That evening, after dinner, as Jessica was about to retreat to her bedroom, a commotion arose at the door.

Linda entered, linked arm in arm with Anthony, a trail of servants lugging suitcases behind them.

Anthony instructed the servants to take the luggage to the guest room, then turned to Jessica.

"Linda is back in town and hasn't found a place yet, so I told her she could crash here for a bit."

Linda arched an eyebrow. "I won't be here long, Mrs. Harris. You don't mind, right?"

Jessica kept her cool, "Not at all, Ms. Brown. Make yourself at home."

She would be out of there in three days anyway.

Anthony looked at her, taken aback, "You're not upset?"

Jessica shook her head with a hint of resignation. "I'll be moving out soon anyway."

Anthony blinked in surprise. "What do you mean by that?"

"Just rambling," Jessica dismissed with a wave of her hand.

Anthony sensed that something was not quite right with her, but before he could probe further, Linda chimed in.

"Anthony, weren't you going to take Tracy to the amusement park?" she asked, her voice and demeanor taking charge as if she owned the place.

Anthony seemed spellbound. "Right, I'll go get Tracy now."

He glanced at Jessica, his lips parting as if to speak, but no words came out.

Jessica, ever the understanding one, encouraged them, "Go ahead, think of it as a warm welcome for Tracy's return."

Linda looped her arm through Anthony's again. "Exactly, like a perfect little family."

Jessica caught the triumphant glint in Linda's eye but responded with a courteous smile before turning to leave.

The evening passed, and darkness enveloped the sky.

As Jessica was drifting off to sleep, voices floated in from outside her door.

It was Linda, her voice dripping with sweetness. "Anthony, stay with me tonight, won't you?"

His reply was soft yet unwavering, "Linda, Jess is my wife, even if just in name. She's here. It wouldn't be right."

"I'm the one on the marriage certificate, the real wife. It makes sense for you to be with me," Linda insisted.

In the quiet of her room, Jessica's fingers tensed, and she consciously slowed her breathing to calm the storm inside.

Anthony let out a long sigh, his voice tinged with resignation. "You're Tracy's mom. Just know I'll always do right by you."

Linda's voice was a whisper, choked with tears. "Can you promise me you won't touch her while I'm staying here?"

Anthony gave a low, affirming hum.

Soon after, the sound of a bedroom door echoed from next door.

Jessica's eyes fluttered open, and a silent smile played across her lips.

Three people, three rooms, each with their own hidden agendas.

Come morning, Jessica descended the stairs to find Anthony and Linda already at the breakfast table.

"You looked so peaceful sleeping, I didn't want to wake you," said Linda, her tone dripping with insinuation. It was as if she owned the place and Jessica was just passing through.

Anthony said nothing to set the record straight.

Jessica ignored the jab and took a seat.

Linda got up and handed her a bowl of mushroom walnut soup. "Try it, I made it myself."

One look and Jessica saw the walnuts lurking at the bottom. She had been allergic her whole life; one bite could be deadly.

"Sorry, I can't eat walnuts," said Jessica, pushing the bowl away.

Linda's face crumpled, tears welling up as she turned to Anthony.

"Maybe I should just leave, hit the streets. It's better than being unwanted."

With that, she rose to pack.

Anthony was at her side in an instant, his voice a soothing whisper.

Anthony turned to Jessica with a stern voice, "Jess, come on, drink up. Linda's been slaving away since dawn to make this."

Jessica stared at him, her eyes wide with disbelief. "You know I'm allergic to walnuts. Are you really asking me to risk my life just to spare her feelings?"

Anthony's face was stormy as he ordered, "Jessica! As the head of this household, I'm telling you to drink that soup!"

Linda had already taken her bags downstairs, heading for the door.

In a panic, Anthony rushed to Jessica's side. He grabbed the bowl of soup and forced Jessica's mouth open, pouring it down.

"There's no way a bowl of soup can kill anyone," he muttered.

Jessica could not fight back as she was made to swallow the mushroom walnut soup.

Finally, Anthony backed off.

Jessica's knees buckled, and she slumped into a chair, coughing and sputtering, her face wet with tears and a runny nose.

Without a second look, Anthony went after Linda.

After soothing Linda, who was crying in his arms, Anthony passed by Jessica and remarked calmly, "Look at you, not a scratch. Always playing the damsel in distress."

Jessica's throat was so swollen that she could barely whisper, "Call 911... help me."

Anthony scowled, "You're about to be a mother. It's time to grow up. Apologize to Linda, now."

Jessica's mind was foggy, and she passed out, suffocating in silence.

Anthony never imagined that a simple bowl of mushroom walnut soup could have nearly cost Jessica her life.

Sitting in the back of the ambulance, he was ghostly pale and shaking uncontrollably.

"Jess, please don't scare me like this!"

After being whisked into the ER, it took a grueling five hours before Jessica was finally wheeled back out.

The doctor, pulling down his mask, let out a weary sigh. "If you'd been any later, not even the best doctor in the world could've brought her back."

"Didn't you know she had allergies?" he asked, looking at Anthony.

Anthony could not find the words. He had known about her allergy, yet he had pushed her to drink that deadly soup.

The weight of his guilt was crushing.

He did not leave her side, not until her eyes fluttered open again.

Her throat was still sore and swollen.

Holding her hand, Anthony asked, "Knowing how bad walnuts are for you, why didn't you stop me?"

What was she supposed to do, plead with him?

