Chapter Twenty-One

At first, Stephanie hated meeting the Warden in the cave at night, but she found she had gotten used to it. As Stephanie stood in the moonlight of the cave with the Pacific Ocean behind her, the Warden thought she looked beautiful but not as beautiful as Daphne.

"So, are you sure everyone living on Robert's street will be at the movie premier tomorrow?" Stephanie asked.

"There's no doubt about it," the Warden said. "Robert isn't a movie person by a longshot. He'll be yours to do with as you please,"

"Yeah, I know, but I never leave anything up to chance," she replied. "Now, are you absolutely sure the outfit is good enough for CCTV cameras to think I'm Daphne if I'm caught on them?"

Robert smiled as he was so proud of his sick plan.

"As long as you wear the sunglasses, you'll be fine," Robert said. "But I've been assured the CCTV cameras in the area won't be working for two hours before you show up to murder Robert, and they won't be working for another two hours afterwards,"

Stephanie smiled, happy that the Warden had listened to her alterations for his plans, but she still had concerns.

"That's great," Stephanie said. "Now, when Daphne is in your prison, I want to become a member of Mystery Inc. as Fred's so insanely hot. I want to be Daphne's replacement,"

The Warden couldn't help but smile at her enthusiasm.

"It's guaranteed you'll become one of them, but it can't be so soon after Daphne's incarceration,' the Warden explained. "Just be patient and wait a while, and Fred will fall for you once he realises that Daphne is guilty and will never be released from my prison,"

As they continued to talk, their respect for each other grew more substantial, and they couldn't wait to tear Mystery Inc. apart.

XXXXX

Like many things in life, there are two sides to every story, and Daphne hated the side she was on in the aspects of her life involving Fred and Robert. No matter how they looked at her, she was in the wrong. Daphne couldn't talk to either of them, and she could only speak to Velma. They sat alone in a restaurant at a table in the back. Once they sat down, Daphne became unusually quiet, and Velma overlooked that. Daphne knew very little went unnoticed by her best friend, but she couldn't talk first.

"Jinkies, Daph," Velma said honestly. "What's wrong?"

Daphne sighed before she could summon up the emotion to talk.

"Fred and Robert hate me," Daphne said.

"Why do they hate you?" Velma asked, a little surprised.

"It's about what happened at the convention," Daphne explained. "Robert called me a common whore in front of the entire crowd, and it made me feel like a teenager again when I couldn't put a foot right to please my mother. She used to call me a common whore. That was her favorite expression to call me when I became pregnant,"

Velma remembered vividly how extreme Mrs Blake could be, and she reached forward to hold Daphne's right hand, and Daphne began to cry a little.

"It was a part of my life that I thought was behind me," Daphne said tearfully. "I thought I was loved for once in my life, and my mother couldn't get in the way of that. But there he was to throw it in my face because of that interview on 'Coolsville Excitement" and that goddamn calendar we did,"

Daphne let go of Velma's hand, reached into her handbag for a handkerchief, and blew her nose. Velma looked around to ensure no one was eavesdropping on their conversation. Then she looked back at Daphne. Tears still streamed down Daphne's cheeks, but she looked more dignified now.

"Fred hates me because of the way I acted at the convention," Daphne continued.

Velma rolled her eyes.

"Fred's an idiot for not listening to your side of the story," she said.

"It's not just that," Daphne said. "We were going to announce that we're engaged at the convention, but after I lost my temper, that went out the window. There was no way to announce it after the wedding. To be honest, I don't even know if he still wants to marry me,"

More tears came, and Velma leaned forward and hugged her tightly. Daphne hugged her back. Then, a question came to Velma's mind.

"Has Fred asked you for his ring back?" Velma asked.

"No," Daphne tearfully replied.

"Then you should consider that a good sign,"

Daphne appreciated Velma's support, but she had a more significant issue on her mind, and she broke the hug.

"So, what should I do about Robert?" Daphne asked.

"Well, technically, he is in the wrong, but you weren't able to look good in front of the convention crowd that day," Velma said.

Daphne became a little frustrated as Velma repeating the facts didn't solve her problem.

"Then what are you saying?" Daphne asked. "That I have to forgive him?"

"I'm saying that the three of you need to talk things out to resolve this issue and move on," Velma said.

"And how am I meant to do that?" Daphne asked.

"I heard about what happened at the mall, and you need to see Robert about it," Velma said.

To Daphne, that sounded wild, but Velma couldn't think of a better answer.

"You should think about it," Velma said, sensing her best friend's disapproval.

Daphne didn't see anything, as she thought about it, but she realised that Velma was right. There was no other answer.

XXXXX

The next day, Daphne was relieved that Fred had agreed to come home during their lunch hour, as she desperately needed to be alone with him. As they entered their bedroom, Fred wondered what was on her mind as she had been distant from him lately.

