Adeline’s Pov

The next morning, I woke up to the sound of footsteps. Heavy, angry ones.

The door slammed open. Ethan stepped in, his expression cold, followed by two of his guards.

“Take her,” he said flatly.

My heart raced. “Ethan, what are you doing?”

He didn’t answer. The guards grabbed me, dragging me out of the room. I struggled, crying out his name, but he only stared ahead.

They shoved me into the old storage room at the far end of the house. Dust filled the air. My knees hit the floor.

“This is punishment,” Ethan said, standing in the doorway. “For what you did to Clara last night.”

“I didn’t do anything!” I shouted. “She’s lying—”

“Enough!” His voice cut through me like glass. “You’ll stay here until you learn to control yourself.”

He threw something into the room. It was a bouquet of lilies. My throat tightened immediately. He knew I was allergic.

“Ethan, please,” I gasped. “Not this… you know I can’t—”

“You should’ve thought about that before hurting Clara.” His tone was cold. “Maybe this will teach you to behave.”

Then the door slammed shut.

I pounded on it until my hands hurt, tears blurring my vision. My chest burned as the air thinned. I could barely breathe.

I fell to the floor, clawing weakly at the door, my lungs screaming for air.

After what felt like forever, the door opened. I collapsed onto the hallway floor, coughing violently.

Ethan stood over me, his expression unreadable. “If you ever touch Clara again, Adeline,” he said slowly, “I swear, you’ll regret it.”

He turned and walked away.

I lay there for a long time, shaking. Then my phone buzzed beside me. I fumbled to answer.

“Sweetheart,” my mother’s voice came through, soft and worried. “Your father booked your flight. Two days from now. Come home, Adeline. Please.”

My lips trembled. “I’ll come,” I whispered. “I promise.”

When the call ended, I sat there staring at the wall. Something inside me broke completely.

I dragged myself up, went to my room, and pulled out the box from under my bed. Inside were the memories of a life that no longer existed: wedding photos, love notes, Ethan’s first gift to me, the tiny blue blanket I’d bought for our son.

One by one, I threw them into the fireplace.

The photos curled and blackened. The smell of burnt paper filled the air.

I watched until nothing remained but ash.

I went back to the bedroom and started packing my clothes and documents into my box.

When I turned around, Ethan was standing by the door. His face was hard, his eyes cold.

“So, you’re packing already,” he said. “Good. When Clara comes back, she’ll move into the master bedroom. The guest room makes her uncomfortable. You can stay there.”

I said nothing.

He frowned. “I’m glad you’re finally seeing things my way. Maybe you’re not as useless as I thought.”

I turned back to my suitcase. “Is that all, Ethan?”

He ignored me and continued, “Clara’s in the hospital. She needs a blood transfusion. You’ll come with me.”

I froze. “No. I’m not donating anything to her.”

His jaw tightened. “You’ll do as I say.”

When I didn’t move, he grabbed my arm and pulled me along. “You owe her for everything she’s endured because of you.”

—

When we arrived, the doctor hesitated the moment he saw me. His eyes flicked from my pale face to the needle tray on the table.

“Mr. Morales,” he began carefully, “your wife isn’t in any condition for this. Her blood levels are critically low, and she’s still recovering from—”

Ethan’s glare cut him off. “Do I look like I care? Clara’s life is on the line. Do it.”

The doctor shifted uncomfortably. “If I take more blood from her, she might—”

“DO IT!” Ethan snapped, his voice echoing across the sterile white room.

The doctor’s hands shook slightly as he inserted the needle into my arm. The cold sting of metal pierced my skin, and crimson began to flow into the transparent bag.

The sound of the drip was too loud.

Ethan stood by the wall, his arms crossed. “Hurry it up,” he said flatly.

Minutes passed. My vision started to blur. The room tilted slightly, and the doctor’s voice sounded distant. “That’s enough. She’s at her limit—”

Clara’s shrill voice cut through the air, “Ethan, help, it hurts!”

“There’s nothing—” the doctor started to say but Ethan interrupted him.

“Take more!” he barked at the doctor.

The doctor froze. “Sir, if we take more blood, she could—”

“I said TAKE MORE!” Ethan thundered.

The doctor’s face was pale as he obeyed. The needle dug deeper, and I gasped. My chest hurt, my skin was clammy, but the worst pain was watching Ethan hold Clara’s hand as I bled for her.

“Ethan…” I whispered weakly. “Please… stop…”

He didn’t even turn. He stroked Clara’s hair and murmured, “It’s okay. You’ll be fine. Don’t cry.”

Each drop of blood felt like a piece of me leaving forever.

My lips turned numb, my body trembling violently.

The doctor tried once more, “Mr. Morales, she’s going into shock—”

“She’s faking it,” Ethan snapped coldly. “She always does this when she wants attention.”

My vision darkened. The beeping from the monitor became frantic. I could barely breathe.

Suddenly, the doctor shoved Ethan aside and pulled the tube out of my arm. “That’s ENOUGH!” he shouted. “You’ll kill her!”

Blood splattered across the sheet. I slumped back, my body shaking uncontrollably.

“Get her stabilized!” the doctor barked at the nurses.

The last thing I saw before the world went black was Ethan holding Clara close as she whimpered,

“I’m sorry, Ethan… this is all my fault,” she cried.

“It’s not your fault, Adeline is just being dramatic as always,” Ethan said coldly.