When she just looked at him, straight and unwavering, Anthony could not bear it and looked away, feeling guilty.

His phone rang, and after a moment's hesitation, he answered.

"Jess is okay, stop beating yourself up, no tears now."

He handed the phone to Jessica. "Linda is really torn up about it, she wants to apologize to you herself."

Jessica held the phone to her ear, bracing herself.

However, Linda's voice was harsh and mocking. "Jessica, I heard you nearly kicked the bucket. Anthony didn't blame me at all. Tell me, who do you think is more important to him?

"I knew about your allergy to walnuts, and I did it on purpose. Go ahead, call the cops. Ah, what a shame, you've got no proof."

Jessica's grip tightened on the blanket, and in a swift motion, she hurled the phone against the floor.

Anthony shot up from his chair.

"Jess! Linda is just trying to say she's sorry. Why can't you let this go?" he exclaimed.

With every ounce of strength, Jessica screamed, "Leave!"

Anthony's face turned stormy. "I've arranged for a nurse to take care of you. Use the next few days to cool off," he said.

He picked up the remnants of the phone and strode out of the hospital room.

That same day, Jessica signed herself out of the hospital.

She walked into the home she had lovingly crafted over five years, feeling the weight of betrayal.

Every detail of the villa, from the choice of location to the smallest decoration, had been her doing.

In the living room, the wedding portrait still hung, their smiles frozen in time. In a twist of fate, Linda had been pregnant during those captured moments of false joy.

In a fit of rage, Jessica grabbed a vase from the coffee table and hurled it at the photo.

The frame hit the ground with a resounding crash, dust billowing up.

The nanny rushed in at the sound. Jessica pointed at the wreckage. "We're going to need a new photo. Burn this one. Burn all the pictures of us in this house."

The nanny got to work, collecting every photo album and frame, then stacking them on the lawn.

Jessica uncorked several bottles of Anthony's prized red wine, dousing the memories in scarlet.

She poured a glass for herself and one for the nanny.

Their glasses met with a hollow clink, the echo of a five-year love breaking apart.

Jessica flicked the lighter and tossed it into the heap, watching the past go up in flames.

Flickering flames cast a warm glow as Jessica tipped back her glass, the last of the wine mingling with the tears that traced a path down her cheeks.

The remnants of Anthony's affection lay scattered around her—designer bags, silk gowns, glittering jewels, all tokens of years gone by.

With a sense of finality, Jessica boxed up the luxury and posted it for sale on a second-hand site, directing the funds to an orphanage.

The news hit Anthony like a punch to the gut when his assistant called. "Mrs. Harris is selling everything you gave her."

He scrambled into his clothes, his face pale, his heart racing. He tried to reach her, but his calls echoed unanswered as he sped through the city streets, his car a blur of motion and red lights ignored.

The car barely stilled when he burst into the yard and found Jessica. There she was, lost in a sea of empty bottles, cradling a glass, her song a soft, sad murmur. Relief washed over Anthony as he knelt before her.

"Jess, why didn't you pick up? I was worried sick."

She turned, her gaze piercing. "Why would that worry you?"

He caressed her warm cheek. "I thought you were mad, hiding from me."

The alcohol lent her courage, and she asked the question that haunted her. "Anthony, are you keeping secrets from me?"

His heart plummeted. He looked away as a battle raged within. When he faced her again, his eyes were wide, his expression earnest. "No, never. We're in this together, open and true."

However, as Jessica's eyes drifted past him to the lifeless ashes beyond, the truth lay there, unspoken.

The last glimmer of hope in Jessica's heart was snuffed out when Anthony lied to her once more.

Anthony saw the scab on her palm and asked with concern, "Jess, what happened to your hand?"

She thought about blaming him but bit back the truth. "Oh! Just a dog bite."

Anthony fetched the first-aid kit and knelt to clean and wrap her wound. "You're always so reckless. I can't imagine how you'd manage without me," he said.

Jessica scoffed silently. She had once seen him as her protector from life's storms, but at this point, she knew he was the source of them.

"I heard you sold the gifts I gave you," he mentioned casually.

Jessica looked away. "They were getting old. I wanted something new."

Anthony tied off the bandage with extra care. "If you don't like them, just toss them. I'll get you better ones."

He stood and drew her close, his breath warm on her ear. "Jess, I'm planning a welcome party for Tracy on Monday."

When she did not reply, he pressed on. "You've always dreamed of stargazing in Omaraine, right? After the party, how about we go there, just the three of us?"

The peaks of Omaraine's Green Mountain soared over 2000 meters high, a perfect canvas for the stars.

It was Jessica's dream destination.

However, that dream felt hollow then, especially after the email she received yesterday from Brittania.

"Mrs. Sullivan, it's with deep regret that I must tell you, the observatory has confirmed your blue star is set to fall in three days."

The love once believed to be unbreakable was then scarred and battered.

Even the stars, once thought eternal, were on the brink of collapse.

Anthony released her from his arms. "If it doesn't make you happy, Jess, we don't have to go through with the welcome party..."

With her head cleared from the fog of alcohol, Jessica replied calmly, "What are you talking about? The welcome party is happening, and I'll take care of the arrangements myself."

A look of joy spread across Anthony's face as he embraced her once more.

"I'll do whatever you wish, Jess. And I've got a few more surprises up my sleeve for you."

Anthony had it all planned out. On that day, he would formally present her with their marriage certificate, making their union official in the eyes of the law.