POV: Clara

The hospital room is quiet when Dr Evans takes off the bandages, and the bright white light hurts my eyes for a second, but I blink through the tears because the blurry shapes start to take form, and soon I can see his face clearly for the first time in three years.

"The surgery is a complete success," Dr Evans says with a warm smile, handing me a pair of dark glasses, "though you still need to avoid bright lights and heavy emotional stress for the next few days."

"Thank you, Doctor, you have no idea what this means to me," I reply, my voice shaking with pure joy because I can finally see the walls and the window and the way the light hits the floor.

"Just take it easy and let your eyes adjust naturally," he adds, patting my shoulder before leaving the room to let me pack my small bag.

I decide right then that I am not going to call Alexander to tell him the good news, because I want to see his face when I walk through the front door and tell him I can finally look into his eyes without any help.

On the way home in the taxi, I look out the window at the busy streets, watching the cars and people pass by, and I cannot stop smiling because everything looks so bright and clear, and I feel like a brand new person stepping out of a long nightmare.

I tell the driver to stop at the small bakery on the corner, and I step inside to buy his favorite chocolate cake, and then I walk over to the grocery store down the street to pick up a bottle of red wine, feeling like the luckiest woman in the entire world.

For three whole years after that terrible car accident took my sight away, Alexander never left my side, and he fed me every single meal, helped me walk around every room in the house, and whispered that he would love me even if I never saw the light again.

He stayed with me through every dark night, and he held my hand when I cried about my lost independence, and I always told my friends that I hit the jackpot with a husband who loved me so much.

"You are my whole world, Clara," he told me just last week when he helped me down the stairs, and I believed every single word because he said it with such a soft voice.

"Do you really mean that, Alexander?" I had asked him then, turning my blank face toward his voice.

"Of course I do, I would never leave you or do anything to hurt you," he had answered, kissing my forehead and holding me tight against his chest.

I pay the driver and walk up the front steps of our house, holding the cake box carefully in one hand and the wine bottle in the other, and I pull my key from my pocket to unlock the front door.

The house is quiet when I step inside, and the hallway smells like the perfume my cousin Elara always wears whenever she visits us, which is strange since Alexander said she was out of town for the weekend for a business meeting in another city.

"Is someone here?" I whisper to myself, shaking my head because I figure the wind must have brought the scent inside or maybe she came back early to visit.

I take off my shoes and set the cake and wine on the table in the entryway, walking softly across the floor because I want the surprise to be perfect, and I make my way down the hallway toward our bedroom.

The bedroom door is slightly open, and soft voices are floating out into the hall, so I step closer with a big smile ready on my face, but then I hear Elara giggle and say something that makes my chest go cold.

"What if she comes back early from the hospital today?" Elara asks, her voice breathless and laughing.

"She is blind, Elara, she cannot see a thing even if she is standing right here," Alexander answers, and his voice sounds so cruel and harsh that I almost drop the smile off my face.

"Are you sure she won't suspect anything when she gets back later?" Elara asks again, her tone playful and mocking.

"Of course I am sure, she relies on me for everything, and she thinks the sun rises and sets on me," Alexander laughs, and the sound of his voice makes my stomach turn upside down.

"She really believes you love her," ELara says.

"She is useful, and her family money keeps my company afloat, but she is nothing compared to you," Alexander says, and then I hear the sound of them kissing in the bed we share every single night.

"Do you think she will ever get her sight back?" Elara asks, her voice dropping lower.

"The doctors said the damage was permanent years ago, so she is going to be in the dark forever," Alexander replies with a cold laugh.

"She will never know about us," Elara says, and they both laugh out loud in our room.

My hand reaches out and pushes the door open all the way.

POV: Clara

The paper slips from my fingers down to the floor, and my heart pounds so hard in my chest that I think they can hear it, but they are too busy laughing and kissing in the center of the bed to notice anything at all, and I just stand there watching every single second of it while the world spins around me.

"Did you hear something drop out in the hall?" Elara asks, her voice stopping for a second as she looks toward the open door, her eyes wide with a sudden flash of panic.

"It is just the wind or one of the house doors closing by itself, because Clara is still at the hospital and she cannot walk back here by herself anyway," Alexander tells her, pulling her back down against his chest with a rough laugh that makes me want to scream out loud.

"Are you sure nobody is out there watching us?" Elarasks again, her fingers tracing across his shoulder while I stand frozen right in the doorway, staring at the two of them with my eyes wide open and taking in every single ugly detail.

