W.I.T.C.H: The Dark Descendant

The Condo Corpse

Chapter 22: The Condo Corpse

"...Criminals do not die by the hands of the law. They die by the hands of other men."

Heatherfield, 7:20 PM

Cornelia Hale had always known she was born to be more than a housewife from the suburbs of Heatherfield. She couldn't lie about it- she had been privileged all her life, but that was not the only reason for her high self-esteem and distinctive personality. While growing up, she had always outshined her peers with her beauty, wit and numerous talents: ice skating, her biggest passion, ballet dancing and even a career in modeling. She had been the popular girl in school. She had had each and every motivation to dream big. But as time went by, the beautiful blonde had to give up on many dreams and make amends in the name of bigger things.

She had given up modeling to go to college. Then, when she had gotten pregnant from the love of her life, she had given up college to be a good mother. Ice skating was one of the few hobbies she had kept to this day, alongside being a guardian, of course. Yes, Cornelia was almost 25; she was still so very young, beautiful and talented. She could still make all her dreams come true... If only she hadn't learned a little something about dreams, way too early in life- most of them were meant to remain just that. Dreams.

That was why, being true to herself, the young mother had two things on her mind while preparing a romantic dinner for her boyfriend. First, how much she wanted to make it up to him for acting like a bitch, and second, how nice it would be if she started modeling again. Yes, Cornelia Hale couldn't bear to be one-dimensional or plain- she was a hot mess and perfect ice queen all in one, and she wore her crown with pride.

"Caleb, you're home!"- the blonde exclaimed gaily when she saw her boyfriend walk through the modern kitchen door.

"Yep. Hi."- Caleb turned around and raised his left eyebrow. "What are you doin' there? Are you cooking?!"

"Don't sound so surprised."- Cornelia rolled her eyes, but still smiled. "I thought it would be nice to cook you dinner."

"Really? Well, that is nice of you- "

"Your parents called; they won't be coming home tonight. Lillian volunteered to look after Killian, so... it's just the two of us. So, I decided we should celebrate."

Announcing that, she pulled the apron off herself, revealing her luxurious black and pink outfit which was showing a generous amount of skin.

She looked up at her boyfriend with a twinkle in her eye, but to her disappointment, she realized that he wasn't looking back at her at all. He was going through their mail.

"Caleb."- Cornelia insisted. "We're going to have dinner. Please, go freshen up and then come to open the wine."

"Sure, Cornelia. But celebrating? We just celebrated New Year's the other day. You in the mood again?"

Cornelia blinked at him in disbelief over what she was hearing. It had been more than a week since their fight which had obviously left a scar, but she had thought that by now everything would be forgotten. It was not like Caleb to be mad at her for more than two days, especially when she was doing her best to make up for the part in the argument played by her. What was more, Caleb was sending her mixed signals. If he was still insulted by her words, then why was he fine during some days and then distant during others? Men will be men, Cornelia thought angrily. They had even had sex a few times after their 'big fight'. What was Mr. Rebel Leader's problem tonight, when she had put great efforts into organizing a romantic evening for him? Cornelia's confusion and desire to be sweet and kind were already morphing into fury when she finally found the words to answer: