Chapter 2

Later that evening, Mom left.

Kaia turned toward Ivan, her eyes already brimming with tears.

"Ivan, I just got back, and I don't have anywhere to stay. Can I stay here? We're legally married now, after all."

Then she turned to me.

"Olivia, I think you should go stay at Marie's place instead. If people find out the other woman is sleeping in the marital home, they'll talk."

I glanced outside. It was already deep into the night, and I'd been afraid of the dark ever since I was a child.

I'd already decided to leave, but I wasn't about to put myself in danger just to prove a point.

"There's a spare bedroom," I said, looking at Ivan. "I'll stay there for tonight and move out first thing tomorrow morning."

At two in the morning, a sharp crack jolted me awake.

I opened my eyes to find Kaia standing beside my bed, surrounded by shattered emerald pieces.

It was the bracelet I'd taken off before bed.

"Olivia, I'm sorry," she said. "I just got up to use the bathroom and saw the bracelet glowing in the moonlight. It was so pretty. I only picked it up to look at it more closely. I didn't mean to drop it."

It was the family heirloom Dad had left me before he died.

When he suffered a sudden heart attack and was lying in the ICU, waiting for me to get there, I was still stuck at a dinner meeting because of work Ivan had asked me to handle.

The nurse later told me that even in his final moments, Dad had kept his eyes fixed on the window where visitors could see into his room.

After that, I never let the bracelet leave my side.

I only took it off at night because I was afraid of damaging it in my sleep, so I left it on the nightstand.

"Didn't your parents ever teach you not to touch things that don't belong to you?" I shouted, my lips trembling.

I threw off the covers and climbed out of bed, frantically picking up the broken pieces and trying to fit them back together to no avail.

Tears streamed down Kaia's cheeks.

"I really didn't mean it…"

"Get out!"

Ivan came running at the sound of my voice, just in time to see Kaia stumble back and hit the cabinet. He rushed over and caught her in his arms.

"Are you hurt?"

He checked her over again and again, making absolutely sure she hadn't injured herself.

I remembered when we'd first started dating. I'd been crossing the street when a car ran a red light and knocked me down.

When the nurse called Ivan, he sounded irritated.

"If you're sick, go see a doctor," he grumbled. "What do you need me for? I have an important international conference coming up. Don't bother me."

But now, Ivan's intent gaze was fixed on Kaia as he continued checking her for injuries.

So it wasn't that he didn't worry about me. He simply didn't care enough to worry about me.

"It's all my fault," Kaia murmured. "Don't blame Olivia."

When Ivan checked her lower back, she suddenly cried out in pain.

"You've probably got a bad bruise," he said, his expression darkening. "I'm taking you to the hospital."

Only then did he stand up and glance at me. That was when he noticed the cuts on my fingers from the shattered bracelet.

"There are bandages in the TV cabinet," he said after a brief pause. "Take care of it yourself."

"Ivan, the bracelet my dad left me is broken," I whispered, watching him turn to leave.

He stopped in his tracks. But as Kaia whimpered in pain the next second, he started walking again.

"I'll find someone to repair it for you."

"It's shattered," I said. "It can't be repaired anymore."

"Can you stop being unreasonable?" he snapped, turning around impatiently. "Kaia's back is injured. What if it causes lasting damage? How is she going to draw then? Can't you have a little compassion for others?"

I stared at the fragments scattered across my hands. They still gleamed beautifully in the moonlight, but it was such a shame that it wasn't a full moon tonight.

"I'm sorry," Kaia suddenly said. "I'll pay for the damage."

She struggled in Ivan's arms as she continued, "Ivan, you stay with Olivia. I'll take a cab to the hospital myself."

The movement pulled at her injury, and she cried out in pain.

But Ivan didn't stop.

"How could I? You just got back from abroad. You don't know your way around yet. If no one's there to look after you, you'll end up crying again."

As his voice faded down the hallway, my phone lit up in the dark room.

It was a message from my professor, Jeremy Sandler, asking me to sign the confirmation form.

I stood alone in the empty room and signed it without hesitation.