The man Sandy believed to have died in that car crash—her awful husband, Mike—stepped out of the bedroom, a twisted grin on his face."Surprised, sweetheart? I made it out alive! And I figured since I did, I'd make sure you wished you were dead!" he spat.Colin shoved Sandy to the floor.She clung to his legs, sobbing. "Colin, please, don't do this. I'm begging you. He hates me. He'll kill me! Don't send me to hell!"Colin's stare was icy, his voice even colder. "I sent Lucille to hell because of you. I lost her, and now I'm in hell, too. What makes you think you're any different?"Mike dragged Sandy away. There was no way she'd escape his hold. She owed the Jensens for what she'd done, and they were coming to settle the score, bit by bit.He ran over her legs with the car, shattering her bones. Then, he backed up and ran over them again and again."You had me run over and left me a broken man. Now I'll make sure you feel every bit of that pain," Mike muttered.He forced a powe
Colin kneeled as he carefully picked up the torn pieces of our wedding photos. He held them close and broke down, sobbing uncontrollably.Before long, Joel came back with an update."Mr. Selwyn, all we know so far is that Mrs. Selwyn boarded a flight to a city in Fremmora. We don't have all the details yet. Looks like she hid her information on purpose. She made sure not to use her ID."We're still digging into it. As for the divorce and everything that happened at Selwyn Manor that day, I've already sent everything I found to you via email."Colin went through the email in silence.Just then, the doorbell rang. It was Sandy. As soon as she walked in, she wrapped her arms around Colin's waist, her voice trembling with sobs."I've missed you and Oliver so much, Colin. Please, let me see him. I know Lucille suddenly filing for divorce must've hurt your pride, and you need time to process it. But I can wait. I really love you. What does Lucille have that I don't?"I'm a woman—I kno
Whenever Colin saw that look on Sandy's face, he used to always feel a wave of tenderness wash over him, making him want to give her everything. But hearing her tear into me now and thinking about those divorce papers, his stomach twisted.His eyes landed on the necklace around Sandy's neck, and a sharp pang shot through his chest. He gave her so much—every piece of jewelry he bought her could have covered the cost of an entire hotel.But what did he ever give me?Taking in the bare-bones décor around him, shame settled deep in his gut. When he turned back to Sandy, for the first time, there was nothing but contempt in his eyes."You keep calling Lucille vicious, but she saw the truth long ago and never harmed Oliver. Meanwhile, after just one drink with you, I lost it. We both know what was in that wine back then."You're not as innocent as you pretend to be. Whatever we had was over a long time ago. Leave. There's no reason for us to stay in touch. My mom will raise Oliver."
Sandy's face drained of color. But when she saw the divorce papers, a fleeting look of relief flashed across her expression."Lucille's completely out of line! How could she treat you like this? She's even asking for a divorce?"She tried to hide behind Colin, but he shoved her aside without a second thought. Just as he was about to head out of the banquet hall, Grace stepped in front of him."Colin, you're still chasing after that worthless woman after everything? Good riddance. I never liked her as my daughter-in-law. She's broke and has no class. I always worried she'd be a bad influence on my grandchildren."She scanned the room, then said calmly, "Everyone, this is just a misunderstanding. The video and audio were tampered with. Colin and Lucille have been divorced for some time, but she won't let go and pulled this stunt to set him up."Oliver is Sandy's son, and Sandy is part of the Selwyn family. She just couldn't have a wedding while pregnant. We hope you'll all join us i
A few hours later, Colin went straight from the auction to the banquet, with Sandy and Oliver in tow. But they couldn't find me no matter how much they searched the place.Annoyed, Colin dialed my number."Sorry, the number you've dialed is currently unavailable…"He kept calling, but hearing the same automated message over and over just irritated him off even more. Frustrated, he threw his phone to the floor."Damn it! What's she up to? Why can't she just act like Sandy and do what she's supposed to?"Noticing the commotion, Sandy walked over, holding Oliver in her arms."What's going on, Colin? Where's Lucille? Do you think she's mad at me for being here, so she decided to hide or something?" she asked.Colin's face darkened even more. Just as he was about to call for Joel, the big screen in the banquet hall suddenly flickered on.A video montage started playing. There were clips of Colin talking to a doctor in the ER, surveillance footage of me being shoved into a pool, and
Colin called later in the evening."I just dropped Sandy off at the hospital, Lucille. She's fine—just a little shaken up. The doctor didn't prescribe anything, so it won't mess with her ability to nurse Oliver."He paused for a moment before continuing, "I'm sorry for snapping earlier. I shouldn't have said that. But you were acting way too impulsively. You'd feel awful if you actually hurt someone, especially with how kind you are."Also, since you're on meds and can't breastfeed, we're still depending on Sandy. I'm looking out for her because I appreciate everything she's done. Don't read too much into it."I was packing my things up in the room. I felt numb."I'm fine. Just make sure you take care of her and don't let Oliver go hungry," I replied flatly."I know you're the best, babe! I even stood up to Mom for you. She won't give you any more trouble. You gave the Selwyns a son—Oliver. You're a hero in this family. No one can top that! The day after tomorrow, I'm throwing a