THE IN-LAW

Under the fences of the Lutalo mansion, secrets awaited,silent,heavy and patient.Inside, the family knew the truth. Sasha Lutalo was gone,burned ,erased.To the public, she was traveling. Resting abroad. Recovering privately. A noble young woman taking time away from society.No one outside suspected anything. And that was the way it had to be.Immaculate Lutalo sat at the head of the long dining table, her hands folded neatly.Alex, her husband, stared blankly at the crystal goblet in front of him, lost in his usual daze. He had never been a man of action. He let his wife control everything. Always.Abbey, their eldest son, tried to keep his face neutral, though his eyes protrayed the unease he didn’t voice.Andrew watched quietly from the far end. Observant. Distrustful. He had learned early that in this house, silence often carried more weight than words.Andrea a normal girl in usual clothes ,low class and desperately indeed for a job arrived at the mansion gates. She was nothing more than a girl seeking work.“I’m here for the house staff position,” she said to the guards.They froze for a bit and stammered as they requested for a pardon .“I’m here for the house staff position,”she repeated.“There is no opening,”the guards replied .Andrea smiled faintly. “There will be.”The gates opened.

Inside, the mansion was exactly as Sasha had described itcold, polished, intimidating. Every marble floor, every gold frame, every silent servant spoke of wealth and power.Immaculate noticed her immediately from the balcony.The resemblance struck her like a blade. Not Sasha exactly, but enough to make the memory of her own crime ripple through her carefully maintained calm.The wind seemed to hesitate for a bit.“Bring her inside,” she said.Andrea kept her eyes lowered.“What is your name?” Immaculate inquired as she glarred at her.“Andrea ,miss I heard from a friend that you were hiring,”she replied facing the ground.“Oh well come inside Andrea”,Immaculate requested in a soft voice.As Andrea entered the mansion ,Abbey paused for a while,he even dropped the glass of wine he had in hands.“Sasha !” he said“This is not Sasha she is Andrea our new housemaid ,”Immaculate replied.Alex and Andrew,their youngest son just stood quietly in the corner of the house as they observed quietly but in a daze.Andrea was the hired just like that.She cleaned. Observed. Learned the rhythm of the house in silence. Every locked door, every camera, every shadow.Three days later, Immaculate summoned her to the sitting room.“You understand why we hired you,” Immaculate said smoothly.Andrea said nothing.“You resemble someone important to this family,” Immaculate continued.A pause. A glance at Abbey. A flicker at Andrew.“Your loyalty will be rewarded.”Andrea’s eyes lifted, steady. “What kind of reward?”Immaculate’s smile was thin and sharp. “You will no longer be a staff member. You will take Sasha’s place.Abbey stiffened and Andrew’s jaw tightened“Sasha who is Sasha?” she asked.Alex stirred in his chair, still dazed, still passive, letting Immaculate’s control steer the room.Andrea allowed a faint flicker of confusion to cross her face—perfectly timed. “I don’t understand,” she whispered.Immaculate leaned forward. “You don’t need to. Just do as you’re told.Become Sasha Lutalo,Abbey’s wife only temporarily .”That night, Andrea stood alone in Sasha’s old bedroom.She opened a small velvet pouch from her suitcase. Inside lay a half-burnt photograph of Sasha, smiling, alive in memory.“They think you’re gone,” Andrea whispered into the darkness.Her reflection in the mirror stared back, unreadable.“I didn’t come here to replace you,” she said.“I came to finish what you started.I will avenge you.Just keep silent where you are ”