Chapter 3

With ice-cold fingertips, I held that file. After hanging up the call from the military commission, I found myself walking to the window as if possessed.

Nathan held Veronica tightly in his arms in the yard downstairs. "I'm so sorry, Veron. Vivian's emotionally unstable, and she has psychological trauma… I can't leave her at a time like this. But believe me—once her condition stabilizes, I'll definitely give you a satisfactory answer."

The two of them then kissed as if they couldn't bear to be parted, looking just like a pair of ill-fated lovers. At that exact moment, I felt the flesh and blood that held us together being ripped apart, leaving a gaping hole behind. It hurt so badly that I couldn't even make a sound.

On the seventh day I spent lying in the hospital bed, I suddenly figured everything out. I wanted to leave Nathan and cut all of these ties myself.

For seven days straight, he didn't return to the military district family compound. I didn't ask him about it. I simply submitted my divorce application and military transfer report according to procedure and began sorting through my personal belongings.

The first temporary military family housing unit we had been assigned back then had been vacant for years. So, I decided to return it to the Logistics Office.

When I arrived at the house with the logistics officer, I discovered the door was slightly ajar, and the giggles of a woman and the restrained panting of a man echoed from inside.

Peering through the crack in the door, I spotted Veronica's dance practice clothes scattered all over the floor. Nathan had her pinned against the wall, his camouflage pants pushed down to his knees as he thrust his hips violently.

The hand he clamped tightly around the side of her waist still wore our wedding ring on its ring finger.

I clenched my palm tightly, slowly let out a breath, and pulled the door shut. I then turned to the logistics officer and said, "I'm sorry. I don't think you'll be able to inspect it today. Let's do it another day."

The officer was a young female personnel, and she had heard the noises from inside as well. Looking at me with a complicated gaze, she asked, "Major Tomlinson… Would you like to report this to your superiors?"

I shook my head. "That won't be necessary. It's a personal matter. There's no reason to bother them about it."

Should I barge in there and claw at them like a madwoman? Or cry like a resentful wife about the years we had fought side by side together? There was no point. A man whose heart had already wandered was nothing but an empty shell, even if I won him back.

I hurried downstairs, only to be grabbed tightly by the wrist by Nathan, who had chased after me. His breathing was still uneven, his collar askew. "What are you doing here? Did you… hear anything earlier?"

I withdrew my hand and responded calmly, "I was passing by to submit the application to return the unit. The door wasn't open, so I left."

He visibly relaxed, assuming I was simply feeling sentimental from the surroundings. "I've been deployed on a field exercise all week, and I just got back today. Veron said she needed a place to train, so I just lent her my keys… Don't read too much into it."

I couldn't be bothered to expose his lousy excuse and turned around to leave. All of a sudden, a loud crash of shattering glass echoed from inside the house, followed immediately by flames leaping upward.

Nathan's expression changed drastically. He clamped his hand around my chin, a horrifying rage burning in his eyes. "Did you do this? I thought you'd really come around, Vivian. I didn't expect you to resort to these kinds of tactics!

"Let me make myself clear. I'm the one who approved Veron's temporary stay here. If anything happens to her, the military legal office will come for you first!"

He shoved me away, spun on his heel, and charged into the fire.

Initially, I was about to leave, but I suddenly remembered—the divorce report and the notarized documents for my parents' personal effects were still locked inside the old safe in that house. Hence, I grabbed a fire extinguisher from the hallway, smashed the window, and climbed inside against the heat.

Thick smoke billowed inside the house, and Nathan was rushing out with Veronica in his arms. When he spotted me, his gaze turned instantly cold. "What are you doing here?"

Ignoring him, I headed straight for the bedroom. The fire had already snaked up the curtains, and the safe was right next to the burning closet.

"Vivian Tomlinson, have you gone insane? Hurry up and get out!" Nathan bellowed from the doorway.

Yet, I threw myself in front of the safe and spun the combination lock. The moment the safe door sprang open, the burning chandelier above me crashed down.

Nathan instinctively shielded Veronica beneath his body and retreated. I, on the other hand, was knocked over by the blast. Shards of glass cut into my skin, and blood instantly soaked through my clothes.

Gritting my teeth, I yanked out the document envelope and protected it tightly against my chest.