As far as work parties went, this one wasn’t bad. Of course, I’d probably enjoy it more if the party wasn’t for me. My plan for my last day had been to sneak out an hour early to avoid all the goodbyes, both genuine and insincere. Because some of my coworkers were happy to see me go. Not all of them. Just the few that called me Kendall the Good behind my back because they thought I was our supervisor’s favorite. Petty BS that I definitely would not miss.
Mrs. Tate, my supervisor, must have sensed what I was planning and informed me yesterday that they were throwing me a party in my honor with a catered lunch on my last day, thwarting my escape plan. I’d worked for her as a student assistant all four years of undergrad and for the last year as a part-time paid employee once I’d graduated last year. She knew me well. And if I hadn’t been awarded the inaugural Lena Bennett Memorial Fellowship in psychology, worth a whopping 100k, I’d still be working for her.
My mom hated me working here. Her insistence that I quit and come work for her in her occupational psychology practice, and work on my master’s degree part-time, had led to one of our worst arguments, during which she’d called me lazy and accused me of working in the library because it was unchallenging. But that argument gave me the courage to apply for the Bennett Fellowship. I was on the fence about applying, not believing anyone would give me one-hundred thousand dollars to get my master’s. But I was wrong. And more importantly, I was free from my mother for two more years.
I checked my bank account on my phone for the millionth time since that morning to see if the first installment of fellowship money had been direct deposited into my account. It still wasn’t there, and I was getting a little nervous. I kept pulling up the form I’d turned in with my banking info up in my email to check that I’d given them the correct routing number. I had. So, where was the money?
Across the room I spied my bestie, Liv, talking to one of the librarians and smiled. Liv had rescheduled a meeting to be here. I couldn’t say the same for Byron, my man of three years. I’d reminded him this morning before he left for work about the party, and he swore he’d be here. But it was after one o’clock and I knew he wasn’t coming. He’d been acting weird for months, picking stupid arguments, storming out, and coming home after I was already in bed. It was probably a good thing I was moving into my own apartment this weekend. I think the space will do us good.
I checked my email again and saw an email had just hit my inbox from the office of Dr. Eli Brogan, Dean of Arts & Sciences, requesting a meeting with me for tomorrow morning at 11 am to discuss an important matter. I called Brogan’s secretary, hoping I could see him today, and was told he was in meetings all afternoon. But she verified there was a problem with my fellowship money. I knew it! I screwed something up and they were having a problem depositing the money into my account. I could resolve this tomorrow. Thank God. I sighed with relief and went to get another piece of cake.
Her Pretty Lies
Genre: Psychological Thriller
Release: May 2024
Format: Print, Digital, Audio
Purchase Link
You trusted her like a sister. Now they think you killed her…
The paramedics tell me I’m in shock as they load the body bag into the ambulance.
Only days ago, I had everything. A man I wanted to marry. A prestigious fellowship for graduate school. A perfect new apartment. I’m a psychology student. I should have known she was hiding something from the start…
Now I’m shivering under a foil blanket wondering how my life became a nightmare.
And when the paramedics check me over, it’s not concern I see on their faces. It’s fear.
They think I did this. They think I killed her…
About the author
Angela Henry is an Amazon charts bestselling and award-winning author of the Kendra Clayton mystery series, the Xavier Knight urban fantasy series, and three standalone thrillers The Paris Secret published by Carina Press, and The Perfect Affair, and Her Pretty Lies, published by Storm Publishing. She lives in Ohio with her husband and their spoiled Chiweenie. For more info about Angela and her books, visit her website at angelahenry.com.