EPISODE 6: THE PAST RETURNS ## CHAPTER 1: THE UNINVITED GUEST Catherine Ashford arrives without warning. Elena is in the cellar when she hears the commotion—voices raised, the butler's professional protestations, a woman's sharp English accent cutting through. "I don't need an appointment to see my own husband." Elena climbs the stairs, heart pounding. The woman in the foyer is beautiful—elegantly blonde, impeccably dressed, radiating the kind of old-money confidence that Elena has never possessed. She looks like she belongs in this house in a way Elena sometimes fears she never will. "You must be the new wife." Catherine's smile is crystalline. "I'm the previous one. Catherine." "I know who you are." "Of course you do. Dante always did his due diligence." Catherine's gaze sweeps over Elena—the dirt-stained clothes, the work boots, the hair escaping its practical braid. "Though I see his taste has... evolved." "What are you doing here?" "Business. I have documents that require his signature. Loose ends from our settlement." Her smile sharpens. "Don't worry, darling. I'm not here to steal him back. That ship sailed when I realized what I'd married wasn't a man—it was a marble statue with a checkbook." "Then wait in the study. I'll find him." "No need." Dante appears on the staircase. His expression is blank. Careful. "Catherine. You should have...