I stared at the man who had once promised to protect me as he glared at me like I was a stranger then I gave in to the darkness.

Adeline’s Pov

When I opened my eyes, everything was white. For a moment, I thought I was dead.

Then I saw Ethan sitting beside my bed. His head was bowed, his fingers running through his hair. He looked tired, like he's been sitting there all night.

“You’re awake,” he said quietly, his voice thick. “You’ve been unconscious for two days.”

I stared at him, saying nothing.

He sighed and looked away. “I didn’t know it would get that bad. I just… I panicked. Clara needed a blood transfusion, and I wasn’t thinking. I didn’t mean for you to suffer.”

The words meant nothing to me now.

He continued softly, “I realize I’ve neglected you lately. I didn’t even remember our anniversary. I’ve been… distracted. I want to make it up to you.”

He reached for a paper bag beside him and set it on the bed. “There’s a dress in there. When you’re discharged, my driver will take you to dinner. I’ve made reservations at your favorite restaurant.”

I just stared at the bag.

He forced a small smile. “Try to look beautiful again, Addy.” He leaned in, brushed his lips against my forehead, and left.

The door closed behind him, and the room went silent. I sat up slowly, my body still sore, and checked my phone.

There was a text from my father. ‘Your flight is at 9 p.m. tonight. My men will pick you up. I'm tracking your phone now.’

Two hours after my last dinner with Ethan. A hollow laugh escaped my lips.

The doctor came in not long after. “You’re being discharged today, Mrs. Morales,” he said, avoiding my eyes. “Mr. Morales has already paid the bills.”

“Of course he has,” I murmured.

He handed me my papers and left.

Two nurses came in with a dress box and a bouquet of white roses, my favorite flowers.

I stared at them until one nurse awkwardly said, “Mr. Morales said these are your favorites.”

I scoffed under my breath. A few days ago, I might have smiled. Today, I wanted to throw them out the window.

I dressed quietly. The red satin dress fit perfectly, as if he still remembered my size, but not who I was.

When the driver came to get me, I followed silently. The car glided through the city as the sky turned gold with the setting sun.

At the restaurant entrance, the waiter led me to a private table.

When I got to the table I saw Ethan smiling at me and beside him was… Clara?

Clara looked radiant, dressed in soft ivory, her hands resting on her round belly. Ethan looked slightly uneasy but smiled when he saw me.

“Addy, I’m sorry,” he began, standing. “Clara didn’t want to be alone tonight. She’s been anxious lately. I couldn’t just leave her.”

“Of course,” I said flatly, taking my seat. “You could never leave her.”

Ethan cleared his throat awkwardly. “Let’s not fight tonight.” He reached into a small box and took out two necklaces.

He handed me one. A crystal pendant. My breath caught, it was almost identical to the one Clara had broken. Inside was my baby’s ultrasound.

“I got this made for you,” he said softly. “I thought maybe it would remind you of him.”

For a brief second, my heart trembled. Then he turned and brought out another necklace of the same design, but Clara’s glittered brighter, lined with real diamonds.

He clasped it around Clara’s neck as she giggled softly.

Clara smiled sweetly, holding hers up to the light. “It’s beautiful, Ethan. You have such good taste.”

“I don’t need reminders of something I’ll never have again,” I said quietly, setting the necklace back on the table.

“Adeline—”

“I said I don’t need it,” I repeated, my tone sharper.

He sighed and tried to change the subject, asking about my health, the house, meaningless things. I answered in short, cold words.

Clara, meanwhile, filled the silence with stories about their childhood about how Ethan used to sneak into her backyard, how they used to play piano together.

Each story she told was deliberate and supposed to get a rise out of me but I ignored her.

Ethan smiled faintly through all of it, occasionally glancing at me as if hoping I’d join in. I didn’t.

Then, suddenly, the smell of gas hit me before a loud explosion followed.

BOOM! The restaurant exploded.

The lights shattered, the ground shook, and screams filled the air.

A blast of heat threw me backward, slamming me into the far end of the room. I hit the floor hard, pain surging through my body as debris rained down.

“Adeline!” I heard Ethan shout.

“Ethan,” I gasped, coughing through the smoke. “Help me!”

Clara clutched his arm, crying. “I can’t move! Please, Ethan, the baby… I can’t move!”

She wasn’t hurt. Not even a scratch. She was sitting perfectly upright, pretending to tremble.

I blinked through the haze, watching him stand in the middle as he stared between me and Clara.

Ethan’s eyes flicked to me, full of hesitation and then a cold resolve filled his eyes

“Hold on, Adeline!” he yelled. “I’ll come back for you!”

He scooped Clara into his arms and ran.

I stared, disbelief and heartbreak tearing through me as I watched him disappear through the smoke leaving me behind.

Clara turned her head slightly in his arms and smiled at me before the flames swallowed her face.

The heat grew unbearable. My lungs screamed for air. I tried to move, but debris pinned my legs. I couldn’t breathe.

So this is how it ends, I thought weakly. After everything… This is how my story ends. Even at the end, he still chose her.

My head slumped forward. Darkness crept in.

Through the haze, I saw shadows moving, four tall figures pushing through the smoke.

One of them shouted, “Miss Adeline! Hold on! Your father sent us!”

Their voices echoed as my vision faded. “Please hang on, Miss Adeline—”

Then everything went black.