diamond necklace my mom left me.

I was going to the cemetery to see my folks.

Chad forced me to live in this dump, a tiny apartment compared to the mansion he bought Brittany.

I was his mistress in name only.

He rarely came here.

Probably couldn’t stand breathing the same air.

He was always at Brittany’s place.

Giving her everything, throwing her extravagant parties.

The gossip rags all said Chad was head-over-heels for her, marriage was just around the corner.

Every time he threw a party for Brittany, he’d drag me there to play piano until my fingers bled, all to keep her happy.

He knew the piano was my pride, so he was breaking it, piece by piece.

I snapped back to reality.

Did my hair, and headed out the door.

And there was Brittany.

We were both Chad’s girls, but that’s where the similarities ended.

She was wearing a designer dress Chad had just bought for her, while I had on a cheap white shirt.

Her eyes screamed contempt.

“Tiffany, honey, this is where you live? Chad didn’t even get you a villa? Want me to have a word with him? Maybe he’ll find you something a little nicer?”

Brittany smiled, all sweetness and venom.

But when she hid the malice, she looked almost exactly like me when I was younger.

Brittany knew it, too.

She played up her advantages, and she was scared I’d steal her spot.

But I didn’t have the energy for this.

To her, a man was everything.

I just wanted to spend my last days in peace.

“Get out of my way. Chad’s not here. You don’t need to put on a show. Not everyone’s like you, chasing after a guy like it’s their life’s purpose.”

“You!”

Brittany raised her hand to strike me.

I grabbed her wrist and pushed her.

A spoiled star like her couldn’t handle a light shove.

I didn’t want to deal with her drama, so I started to walk away.

But she suddenly covered her face and started backing away like I was a monster.

“Tiffany, I’m sorry! I’ll never go near Chad again. Please, don’t hit me!”

I looked up, and there was Chad.

He didn’t even glance at me.

He went straight to Brittany, picking her up and whispering sweet nothings.

Then, he glared at me, cold as ice.

“Tiffany Sterling, apologize.”

I looked at Chad, so quick to turn on me for someone else, and remembered years ago.

He used to stand up for me, giving anyone who crossed me a piece of his mind.

Things changed.

Now, it was someone else behind him.

“She came here looking for trouble. Why would I apologize?”

My voice was flat, no anger in my tone.

“Chad, don’t be mad at Tiffany. She still cares about you. That’s why she hit me.”

Brittany clung to his arm, looking pathetic.

Chad laughed, like he was about to lose it.

“Fine, don’t apologize. I remember that necklace you’re wearing, the last thing you had after the Sterling Group went down the drain. Why don’t you give it to Brittany, and we’ll forget this ever happened.”

Chad stared me down, waiting for me to crack.

“You want my mom’s necklace? Seriously?”

I clutched the diamonds, glaring at them.

“Suit yourself.”

Chad was like a general on a battlefield.

He always knew how to hurt me the most.

“But I guess your parents’ graves could use a change of scenery, too.”

Brittany almost lost her cool.

She wrapped her arm around Chad’s, looking down at me.

I couldn’t believe what I was hearing.

My whole body shook.

I took off the necklace, threw it at Brittany, and stumbled away from that place.

“Good choice, Chad. It’s the only thing I own that’s worth anything. But I’ll be dead soon, so I hope Ms. Brittany doesn’t mind the bad luck.”

3.

I never made it to the cemetery.

I passed out on the way.

I was dreaming, remembering things.

Why I dumped Chad was simple.

My family went broke.

My parents were sick and couldn’t run the company.

The shareholders circled like vultures.

Chad and I were long-distance.

He was starting his company, and I was dealing with everything.

I knew if I told him what was happening, he would come home and help.

But he had worked so hard, I couldn’t be the one who held him back.

So I broke up with him when he came to see me.

“I’m tired of playing the poor-boy-meets-rich-girl game. Take this as a parting gift.”

I threw money on the ground, and walked away, hoping he didn’t see me crying.

He stood outside my apartment every day, sent me messages that I never read.

The last thing I did was let him see me with another guy.

After that, we didn’t talk.

Until he showed up again when I was playing piano.

His eyes were cold and full of hate.

I woke up crying.

Chad was sitting by my bed.

He saw I was awake, and reached out to help me up.

I didn’t expect to see him here.

“Tiffany, the hospital called me. I was the first person in your phone. Thought you didn’t care? What’s this all about?”

I set that up when I was younger, and never changed it.

“You seem fine. What’s the show for?”

Chad’s words cut like knives, but his grip on my arm was tight.

“You came running as soon as you got the call, didn’t you? Guess I still mean something. Everyone says I’m the one you can’t forget. Turns out, they’re right.”

I said, needling him.

He looked like I hit a nerve.

He pushed me onto the bed, grabbing my throat.

He was wearing the ring I gave him years ago.

“You think I still love you? Someone like you, who plays with people’s feelings, deserves to be punished. I heard your parents died soon after you left me. The company went bankrupt.”

He whispered, close to my ear.

“Serves you right. People like you get what they deserve.”

I gasped for air, pushing him away.

Then, I slapped him.

“Yeah, I deserve it. I’m not going to last much longer. But the thought of seeing your face makes me sick!”

“Then die already! I wish you would.”

Chad’s face was dark.

His phone started ringing.

He hesitated, then answered.

Brittany’s voice came through the phone.

“Chad, why did you leave me? I’m all alone at the party. Please come back.”

Chad didn’t answer.

He stared at me, waiting for me to say something.

I opened my mouth, and his eyes lit up.

“Chad, can you…”

“Can you leave?”

Chad looked stunned.

Then he stormed out of the room.

After he left, I started coughing, and threw up blood all over the bed.

I knew I was running out of time.

4.

After getting out of the hospital, I thanked my doctor.

Now, I just wanted to find a quiet place to die.

But even that was too much to ask for.

I was woken up by a loud noise outside.

I opened the door, and there were reporters everywhere.

“Ms. Sterling, is it true you’re having an affair with Chad Thompson?”

“Ms. Sterling, is it true that you dumped Chad Thompson when he was down and out, and now you’re trying to get back with him that he’s rich?”

“Ms. Sterling, why would you do something like that?”

The reporters swarmed me, trapping me.

Chad never said anything about me.

It was obvious who sent them.

Brittany was more afraid than I thought.

She wasted her money.

I was going to die soon anyway.

“Ms. Sterling, please answer.”

“Ms. Sterling, are you guilty?”

I looked at the reporters, grabbed the microphone from the closest one, and said:

“First, I’m not having an affair. I’m just the mistress.”

“Second, tell Brittany that she’s not much better than me.”

“Third, Brittany doesn’t have to worry about me stealing her man. I’m not going to be around much longer.”

The reporters went silent.

They didn’t expect me to say that.

I insulted both Chad and Brittany.

I didn’t care.

I tried to close the door, but my head started spinning.

I took a few steps back, and my nose started bleeding.

Then I passed out.

Before I went down, I saw Chad yelling at the reporters, running towards me.