Chapter 4

"Nothing important. I was just telling them to cancel the release prep for my new composition," I said.

She smiled faintly, then leaned down and pressed a kiss on my earlobe.

"On Marc's behalf, I thank you."

I woke in the dead of night to the shrill sound of Ashley's phone. After ending the call, she left in a hurry.

I stopped her. "Where are you going this late?"

"There's an emergency at the company," she said.

What emergency could the company possibly have?

Marc probably just couldn't sleep.

She grabbed her car keys and headed for the door. I didn't expose her pathetic lie. Instead, I reminded her calmly, "Don't forget. We're visiting Mom tomorrow."

"What's the rush? It's not like a dead person's going anywhere," she replied irritably.

However, the moment she noticed the umbrella I was holding out to her, the anger on her face faded instantly.

"I... I'll be back soon. Wait for me by the roadside later. I'll come pick you up."

After Ashley left, I lay awake tossing and turning until dawn.

Then, I waited by the roadside until noon.

She never came.

As I listened to the automated recording saying the call couldn't be connected, a deep exhaustion washed over me completely.

Just as I was preparing to head to the suburbs alone, my phone buzzed with a message from the bridal boutique.

"Mr. Clinton, the suit and wedding gown have been altered according to your requests. Do you have time to stop by and take a look?"

At first, I wanted them to handle it themselves.

However, after thinking about how much effort I had personally poured into the designs, I still wanted to see the final result at least once.

What I never expected was to run into Ashley and Marc there. Worse, Marc was wearing the suit I had designed myself.

Dressed in a wedding gown, Ashley held his hand while the staff guided them through photo after photo.

They looked exactly like a happy couple who were about to walk down the aisle together.

In front of the camera, they exchanged rings.

As I watched Ashley slip the wedding ring onto Marc's finger, the empty spot on my own right hand—where my finger once was—began to ache faintly.

Yet, my heart, long since numbed by pain, no longer stirred.

After staring blankly at them for a while, I turned to leave.

"Stop right there."

He stood with his arms crossed, looking at me with open, undisguised smugness.

"You really are a copycat, aren't you? You copy the way I play the piano and the way I dress. You're only copying me to steal my girlfriend. Even that suit design mirrors my style."

He proudly showed off the custom suit he was wearing.

"What a shame. Nobody genuinely falls for a replacement. See? All I had to do was crook a finger, and everything you had became mine."

My gaze swept over the oversized suit pinned awkwardly in place with clips, and I let out a faint smile.

"As long as you're happy."

I turned to leave again, but he grabbed my arm.

"Hey, don't get so worked up. It was just a joke," he said, flashing a lazy grin. "Besides, I've never been the type to take what belongs to someone else. See? I even prepared a wedding gift for you and Ash."

He handed me a square box.

I looked at him suspiciously.

Suddenly, he laughed as if he had just remembered something.

"Ah, right. My bad. I forgot you're disabled now."

He smiled brightly. "It's okay. I'll open it for you."

He personally opened the gift box, revealing the plaster hand mold of him and Ashley with their fingers intertwined.

"What do you think? It's quite lovely, isn't it?"

His smile widened. "Ash even said she wishes to walk hand in hand with me into old age. Oh, right. Don't you think this ring looks familiar?"

Following his gaze, I looked at the sculpture.

The ring engraved on it was the exact design I had personally created for Ashley and me.

My chest tightened violently.

Marc smiled smugly before pulling a necklace out from beneath his shirt.

It was carved from bone.

To be more precise, it was made from my finger bone.

My eyes widened. My hand trembled as I reached toward it, while Marc deliberately turned his hand, letting the engagement ring glint before my eyes.

"Here's the thing—your finger didn't have to end up like this. It could've been reattached."

He smiled, savoring every word. "But Ash had other ideas. She insisted on making it into a keepsake for me. She said it would bring me luck.

"Oh, and she also said if your mother hadn't treated her so well before she died, she would've kicked you to the curb a long time ago. Even in death, that dead old hag of a mother of yours still has to…"

With a dull thud, my fist came down squarely on his face.

Marc stared at me in disbelief.

"Are you insane? How dare you hit me?"

Without paying him any attention, I tore the necklace right off his neck.

Just then, footsteps echoed from behind us.

Marc's eyes flickered instantly. In the next second, he dramatically fell backward onto the floor, smashing the sculpture along with him.

"Troy, what are you doing?"

Ashley quickly stepped forward and helped Marc up, then glared at me with fury.

Marc wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth. "Ash, I only wanted to give Troy a gift. I didn't expect him to get angry."

Ashley's eyes landed on the shattered fragments. She hesitated for just a second, then her face turned cold again as she fixed her gaze on me.

"You will apologize to Marc before I lose my patience."

I looked at her coldly.

The displeasure on her face deepened.

"What? You don't plan to apologize? Do you intend to postpone our wedding yet again?"

The threat in her voice made me laugh out of nowhere.

I looked at her with utter disappointment, then I raised my left hand and slapped her hard across the face.

"My bad. I was so busy hitting him that I forgot to hit you."

As she looked at me in shock, I continued calmly, "And for the record, the wedding isn't postponed. It's canceled."