"I am completely sure, because she is helpless without me, and she spends all her time sitting in that chair waiting for me to feed her," Alexander answers, and every single word he says cuts right through me like a knife, but I bite my inner lip hard until I taste blood and force myself not to lose control.

"You always know how to make me feel special, Alexander, and I am so glad you finally decided to get rid of that blind burden," Elara giggles, running her hands through his hair while I watch every single movement they make on the mattress.

"She is just a temporary problem, and her family money is the only reason I married her in the first place, but you are the one I actually want," Alexander whispers, leaning down to kiss her again right in front of me while I hold my breath.

I stand there watching them, and for the first time since my surgery, seeing everything so clearly is much worse than being blind in the dark, because my eyes are wide open and every betrayal burns right into my brain.

I take a slow step backward into the shadows of the hallway, bending down to pick up the medical clearance papers from the floor before Alexander can look over, and I quickly slide them into my pocket while my hands shake uncontrollably.

"Alexander," I call out in a trembling voice, pretending to reach out blindly into the air in front of me like I always do, "is someone in here with you?"

The bed stops moving instantly, and the heavy silence fills the room, followed by the sound of sheets rustling and feet hitting the floor as Alexander scrambles to grab his clothes and throw them on in a hurry.

"Clara?" Alexander gasps, his voice suddenly shifting from arrogant laughter to fake panic, and I hear him rushing toward the doorway while pulling his shirt over his head with clumsy fingers.

"Honey, what are you doing back so soon, and why did you not call me so I could come pick you up from the hospital?" Alexander asks, stepping right up to me and reaching out to grab my hands with his fake gentle touch.

"My ride finished early, and I wanted to surprise you with some cake and wine, so I let myself in with my key," I reply, forcing my lips to curve into a weak smile while I stare straight into his guilty eyes.

"You should have waited for me, because you know how dangerous it is for you to walk around by yourself when you cannot see anything," he says, stepping closer to block the view of the bedroom where Elara is hiding behind the door.

"I can manage just fine, Alexander, but I thought I heard someone talking in our bedroom just now," I say, tilting my head and keeping my tone completely calm even though my whole body is shaking inside.

"You know you are just hearing things again, because nobody is here except the two of us, and you are just letting your imagination run wild because you were at the hospital all morning," Alexander lies smoothly, putting his arm around my shoulders and guiding me back toward the living room.

"Are you sure about that, Alexander?" I ask, letting him lead me away while Elara peeks out from the bedroom door and sneaks down the hall toward the back exit.

"Of course I am sure, my love, and I would never lie to you about anything," he says, kissing the top of my head with lips that were just on my cousin a minute ago.

"I just came home early, that is all," I repeat softly, keeping my eyes fixed on his face and watching every single twitch of his guilty expression while I decide right then and there that I am never going to tell him the truth about my sight.

"Let me take that cake and put it in the kitchen for you, and you can sit down on the couch and rest your eyes," Alexander says, trying to act like the caring husband he has pretended to be for the last three years.

"Thank you, honey, you are so sweet to take care of me," I reply, playing my part to perfection because I need him to think he still has complete control over me.

"I will always take care of you, Clara, because you know I am dedicated to you," he says, walking away toward the kitchen with the box while I stand by the living room window and watch him through the glass reflection.

My mind races through every single month we spent together, remembering how I thanked him every day for staying by my side when the doctors told me I would never see again, and how I believed every lie he ever told me.

He used me, he took my money, and he slept with my own cousin in our bed while I was away trying to fix the very blindness he thought would trap me forever, and now he thinks he has won the game.

"Here is a plate with a big slice for you," Alexander says, walking back into the room with a smile that does not reach his eyes at all.

"Eat up and then maybe you can take a nap, because the hospital trip must have tired you out," he adds, sitting down next to me on the couch and putting his arm around my shoulders again.

"You are right, I am a bit tired, but I am just so happy to be home with you," I say, leaning my head against his shoulder while I stare at the wall across the room and count every single pattern on the paint.

"Get some rest, and I will make us something nice for dinner later tonight," he whispers, kissing my cheek and patting my hand.

I close my eyes for a moment, pretending to drift off to sleep, but underneath my closed eyelids my mind is wide awake and planning my next move, because I am not going to make a scene today and I am not going to give him the satisfaction of a messy fight.

