The Price

The evening had settled into a heavy calm as Marion returned to the mansion. 

I had been waiting in the foyer, my heart still racing from the unsettling encounter at the store. When I saw him, I rushed forward, my voice trembling with urgency.

 "Marion, I need to tell you…" I began, breathless, as I grabbed his arm. "I was at the store today, and Richard confronted me. He seemed suspicious. He said I looked really familiar, that I must be from somewhere I shouldn't be. I denied it, of course, but he wouldn't let it go. He kept insisting that I'm someone else... that I'm not who I claim to be."

Marion's expression darkened as he listened, his eyes narrowing. He gently pulled me aside into a quieter corner of the foyer. "Selena, tell me everything," he said, his tone low and serious.

I swallowed hard. 

"Well, he was well-dressed, his suit impeccable, and his eyes… they were cold and calculating. He kept repeating that he'd seen me before.