Chapter 7

Lilith's Pov

The moment Killian left, I just dropped my fork. My hands were shaking, but I couldn't make myself pick it up. I felt so… small. Tears welled up in my eyes, but I refused to cry in front of Nolan. He didn’t need to see that. He was just sitting there, pressing his phone with his fingers, looking like he had no idea what was happening to me, no idea that inside, I was breaking.

I wiped my eyes, but it didn’t stop. It never stops.

Killian... my husband... had told me to stay away from him, to pretend I didn’t know him, to stay out of his way. I’m just his wife in name. But what else am I supposed to do? What am I supposed to feel? It’s as if he doesn't even want me to be in the same room as him, let alone in the same house.

I wanted to scream, to break something, anything, but I couldn’t do that. I couldn’t even stand up for myself. And as much as I hated to admit it, I was crushed. Crushed by him. By everything. By this whole damn marriage.

I stood up, pushed my chair aside, and just started walking. Walking... walking aimlessly, as if the movement could erase all the pain.

My feet carried me without any thought. I wasn’t going back to my room. No. Not after everything. I just kept walking, and walking, and walking, as tears streamed down my face.

I wiped them, but they just kept coming. I didn't know why. I didn’t want to cry. I just wanted to be anywhere but here.

Eventually, I found myself outside.

I was in the garden

The garden was beautiful, the kind of beauty that felt almost unreal, magical. I hadn’t noticed it before, locked away in my room, trying to block out everything. The fresh air felt like a slap in the face, a reminder that life was still moving on, even if I wasn’t.

I took a deep breath, the air filling my lungs, and let my gaze wander. The garden was everything I had missed. A swing caught my eye, and before I knew it, I was sitting on it, swinging slowly.

I needed someone. I needed to hear a voice that could make the world feel normal again. Someone who could take my mind off this endless spiral.

I pulled out my phone. Emily. She would know what to say. I dialed her number and held the phone to my ear, praying she’d pick up.

As soon as Emily picked up, her voice rang through the phone, light and cheerful.

"Hey, girl, what's up?" It was too much. Hearing her voice, the one person who could make everything feel a little lighter, shattered the wall I’d been trying so hard to keep up. I couldn’t hold it in anymore.

I broke down.

Tears streamed down my face, and my chest tightened with the weight of everything. The breath I took was shaky, and I couldn't even answer at first. I just sobbed into the phone, the sound of it breaking my heart even more.

"Tell me what's wrong? Did he hurt you? Who hurt you? Why are you crying this much?" Emily’s voice was full of concern, but I couldn’t stop the tears. They just kept coming.

"I just want to go out from here," I managed to choke out, barely able to speak through the sobs. "Just do something. Come and take me out of here. I just... I can't stay here anymore."

"Calm down, calm down, calm down," Emily said, trying to soothe me, but I couldn’t calm down. Not when everything around me felt like it was falling apart. "Talk to me. What’s happening?"

I wiped my face with my sleeve, but it didn’t help. The tears wouldn’t stop. "I can’t stay with him. He hates me to the core. I can’t stay with him. I need to leave... I need to leave now."

"Wait, wait," Emily said, sounding frantic. "Calm down. Let’s think this through. We can figure something out."

And that’s when I felt a spark of hope. "Please, Emily. Come and take me. We can still go ahead with the plan to run away."

There was a pause on the other end of the line, and then Emily’s voice came through, steady and strong. "Okay, okay. I’ll be in town in Four days. I had to leave for something, but I’ll be back in Four days. I’ll come over, and we’ll figure out how we’re going to do it."

I nodded even though she couldn’t see me, a small sense of relief washing over me. "Okay. Okay, I’m calm. I’m calm now."

"Do you hear me?" Emily continued, her voice fierce. "You are strong. You are not like us. Don’t let him break you. You’re stronger than this."

"I am strong," I whispered, trying to convince myself. "Yes, I am strong."

There was a brief silence before I spoke again. "I have to go. I need to be alone for a while."

"You can call me anytime," Emily said softly. "You know that."

"I know," I replied. "I know."

And just like that, I ended the call. I didn’t wait for Emily to say anything back, didn’t give her a chance to respond. I couldn’t.

The moment I pressed the button to end the call, I heard a voice, a voice that wasn’t Emily’s.

"Are you planning to run away from your husband?

I turned quickly, startled by the voice that had cut through the silence like a knife. My heart jumped.

It was Nolan. Killian’s brother.

He was standing there, a little awkward, with his hands stuffed in his pockets like he hadn’t meant to interrupt anything.

"What are you doing here?" I asked, my voice dry and tired.

He shrugged a little. "I just came to the garden to get some fresh air. I didn’t know you were here… but I’m going to go now."

Good, I thought. Please go. I didn’t answer. I turned my face away, looking in the other direction, hoping he’d take the hint and leave.

But then he said something that made my throat tighten.

"You should stop crying… it's spoiling your pretty face."

I clenched my jaw, still not looking at him. "I thought you said you were going to go. Just go."

"In my presence, that’s disgusting to hear," he shot back.

I sighed heavily. I didn’t have the strength for this. "I don’t have time to talk, Nolan. I don’t even have the energy. Just leave me alone."

"Yeah, I’ll leave you alone," he said casually. "I don’t live here, anyway. I just came because my building is getting renovated. If you walk to the far end of the compound, that’s where I live. This place is huge."

"Why are you telling me this?" I snapped, frustrated. "I don’t need this information. I just want to be alone. Can you give me that? Please?"

"Okay, okay. Sorry. I don’t even know why I told you that," he mumbled. "I’ll see you around."

I turned my face again, wanting this conversation to end, but then I heard him again.

"Hey."

I groaned quietly. "Can you just stop?"

"I just wanted to tell you…" he paused for a second. "You can paint. In your room. Or out here in the garden. Wherever you want. Just get your equipment and paint."

I blinked. My body froze. "What?"

"Killian’s my brother," he said calmly. "But still… paint. I’ll talk to him."

And just like that, something inside me lit up.

That one sentence, those few words were like a spark in the dark.

I jumped off the swing like a child seeing sunlight for the first time in weeks. My legs moved before I could even think. I ran straight to Nolan and threw my arms around him without hesitation.

"Thank you!" I cried, again and again. "Thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you so much!"

For the first time in what felt like forever, I could breathe. I could smile. I could feel something that wasn’t pain.

But that moment didn’t last long.

Because suddenly, behind us, a cold female voice sliced through the air.

"What the hell are you doing with my fiancé?"