The Final Walnut

"Shane, you're good at everything. However, your heart is too soft since you love bringing pitiful animals back home."

I felt ashamed when I heard her words. So, I suggested that we break up.

However, a dog darted out onto the road out of nowhere when Shane chased after me, causing him to swerve the car and end up rolling down the mountainside.

I was a sobbing mess outside the ER.

The anesthesia hadn't worn off when he was finally wheeled out. Yet, he clung to my hand with all his strength, murmuring my name over and over, "Lena… Don't go… What's the point of me living if you are not here?"

My resolve faltered when I heard him.

His family stopped opposing us as well.

…

Under his meticulous care, I slowly walked out of the shadows of my past.

For the first time, I felt a sense of peace and happiness I had never known. I even felt that maybe this was the life Grandma had hoped for me all along.

I hesitated for a long time before deciding whether to open the final walnut.

…

On our first anniversary, Shane booked the most expensive restaurant in the city and proposed to me.

As I watched him go on one knee, diamond ring in hand, eyes full of love, I felt like I was the happiest woman in the world.

So, I said yes.

When I was giddy with happiness, I finally gathered the courage to crack open the last walnut.

I had imagined countless possibilities—perhaps a blessing, or a message telling me all my trials were over.

However, it was none of those.

Inside was only a slip of paper, the handwriting messy, as if written using one's last breath. 'Shatter every mirror in your house!'

I froze on the spot, confused as to what it was supposed to mean.

Our home was basically a miniature art gallery. Shane loved modern art with mirrored elements. There were at least a dozen mirrors scattered throughout the house, each worth a fortune, bought from auctions around the world.

Yet, I was supposed to smash them?

For the first time, Grandma's instructions felt absurd to me.

Just then, his call came through, his gentle voice flowing from the speaker.

"Lena, are you asleep? I just arrived in another city. There's an urgent art exchange event, and I might need about four days before I can come back.

"I forgot to tell you that I had prepared a gift for you for our anniversary. It's behind the dressing mirror in our bedroom. Go take a look."

My heart was a mess after I hung up.

Grandma's warning and Shane's gentleness crashed violently against each other.

I walked to the giant floor-length dressing mirror. In it, my reflection looked pale, frightened.

These three years, Shane had cared for me so thoroughly that I had grown dependent on him. My last relationship had been full of betrayal and terror.

It was Shane who pulled me out of the dark and gave me a home. So, how could I destroy the thing he cherished most because of a senseless warning?

Soon, messages from him came in again.

'Did you find it? Do you like it?'

'Lena, why aren't you replying?'

'Are you still upset that I had to leave suddenly? I'm sorry, it's my fault. I'll come back as soon as I finish here.'

'Believe me, Lena. No one in this world loves you more than I do.'

Shame consumed me as I continued to read those messages.

'How could I even think of doubting him?' I thought.

Then, I took a deep breath and threw the walnut and the note into the trash. I decided to forget the whole thing.

However, I saw a dark silhouette standing right behind me in the mirror from the corner of my eye as I turned. I whipped around but saw nothing.

Still, that barely-there moment was enough to make me break out in cold sweat.

'Was it just a hallucination?' My heart thumped wildly as I looked at the mirror again.

In it, my reflection had a twisted and eerie grin on its face. Its lips forming three silent words—"Smash. It. Now."

A scream tore out of me as I collapsed to the floor. 'No! This isn't an illusion! Grandma never gets things wrong!'

I scrambled to my feet, grabbed a nearby chair, and hurled it at the dressing mirror with every ounce of strength in my body.

The glass shattered instantly, and its shards scattered across the floor.

Behind the mirror, there was no gift.

It was a one-way mirror.

Behind it was a sealed room no larger than five square meters. Inside, there was a man tied to a chair. His mouth was stuffed with cloth, while his body was covered in blood. He had long stopped breathing.

His eyes were wide open, staring straight in my direction, frozen in pure, unfiltered terror.

Her Last Warning

My legs buckled, and I collapsed on the floor.

My stomach twisted violently, and I threw up until everything went black around the edges.

I crawled out of the bedroom and somehow managed to call the police, fingers trembling so hard I could barely hold my phone.

Terror squeezed my chest until I could barely form a sentence.

"H-Hello... 911? Someone's been killed... There's a dead body... in my house..."

The operator kept me calm, asked for my address, and stayed on the line.

Sirens grew louder, rushing toward my house.

Local officers arrived first.

One look inside that hidden room turned their faces white.

They sealed the scene instantly and called it up the chain.

…

Minutes later, a team of detectives in black uniforms filed in—all sharp eyes and tight jaws.

Leading them was the man I spent three years running from. My waking nightmare—Evan Cole.

He stopped cold when he saw me, just for a split second. Then, his expression clicked back to businesslike and unreadable.

"Lena Hart?"

I nodded, my lips trembling too hard to speak.

Of all the ways I imagined we might cross paths again, this was never one of them. Terrifying. Wrong. Cruel, almost.

I ran out on our wedding three years ago.

I wouldn't blame him if he hated me.

A female officer stepped up, draped a coat over me, and handed me a cup of warm water. "It's okay. We're here now. You're safe."

Not long after, Sunny Lane came running in—Shane's "best friend" and my closest friend in the city.

She threw her arms around me, sobbing.

"Lena! Oh my god, are you okay? I was scared out of my mind! What happened in here?"

"I couldn't reach Shane either. He loves you so much... How could something like this happen in your home?"

I leaned into her, still shaking uncontrollably.

Sunny was the only person I trusted here. She taught yoga, radiated warmth, and lit up every room she walked into.

She held me together when I was at my lowest.

She was the one who kept insisting Shane was good for me.

I clutched her hand like it was the only solid thing left in my world. "Sunny... I'm so scared..."

Evan's gaze swept over us, landing on me with a cool detachment that felt like a slap. "Lena Hart, you need to come back to the station with us to make a full statement."

"She's the victim! You can't just drag her in!" Sunny snapped, stepping in front of me.

"It's procedure." He didn't flinch.

They put me in the patrol car, but Sunny insisted on coming with me.

…

They put me in an interrogation room once we got to the precinct.

Evan questioned me himself. "Start from the beginning. The hidden room. The body. All of it."

I told him everything—the old walnut from Grandma, the mirror, and the impossible things I saw.

The officer taking notes froze, staring at me as if I were delusional.

Evan sat quietly for a long moment, fingers tapping the table. "So, you believe your 'grandmother' somehow guided you to all this?"

"I know it sounds insane, but it happened. Every word of it!" I blurted.

He didn't argue.

He just shifted gears.

"Where exactly is Shane Miller?"

"He said he went out of town for a conference."

"What conference? Where?"

I shook my head.

That was the moment I realized that I knew nothing about his schedule at all.

The questioning came to a halt.

They moved me to a small lounge.

Sunny came in with food, her eyes swollen from crying. "Lena, don't panic. I already called an amazing lawyer. Besides, I finally got in contact with Shane—he's rushing back. He said he'll fix everything."

She popped open the container. It was from my favorite mom-and-pop place.

She pressed the fork into my hand. "You haven't eaten all day. Just try."

I forced myself to pick them up.

…

Across the room, Evan's phone buzzed.

He checked his phone, and his expression dropped in an instant.

Slowly, he lifted his eyes and locked onto Sunny. That stare cut like a blade.

The next second, my phone buzzed.

The screen glowed, revealing his message. 'Trafficking boss' son. Gender reassignment in Solhara Isles last year. New name: Sunny Lane.'