"Daphne, what is this all about?" Fred asked. "We could have talked in our office,"

"I didn't want to talk about what's wrong in the office," Daphne replied.

"So, what's wrong?" he asked.

Daphne couldn't believe Fred had asked that question.

"What's wrong?" she asked with bitter sarcasm. "Are you kidding me?"

Fred sighed as he knew there was a problem.

"We're what's wrong, aren't we?" he asked, scared.

"Yes!" Daphne replied. "You haven't asked how I've been doing since the convention, and you've never asked why I lost my temper with that man,"

"I'm so sorry, Daphne," he said. "Why did you lose your temper with that man?"

"When he called me a common whore, he reminded me of how my mother used to make me feel," she replied. "Don't you remember that when we were in high school?"

Fred couldn't believe what an asshole he had been.

"I should have remembered," he admitted.

"Yes, you should have," Daphne agreed bitterly.

Fred felt his throat tighten.

"Daphne, if I lost you, I wouldn't know what I would do," Fred said, holding back his tears.

"I wouldn't know what to do either, but if our marriage is going to work, you have to look beyond your own point of view and assume you're always right," Daphne replied.

Then the tears came for Fred, and Daphne hugged him.

"I'm so sorry," he said.

"I know you are," Daphne said. "Now, do you still want to get married?"

"Yes!" he exclaimed.

Daphne was relieved to hear that, and she kissed him. He kissed her back, and he stopped crying. Then she broke the kiss.

"Listen, we haven't been intimate for a while," Daphne said. "Have you got a condom on you?"

"Yes!" Fred replied enthusiastically.

"Then take it out,"

Fred smiled, and he took it out. Then they stripped each other, and Fred put the condom on. They were so desperate to have sex they didn't bother walking over to their bed. Fred pinned Daphne to the wall, and he penetrated her deeply.

"Uhhhhhhhh!" Daphne moaned with pleasure.

Fred began to thrust, and Daphne wrapped her legs around him. They had never had sex standing up before, and they loved it. Daphne was happy with the sex she was having and that they were well on their way to solving their problems. Fred was relieved that he hadn't lost Daphne, and they were more in love than ever.

XXXXX

Robert loved his life when it came to his retirement. He loved the freedom he had to be married to the woman he had loved for decades, and they had a wonderful son and daughter-in-law and a tremendous step-grandson. It was a beautiful day as he worked in his backyard garden. His wife was with her friends across town, and Robert could do precisely what he wanted. As he began to plant new seeds, he felt something he didn't expect. A sharp pain in his back. Then, another sharp pain. Then someone turned around. From his point of view, it was Daphne, and she was wearing sunglasses. Robert was terrified, and there was nothing he could do to stop her attack. But Stephanie knew she wasn't Daphne as she was dressed like her and wearing a wig. Stephanie stabbed him in the chest, and he fell on his back.

"Why?" Robert asked weakly.

Stephanie didn't say a word as she stabbed him three more times, and then she ran away. As Robert lay on his back dying, he was terrified as he had no idea what he had done to deserve this.

XXXXX

Daphne couldn't get Velma's advice out of her head, and she knew she had to see Robert to start making things right. A few hours later, she arrived at his house after finding his address online. She thought she would have to knock on the front door, but it was wide open. That was confusing to her, and she stood in the doorway.

"Hello," Daphne said. "Is anyone here?"

A gasp of air came from the other side of the living room.

"Help…me," the voice gasped.

Daphne walked in without hesitation and found Robert in the kitchen as he had crawled back inside. Once Robert saw her, he was terrified.

"Why did…you…come back?" he managed to ask, confused.

"Oh, my God!" Daphne said, horrified.

She walked over to him and put his hands on his chest in an attempt to stop the bleeding. As she kneeled over him, a lot of blood got on her dress.

"Why…are you…here?" Robert asked.

"I'm here to help you," Daphne replied, hoping to calm him down before she called 911.

"You…hurt…me," Robert said, clearly fading.

Daphne was confused by what he was saying as she couldn't imagine why he thought he had hurt her. Then he noticed the knife near him on the floor. Without thinking, Daphne picked up the knife in horror and wonder. But the second she had picked it up, she knew she had made an inexcusable mistake. Her fingerprints were now on the knife. Then she heard footsteps behind her, all belonging to police officers. Daphne was so scared that she couldn't even drop the knife.

"Daphne…hurt…me," Robert gasped.

Then, what followed was his last breath. One of the police officers, a man in his mid-twenties with brown hair and blue eyes, pushed Daphne out of the way and tried to revive him, but to no avail. Robert was dead, and Daphne was still holding his knife. The young police officer looked at his superior.

"He's dead," the young police officer said.

And with that said, Daphne dropped the knife. Then, she heard a phrase she had heard many times in television shows and movies. A phrase Daphne never thought would be said about her as her hands were placed behind her back and handcuffed.

"You have the right to remain silent,"