“If you hadn’t thrown yourself at him all those years ago, Eve, Magnus never would’ve married you…” Seraphina hissed.
I interrupted. “You’re right.”
Then I leaned in, close enough for only her to hear. My voice dropped to a whisper, cool and steady. “I was ready to divorce Magnus. I really was. But now? I’ve changed my mind.” I added, “So long as I’m still Mrs. Finck, you’ll always be the other woman.”
I yanked my wrist from her grip and walked away. Behind me, her muffled sobs rose up like a badly rehearsed monologue.
“Magnus, did you hear that?” she whimpered. “How could she humiliate me like this?”
I didn’t look back.
Outside the hospital, Sven was waiting, leaning casually against his car like he always belonged there. Wordlessly, he opened the door for me and we drove.
He didn’t ask questions, didn’t offer empty sympathy. Instead, he drove up to the mountaintop, as if he knew I just needed space to breathe.
The wind at that height was cooler, scented with wild grass and dew. The city lights below flickered like scattered stars beneath the clouds. For the first time in days, my chest felt a little less tight.
As the first rays of the sun pierced the horizon, Sven leaned in without warning. His warm lips brushed mine.
I froze. Shocked. So shocked that I didn’t push him away.
Then, came the screech of tires. Magnus appeared like a shadow against the rising light. In the next instant, he stormed toward us and shoved Sven aside.
“Get your hands off her!” he roared, seizing my arm and dragging me toward his car.
He threw open the passenger door and shoved me inside,
“Evelyn, really?” His voice cracked with fury. “You couldn’t wait even a day?”
“My grandfather’s in the hospital and this is where I find you–sneaking around with him?” His eyes were bloodshot, his jaw clenched so tightly I thought his teeth might break. “Hooking up with another man while your husband’s family is falling apart–do you have no shame? You’re coming home. Now.”
I gripped the door handle so hard my nails dug into my palm.
“You don’t get to control me anymore, Magnus. You called me filthy. So what now? Playing the noble husband all of a sudden?”
“I won’t let you divorce me!” He slammed a fist onto the steering wheel, the horn blaring in the silence. “Ten years of marriage, Evelyn! You think you can just throw it away?” “Ten years?” I let out a bitter laugh, tears burning their way down my cheeks. “You think I don’t know what this marriage was? A decade of being your charity case. Of pretending
arity 1/2 2009.
28.8%
13:23 Mon za May BMC
“Evelyn, really?” His voice cracked with fury. “You couldn’t walt even a day?
“My grandfather’s in the hospital and this is where I find you–sneaking around with him?” His eyes were bloodshot, his jaw clenched so tightly I thought his teeth might break. “Hooking up with another man while your husband’s family is falling apart–do you have no shame? You’re coming home. Now.”
I gripped the door handle so hard my nails dug into my palm.
“You don’t get to control me anymore, Magnus. You called me filthy. So what now? Playing the noble husband all of a sudden?”
“I won’t let you divorce me!” He slammed a fist onto the steering wheel, the horn blaring in the silence. “Ten years of marriage, Evelyn! You think you can just throw it away?”
“Ten years?” I let out a bitter laugh, tears burning their way down my cheeks. “You think I don’t know what this marriage was? A decade of being your charity case. Of pretending
not to notice that your heart was never mine.’
”
“You loved someone else all along. So why should I stay in a marriage that only exists on paper?”
The car filled with the sound of our arguments. Out of nowhere, a truck suddenly came. hurtling out of the curve ahead.
In that split second before impact, Magnus threw himself over me, shielding my body with his own. There was a deafening crash–and then, everything went black.
When I came to, I was in a hospital bed.
I was fine. Barely a scratch. But Magnus, the one who had protected me, wasn’t so lucky. His injuries were serious.
人
As soon as I could stand, I made my way to his room. The steady beep of the heart monitor filled the space, rhythmic and calm. But the silence around it felt heavy. Memories of the past surged like unwelcomed intruder.
I remembered being a little girl, burning up with fever and mumbling nonsense through the night. Magnus had stayed by my side the whole time, changing cold towels on my forehead, whispering reassurances until the morning came.
I remembered the time I fell learning to ride a bike, my knee scraped and bleeding. He had picked me up without hesitation, carrying me on his back for blocks, cracking jokes along the way to distract me from the pain.
I remembered one birthday, when he pulled out the music box I had been dreaming of, like magic from behind his back, his eyes full of warmth and quiet affection.
The sound of the door crashing open jolted me from my thoughts.
Seraphina stormed in.
Her makeup was smudged, her eyes wild with rage and something that looked a lot like desperation.
“Evelyn!” she shouted. “Are you happy now? If it weren’t for your damn divorce, Magnus
Chapter 10
2/2 30.3%
13:28 Mon, 20 May T
As soon as I could stand, I made my way to his room. The steady beep of the heart monitor filled the space, rhythmic and calm. But the silence around it felt heavy.
Memories of the past surged like unwelcomed intruder.
I remembered being a little girl, burning up with fever and mumbling nonsense through the night. Magnus had stayed by my side the whole time, changing cold towels on my forehead, whispering reassurances until the morning came.
I remembered the time I fell learning to ride a bike, my knee scraped and bleeding. He had picked me up without hesitation, carrying me on his back for blocks, cracking jokes along the way to distract me from the pain.
I remembered one birthday, when he pulled out the music box I had been dreaming of, like magic from behind his back, his eyes full of warmth and quiet affection.
The sound of the door crashing open jolted me from my thoughts.
Seraphina stormed in.
Her makeup was smudged, her eyes wild with rage and something that looked a lot lik desperation.
“Evelyn!” she shouted. “Are you happy now? If it weren’t for your damn divorce, Magni would’ve never been in that accident! You’ve clung to him for ten years–wasn’t th enough? Are you trying to kill him now?!”
I stepped back instinctively as she collapsed at Magnus’s bedside, sobbing dramatical “Magnus, please wake up… I’ll do anything you want, just wake up…”
Sunlight filtered through the window, casting a soft golden glow around her tear–soak figure. I stood in the shadows, watching the scene unfold like an outsider in someo else’s tragedy.
When I was about to leave, the monitor began to beep rapidly.
Magnus’s eyes flew open. He struggled to speak, his voice raw and hoarse.
“Eve… where’s Eve?”
Chapter 11
