2

Chapter 2

The clinic was sterile and cold. I lay on the examination table, staring at the ceiling as the doctor explained the process. My hands were clenched so tight my nails drew blood from my palms.

This baby would have had Adrian's eyes, his ambition. But it would also grow up watching its father love someone else. I couldn't do that to an innocent child.

When it was over, I felt hollow. Empty in a way that had nothing to do with my body. My heart, usually so resilient, had retreated deep within me, mourning.

Back at the penthouse, I started gathering everything that reminded me of Adrian. Photos from our travels around the world, the diamond pendant he'd given me at our wedding, the signed partnership documents with my initials. Everything went into a box.

I took it all to the fireplace and set it ablaze.

That's when Adrian came home. He stopped in the doorway, staring at the flames, then at me.

"What are you burning?"

"Nothing important," I replied, my voice empty.

He moved closer, and I noticed how haggard he looked. For a moment, something flickered in his eyes—was it guilt? Concern?

"Sophia, are you sick? You look pale. Have you lost weight? You seem... different."

I almost laughed. After everything, now he noticed?

"I'm fine."

"Look, about the other day..." He rubbed the back of his neck. "Elena was in trouble. Her family was forcing her into a dangerous marriage alliance. I had to help her. You understand that, right?"

I said nothing.

He pulled out a jewelry box. "I got you something. That sapphire bracelet you wanted? I had it custom-made."

I stared at the bracelet. I'd mentioned wanting it six months ago. I'd already bought it myself three months later when he didn't remember.

"Why now?"

His face flickered with something—maybe shame that he couldn't remember the last time he'd given me anything.

"Because you're my wife. I want to make you happy."

I took the box without opening it and walked back to my room.

That night, my phone buzzed with a message from an unknown number. The profile picture made my blood run cold—it was Elena.

She sent me an address.

"Sophia, let's meet tomorrow. I have something interesting to show you about your husband."

Part of me wanted to ignore it. But I needed to see what kind of woman had stolen everything from me. I needed to understand what I'd lost to.

The next day, I went to the café she'd specified. Elena was already there, looking delicate and pretty in a white dress. She pushed a stack of photos across the table.

They were all of Adrian. At her apartment. Walking with her through the park. Kissing her outside a jewelry store. The most recent was from yesterday—him crashing her wedding, carrying her out in his arms while she cried against his chest.

"Do you see?" Elena's voice was sickeningly sweet. "He'll never truly be yours, Sophia. You can have the title and the wedding ring, but I have his heart. That's what really matters, isn't it?"

I kept my face blank even as pain ripped through me.

"If you really had him, you wouldn't need to show me these photos."

Her smile faltered. "You forced him to choose! If you hadn't manipulated him three years ago, we'd be together now!"

I stood up, leaving money for my untouched coffee. "Enjoy your borrowed time, Elena. Women like you never get happy endings."

As I turned to leave, she grabbed my wrist. "Let me show you what he really thinks of you!"

She yanked me toward the door, but as we stepped onto the street, gunshots exploded through the air. I threw myself to the side, my instincts kicking in. But Elena stumbled, crying out in fear.

From across the street, Adrian appeared, sprinting toward us. His eyes were wide with panic, fixed not on me but on Elena.

"Elena!" He lunged forward, wrapping his body around hers, shielding her.

The bullet meant for her hit me instead. I felt the impact in my shoulder, felt the burning pain spreading. Agony exploded through my body as I hit the pavement, blood seeping through my clothes.

Through dimming vision, I saw Adrian holding Elena, checking her for injuries, whispering comfort in her ear while I bled on the ground ten feet away.

Someone called an ambulance. But Adrian never looked at me once.

My heart broke weakly inside me, whimpering at the rejection. And deep within, something else stirred—something I'd kept buried for so long. A power that whispered: You don't need him. You never did.