Chapter 5

"I am Mrs. Sterling. If you touch me, Adrian will—"

A laugh. A hand slammed across her face.

*Slap.*

Her ears rang. The man’s mouth moved, but the words came slow.

“Guess who sent us?”

He grabbed her chin. Forced her to look up.

“Someone wants you to pay ten times over.”

Slap after slap. Tears mixed with blood. The cuts on her face burned.

But the bruises on her heart hurt worse.

Then she fell into a complete coma.

The man’s cold voice floated through. “The boss said—next time you do something stupid, offend the wrong person—it won’t be this easy.”

She seemed to dreame of Adrian. Young Adrian holding her hand.

“You’re so pretty. Will you be my wife when you grow up?”

Teenage Adrian, fierce and possessive. “You’re mine. Only mine. Even our graves will be side by side.”

Then grown Adrian—still handsome, still powerful. But his eyes held no love.

“Ten years with the same body. I need something fresh. I still love you. I’m just bored.”

Pain ripped her back to consciousness—in a hospital.

Adrian sat by her bed. He looked very tired.

“I’m so sorry, baby. I didn’t protect you. I’ve been here three days. If you hadn’t woken up, I would have lost my mind.”

She didn’t look at him. She reached for her phone.

“I’m calling the police. Three days ago, I was—”

He snatched the phone and hung up.

“They’re… Bella’s cousins. They heard she was bullied and took matters into their own hands. I’ve punished them.”

“How?” Her voice was barely a whisper.

“I sent them back to their hometown.”

—

The hospital room door cracked open. Bella’s tear‑streaked face peeked through.

“I’m sorry, Mrs. Sterling. If I hadn’t made you misunderstand, none of this would have happened. Please forgive me.”

Sophia turned her face to the wall. She didn’t want to see that mask.

Adrian’s voice was cold. "If you're going to apologize, do it properly. Go kneel at the hospital entrance. You can stand up when my wife decides to forgive you."

Bella’s lips trembled. She looked at Adrian. He didn’t even glance her way.

She walked out. She knelt on the pavement. She knelt at the hospital entrance from morning until the sky turned black.

Adrian stayed by Sophia’s side the whole time. He changed her bandages. He wiped her body. He fed her.

Every gesture was impossibly tender. It would have been perfect, if not for the way his gaze kept drifting toward the window — down, to the figure kneeling in the courtyard below.

"I'm tired," Sophia said.

She pulled the blanket up and turned her back to him.

“Rest well,” he said.

He sounded relieved.

The door opened and closed. Then, from the room next door, came the muffled sound of a woman's whimper, followed by the rhythmic creak of a hospital bed. It went on until well past midnight.

When the sky began to lighten, Adrian pushed open the door to Sophia’s room. Their eyes met.

He startled. Then he smiled—soft, warm.

“Sorry, Sophia. The company is going to be very busy for a while. I won’t be able to take care of you like I should. When this mess settles, I’ll take you around the world. Just the two of us.”

The fresh mark on his neck was blinding.

Sophia looked away.

“"Sure.”

—

The days that followed were exactly as he said. He rarely came to the hospital. He did not visit. He did not call.

On the day Sophia was discharged, he was not there.

Sophia sat in the back of the Maybach. The driver hesitated. “Mr. Sterling has been very busy lately. He asked me to come get you. He—”

Her phone buzzed.

An invitation. A wedding.

*Groom: Adrian Sterling*

*Bride: Bella White*

The photo showed them standing together. Smiling at the camera. Like lovers.

So this was the "busy" Adrian had spoken of. He had been busy planning a wedding — with another woman — while his marriage to Sophia still legally existed.

A moment later, the invitation was retracted. Bella sent a sticker — a cartoon face sticking out its tongue — followed by a message.

“Sorry, Mrs. Sterling. Wrong person. You didn’t see that, did you?”

Sophia stared at the screen until it went dark. She blinked her dry eyes. Then she gave the driver a new address.

—

The car stopped in front of the most extravagant hotel in New York. A sea of red roses spilled out from the lobby, cascading down the entrance steps — lavish, romantic, obscene.

The guest list was small. Only Adrian's closest friends had been invited.

When they saw Sophia, their faces went rigid. "Sophia? What are you doing here?"

She did not answer. She walked inside and stood at the back of the room, watching as Adrian knelt before Bella and recited his vows with the kind of sincerity that could break a woman's heart.

When it came time to exchange rings, Adrian opened the velvet box.

It was empty.

Bella swayed on her feet. She lifted her tear-filled eyes to Sophia.

"Mrs. Sterling, he only did this out of pity. It's a wedding in name only — I'll leave him forever once it's over. Please, could you just return the ring to me?"

Adrian's body went stiff. "Sophia. Let me explain."

Sophia took a step back. "Don't come near me. You disgust me." Her voice was steady and clear. "Adrian. Let's get a divorce."

She turned and walked away, and the last thread of whatever she had once felt for him snapped clean.

"Never! I will never divorce you!"

Adrian abandoned the ceremony and chased after her.

"Adrian!"

Behind him, Bella let out a piercing wail. Then came the heavy, dull thud of a body hitting the floor.

Adrian's steps faltered. He turned and saw Bella lying in a pool of blood.

"Bella!"

She lay cradled in his arms, her voice fading to a whisper. "I never wanted a title. I just wanted one wedding — one beautiful illusion to carry with me for the rest of my lonely life. That's all I ever asked for."

Her breathing grew thin.

Adrian's fingers were shaking. He looked back toward the door where Sophia had vanished, then down at the woman bleeding in his arms.

"Sophia." His voice cracked. "The ring. Give me the ring."

Sophia stared at him in disbelief. "You don't believe me?"

"Give it to me!"