Union Of Choice

What Lay Ahead

The insane game was over. Carlton Rutherford had been brought to justice.  He had been convicted of not just the murders of Evangeline and Vernon, but thirty-six others as well, ranging from the years 1965 to 2023.

So, he's been at it for a while.

It was also discovered that he had a part in several big names' "disappearances" AND was in fact planning to follow through with murdering the rest of us. The clues had been made to keep us off his trail.

It was quite disturbing, really.

He was sentenced to two hundred-eighty lifetime sentences in a maximum security prison with no chance of parole.

A fitting punishment I suppose.

It was a pretty open and closed case, evidence upon evidence being discovered in the depths of his old estate.

Both Evangeline and Vernon, along with the other thirty-six victims, had a memorial constructed in their honor. It was in place of the Rutherford Estate's massive fountain near the entrance. It was a sight to behold, much like when Evangeline and Vernon's yacht had been, somehow, parked in that very fountain.

The whole event and news of the other victims having been discovered after years of being cold cases was continuously reported on for months.

Apparently, people really love stories of tragedy and sorrow.

Genevieve eventually healed from the heartbreak of losing her husband. She was a strong woman and couldn't be kept down for long.

Bartholomew, on the other hand, realized how much he truly despised his wife, issuing divorce papers and an annulment the very same day he arrived back home. The only reasoning he supplied for doing so was that his wife was, "The spawn of Satan who needs to crawl back from whence she came."

But that all turned out fine and dandy. His ex-wife remarried the next week to a less wealthy but kind fellow and seemed to be even happier in this marriage than the previous.

Bartholomew and Genevieve started to spend more time together until they eventually decided to tie the knot. It was the wedding of the century, receiving more attention from the media than that time when Kylie Jenner gave birth to her fourth child named Blizzard. It had been Genevieve's idea to give away new iPhone 15's to everyone who attended.

There were many iPhones.

Then there was Edgar. After the Rutherford Estate had been condemned due to the many health code violations and the fact that it had been the sight for many a murder and conspiracies, he was left with nowhere to go.

I caught news that he was working as a butler for the Kardashians and felt terrible for the poor guy. That is when I opened my doors to him.

Carlton had been at the ready to frame Edgar for every crime he had ever committed and Edgar could have done nothing about it. He had been told to give each of the guests their glasses of wine according to the numbers on their placards. He had not known that a poison meant for killing rats the size of dogs had been snuck into Evangeline's drink.

It was also discovered that Edgar had been instructed to save the "confession" letter Carlton had wrote as the persona of Edgar until he was given a signal to hand it over to me for reading.

He had been threatened that if he did not play along, he would be shunned, dismissed, and sent off to work as the butler for his worst nightmare. The Kardashians. So it kind of came true, either way...

He isn't all that bad of a roommate. In fact, he was a great addition. The floors I spend most of my time on are always spotless, amazing meals are always prepared, and, best of all, I have a friend. Someone to talk to! We're raising my... Well... OUR pet turtle, Hubert, together.

He's great company. We bake cakes together, learned crochet together, we ride in my private jet together, and we even stay up all night watching the Real House Wives together.

We basically do everything together.

I have never been happier and I'm sure Edgar has not either. He still doesn't really talk.

Finally, there is me. Save the best for last.

I was honored with a Medal of Bravery and offered a job as a part-time detective for the BIF. The Bureau of Investigating stuff Federally. I humbly turned the job down.

As great as I was at solving mysteries, I figured they would do just fine without me. I was better at being rich and doing nothing anyway.

Of course, I had a brand new outlook on life. A life of being less stingy and more caring. I decided to donate a whole 15% of my fortune to various charities.

Trust me, it's a lot more than it sounds.

Sometimes I even do hands on work. Work like picking up people's filthy trash on beaches that could kill innocent sea creatures.

A bunch of savages they are.

I have also rescued many a kitten from trees.

I even started my own charity and rescue service to save a truly amazing endangered species known as the Pacific Northwestern Tree Octopus.

All in all, it had been one of the most twisted and wicked events I had personally ever been through. That most humans have been through. Or heard of for that matter.

Well, maybe that is a bit of an exaggeration, but you understand that it was quite traumatizing.

But on the other hand, it was also one of the best things to ever happen to me, as sad and twisted as it initially sounds.

It changed me for the better. I have become a more caring and giving person. I formed unbreakable friendships that have tested several hardships and made it through.

Bartholomew and I have become quite close actually, despite a couple of falling outs we have had... We've always patched things up.

One of our favorite things to do is to watch the poor people walk by on the streets. I hand them money and sometimes he scares them into giving it back.

Quite the symbiotic relationship.

I prefer it when they run away with it and he goes chasing after them, shouting threats and what not. It's hilarious because they always get away.

Genevieve went on to become a very successful businesswoman, making a fortune of her own. More than her inheritance. She and Bartholomew purchased a VERY secluded log cabin in a wooded area.

I am forbidden from disclosing anything else about that.

Edgar became more than just a butler. He too, became successful, creating a now well renowned support group for anyone who has ever worked for a celebrity or person who could afford to hire them. The organization is meant for discussing and working through some of the worst memories while working.

The classes constantly have an incredibly long wait list.

After everything we had been through, we didn't lose touch with reality or go insane and end up in psychiatric hospitals. Quite the opposite actually.

Yes, we still lived in the laps of luxury but we surrendered much of what we had to help those lesser and in need all around the world. Even the solar system. We managed to save the galaxy in 2025.

Actually, I shouldn't have disclosed that...

We all had great lives after the famous Night at Rutherford's.  Sometimes it's referred to as the Union of Choice, due to the fact we had NO CHOICE to form the union... But what happened happened and I would not have it any other way.