Chapter 3

3.

Right then, Sadie stepped forward. She gently took Heath’s hand and spoke in a soothing tone.

“Heath, do not be upset. Wren is just acting out in the heat of the moment. She will come around once she cools off.”

She turned to me, her eyes brimming with faux pity and gloating triumph.

“Wren, I know you are hurting, but you have to understand Heath. He is just too kind-hearted to watch anyone suffer.”

“You two have been together for years. Are you really that insecure about his past with me?”

“Shut your mouth!” I snapped, losing every shred of restraint. I lunged forward, grabbed Sadie by the collar, and slapped her hard across the face.

The sharp crack echoed through the room. Sadie stumbled backward, gasping in pain as blood trickled from the corner of her lip.

I had put every ounce of my rage into that strike, holding nothing back.

“Wren!” Heath screamed, rushing forward and shoving me violently away before wrapping Sadie behind his back.

“Do not you dare touch her!”

He glared down at me with pure disgust, as if I were the villain who had committed an unforgivable crime.

The force of his shove sent me crashing into the coffee table behind me.

“Heath, you…”

I pointed at him, my entire body shaking with rage, but words failed me.

Heath did not even look my way. He helped Sadie up, wiping the blood from her lip with tender fingers.

“Sadie, are you hurt? Does it hurt bad?”

Sadie shook her head, gazing at him weakly. “I am fine. Do not worry about me.”

Then, over Heath’s shoulder, she gave me a look of pure mockery and victory.

Looking at the two of them, a wave of profound ridicule washed over me.

It was completely meaningless.

This marriage had been dead for a long time.

Swallowing the bitter taste of betrayal and the throbbing ache in my gut, I spoke coldly. “Sign the papers, Heath. I am setting you both free.”

Heath scribbled his signature aggressively across the document, the pen digging into the paper as if trying to tear it in half.

I took the folder back with a stone-cold expression and turned toward the door.

“You are going to regret this, Wren!” Heath’s shrill voice chased after me, sounding like a desperate curse.

I walked down the stairs without looking back once. The agony in my abdomen felt like a blade twisting in my guts, making my vision blur.

I leaned against the wall, gasping for air.

Regret? What did I have to regret?

I poured my youth, my soul, and my tears into this man, only to end up as the punchline of a sick joke.

I stumbled onto the street, hailed a cab, and gave the driver the address to the law firm.

At the office, I dragged myself through the final paperwork to complete the filing.

As of today, Heath and I were officially over.

By the time I walked out, dusk had settled over the city, and the streetlights cast long, lonely shadows on the pavement.

Suddenly, my phone buzzed with an unknown number.

“Hello?”

“Is this Ms. Vance? This is the triage nurse from Mercy General. Your husband was brought into our hospital…”

The nurse’s voice was frantic. My heart clenched involuntarily. “What happened to him?!”

“He was in a severe car crash. His condition is critical, and we need you to come to the hospital immediately.”

My mind went completely blank.

A car crash? Heath was in a crash?

Out of years of ingrained habit, I jumped into a cab and rushed to the hospital.

In the hallway, I saw Sadie sitting on a bench.

Her clothes were completely disheveled. She sat with her head buried in her hands, trembling violently.

I marched over, grabbed her by the hair, and pulled her head up. “What happened?! How did you crash?!”

Sadie looked up, her face pale with terror and guilt.

She stared at me with wide eyes, her lips trembling, but not a single word came out.

Just then, the double doors of the operating room swung open. The surgeon stepped out, pulling down his mask with an exhausted sigh. “Who is the patient’s family?”

I rushed forward, grabbing the doctor’s arm. “I am. How is my husband?”

The doctor gave a heavy sigh. “We managed to save his life, but his groin trauma is severe. His condition down there is not good.”

Then, the doctor frowned with deep disapproval. “You young people need to keep your focus on the road! Who in their right mind does that kind of intimate stuff while driving?!”

My mind exploded. The doctor’s words echoed like thunder in my skull.

I did not need any more details to know exactly what they were doing in that car.

At that exact moment, my heart died completely.

I turned around and walked out of the hospital like an empty shell.

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