Evelyn pressed the brake to stop the car when she saw the shop where she could get the basic tools needed to trespass into Snyder Villa.

She got out of the car, locked it with a beep, and started to walk toward the shop.

She entered the shop, took a basket, and began to collect all the items while maintaining her smart attitude and sharp gaze, checking her surroundings.

After collecting items like a glass cutter, a crowbar, a lock-picking set, two small but powerful flashlights with red filters to preserve night vision, two pairs of gloves, a strong rope, a boot knife, a tactical folding knife for self-defense, and a bunch of evidence bags, she went toward the payment counter.

A suspicious frown appeared on the shopkeeper's face when he saw those items, and it didn't take a second to understand the buyer's intention behind purchasing them. He began thinking about how to start a casual conversation with the unknown buyer to buy some time, so he could get a chance to call the nearest police station.

Evelyn understood what was going on in his mind with one glance at his facial expressions. She didn't want any obstacles in the way of her goal. As a result, she pulled out her identity card from her purse and held it up in front of the shopkeeper to answer all the questions forming in his head.

The suspicious look turned into one of relief when he saw it, and without wasting a second, he started to put all the items into a carry bag one by one while entering their prices into the cash register.

After that, Evelyn paid the bill in cash, and the shopkeeper uttered "Best of luck" with a gentle smile as he handed her the carry bag.

"Thanks!" she replied with a soft smile, and then she left the store.

                                 ***

Evelyn placed the carry bag on the back seat of her car, got inside, and immediately started the engine. She drove away toward the nearest shopping mall to purchase the remaining items.

While driving, she was compelled to laugh wholeheartedly for the first time after the tragic events involving her daughter and husband, recalling a moment from the hardware store.

The moment was when she showed her old identity card to the shopkeeper from her days as a secret agent in the Special Crime Department of New York. The shopkeeper didn't get a chance to notice the year because Evelyn was concealing it by holding the card between her thumb and index finger.

                                ***

Evelyn entered the Crystal Cove Mall to buy the rest of the items. Before starting her shopping, she headed to the food court to fill her empty stomach, which had been growling incessantly, reminding her it was time to eat. She wanted to ensure she had enough strength to focus fully on her task without being distracted by hunger.

She ate a small cheese pizza and drank a glass of water for dinner. Afterward, she went to various stores and bought a black mask, a black bucket hat, a black hoodie, matching black sneakers, two bottles of water, and a black shoulder bag to carry everything.

After paying the bill, she drove toward her only destination.

                                 ***

It was nine forty-five at night when Evelyn stopped her car on the quiet road, approximately two miles away from Snyder Villa.

She turned off the car lights and closed her eyes, resting her head on the seat as she recalled some important information about Snyder Villa that she had heard from her daughter.

Within the next ten minutes, her restless mind began to sink into the darkness of the car, and a sense of calm started to spread throughout her brain. As a result, the conversation between the mother and daughter began to surface in her mind, as if she were watching a scene from a movie.

                                  ***

"Mom, you might not know this, but as co-workers, Ed and I used to live in the same building provided by our company, just like our other colleagues. Ed lived next door to me.

Approximately two months ago, on a Friday night, we were busy having dinner in my apartment with two of our colleagues when the doorbell rang. I opened the door and saw Leo standing in front of me with a pale face, trying his best to give me a fake smile. Just as I was about to ask him about his expression, he hugged me tightly and said he missed me a lot.

At first, I was shocked by his statement, but then I realized he was pretending to be my loving husband because other people were present in my home. He joined us for dinner and spent the whole time lying to my co-workers about how much he loved and missed me.

In the meantime, I couldn't understand why he came to Los Angeles without informing me. If he had told me earlier, I wouldn't have invited them for dinner, and he wouldn't have had to tell them a few baskets of lies for no reason.

After they left, when Ed and I asked him why he had come here suddenly, he explained that Vini had broken up with him for another guy who was more handsome and rich. He left a note beside his bed saying he was going to the Maldives with the other guy forever. After telling us this, he handed me the letter, hugged me again, and burst into tears.

After reading the letter, we confirmed that it was Vini's handwriting, and we had no choice but to believe Leo's words. We knew he had never lied to us in the past and had no reason to start now.

My heart broke into several pieces because I felt that my sacrifices for Vini had gone to waste in the blink of an eye. He fooled all of us just for money, and I had lied to all of you for many years without reason. I even married Leo against your wishes.

Ed and I were once again forced to widen our eyes in shock when Leo demanded that we start a new life together as a couple and confessed that he was bisexual. As a result, I agreed to return to New York with him and submitted my resignation letter to my company.

After coming back from Los Angeles, I noticed something strange about Leo: he seemed afraid to live in Snyder Villa for an unknown reason. He insisted on having me with him all the time, even hugging me tightly while sleeping, as if he were a child afraid of nightmares. Despite this, he never touched me romantically and continued to hug me as a friend.

So, I decided to find some clues that might help me understand what actually happened in Snyder Villa during my absence. I asked all the maids, but they said they had no idea about his strange behavior. Additionally, I was astonished to learn that during the past two months, Leo had ordered them to return to their quarters after six in the evening because he wanted to be alone.

As a result, I started searching for anything useful to clear my thoughts about his suspicious behavior. Luckily, I found some papers in the drawer of our kitchen counter that clearly showed Leo had been suffering from persecutory delusions for the past four years. When I asked him about it, he replied with the same explanation I gave in the courtroom.

Leo's condition was worsening day by day, as he became increasingly frightened. He claimed someone was following him in the Snyder Villa and that he saw a shadow, but he had no idea whose shadow it was. Despite all this, I noticed he was particularly afraid of the garden in the Snyder Villa, even though gardening was once his favorite hobby. He wouldn't allow any of the maids, or even me, to go into the garden during the daytime. When I told him it was just his imagination, he suggested we move to Japan to start a new life in a new environment, which sounded to me like he just wanted to run away.

As a result, a strong suspicion arose in my mind that my answer might be hidden in the garden of Snyder Villa. I attempted several times to visit the garden secretly at night, but each time Leo caught me and forced me to go back to bed, insisting that it was unsafe for us to go there after dark, and that someone might be hiding to attack us.

After many days, I finally got the chance yesterday morning to satisfy my curiosity and clear my doubts by going to the garden while Leo was busy taking a shower.

After arriving, I saw that most of the trees were dead because no one had given them a single drop of water during those months, and rain hadn't shown its face even once in the last three months. Additionally, I learned from one of our maids that Leo had fired our two gardeners, giving them a large amount of money in compensation.

So, I decided to water the helpless trees before starting my investigation. I went to our beautiful, large garden storage bench to retrieve the watering can. It was made of black marble, including the cover, and used to open and close automatically when a button behind it was pressed. A large umbrella was placed over the cover to protect the button from rain and the heat of the sun.

I pressed the button, and as the cover opened, my breath caught in my throat. My eyes widened in horror, a cold shiver ran down my spine, and my whole body became paralyzed. A scream of terror escaped from my mouth as my lungs reacted when I saw the bruised body of my first love, Vini, covered in dried blood."

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