Instead of letting him know I saw everything, I am going to let him keep living in his foolish little fantasy, believing he is safe and secure with his mistress while I quietly pack my things and take back every single thing that belongs to me.

The silence stretches between us in the room, and I listen to the sound of his breathing, knowing that this is the last time he will ever hold me or look down at me with such pathetic arrogance.

My fingers curl into the fabric of my dress, and I keep my face completely blank, hiding the storm brewing inside my chest because the game has only just begun and he has no idea what is coming for him.

POV: Clara

For one whole week I keep playing the part of the blind wife, and I let Alexander lead me around the house and pour my tea while he thinks he is the smartest man alive, and everyday I watch him wipe down surfaces and hide his phone whenever I walk into the room.

"How are your eyes feeling today, honey?" Alexander asks me on Tuesday morning while we sit at the kitchen table eating breakfast, his face wearing that fake sweet expression he always uses when he wants to trick me.

"They still hurt from the bright light, so I am keeping them closed most of the time," I reply, keeping my voice soft and weak as I feel around the table for my cup of tea.

"You do not need to worry about anything because I am right here to help you, and I am going to make sure you have everything you need," he says, patting my hand across the table with a chuckle that he tries to hide behind his coffee mug.

Just then the doorbell rings, and Alexander jumps up from his chair in a hurry, opening the front door to let in my cousin Elara who walks right into the kitchen with a big bag of groceries.

"Hi Clara, I brought some fresh fruit for you because I know you love apples, and I wanted to check in on you since Alexander has to work late today," Elara says, walking over to give me a hug while her clothes still smell like the same perfume from the bedroom.

"Thank you so much, Elara, you are always so kind to come visit me and keep me company while Alexander is busy," I say, leaning into the hug and staring right over her shoulder at Alexander who is smiling behind her back.

"She does not have to worry about a thing because I take great care of her," Alexander chimes in, walking over to put his arm around Elara's waist for a second before pulling away when I turn my head.

"I know you do, Alexander, and Clara is lucky to have such a dedicated husband," Elara giggles, sitting down across from me and crossing her legs while she watches him pour more coffee.

Later that afternoon after Alexander leaves for work and Elara goes home, I sit in the living room and pull my phone from my pocket, locking the door and dialing the number for the family lawyer who has tried to reach me for months.

"Hello, this is Clara Hart," I whisper into the phone, making sure to keep my voice down so nobody in the hallway can hear me.

"Clara, oh my goodness, we have been looking everywhere for you," Mr Vance says on the other end of the line, sounding completely shocked and relieved at the same time.

"What is going on, Mr Vance, why have you been calling me so much?" I ask, leaning back against the couch cushions.

"Your grandfather passed away six months ago, and according to his will, you are now the sole heir to the multibillion-dollar empire, and we have been trying to track you down through your husband but he told us you were too sick to speak to anyone," the lawyer explains in a rush.

"Alexander told you that?" I ask, my teeth gritting together as the full picture of his lies becomes crystal clear.

"Yes, he said you were incapacitated and tried to gain control of your corporate shares, but now that you are on the phone, we can start transferring everything directly to your personal private account," Mr Vance says.

"Send me the papers right now, and let us get everything done quietly without letting a single person know," I tell him, giving him instructions to draw up my divorce papers as well.

Over the next few days I play my role while I sign the legal documents on my phone, and on Friday night Alexander sits next to me on the couch rubbing my back while he talks about our future.

"Clara, we should combine our bank accounts and put all your family inheritance into a joint fund so I can manage the investments for you while your eyes heal," Alexander says smoothly, thinking he is about to hit the jackpot.

"That sounds like a good idea, Alexander, let us talk about it tomorrow morning," I reply, leaning my head on his shoulder and pretending to yawn like I am ready for bed.

"Great, get some good sleep because tomorrow we will sort it all out," he says, kissing my forehead before we head upstairs to our bedroom.

While Alexander falls fast asleep beside me and starts snoring loudly around two in the morning, I quietly get out of bed and pack my clothes into a single suitcase, moving carefully across the floor so I do not wake him up.

I take my laptop and all my important documents, walking down the stairs and turning on the lights for the first time in three years, and I open the front door and step outside into the cool night air to wait for the car I called.

Before I pull the door closed behind me for good, I walk back inside to the dining table and place a thick white envelope right in the center where he will see it first thing in the morning.

Alexander comes downstairs the next morning and finds an empty house...

except for one envelope on the dining table.