Chapter 6

That night, I did not go back inside the house. Instead, I used my digital ID to book a room at a nearby hotel.

On the third day, my lawyer sent me the completed draft of the divorce agreement.

I stared at the signature line on the last page, wondering how I could get Jade to sign it, when her call suddenly came through.

"Steve, where are you?"

The moment I answered, she launched straight into a furious interrogation.

"I need to talk to you. Get back here right now."

I glanced down at the divorce agreement.

"Funny. I wanted to talk to you too. Let's meet somewhere."

"No need. We'll talk at home."

I did not think much of it and agreed.

Half an hour later, I arrived home. The front door was still missing. I had barely reached the doorway when Jade stormed toward me, shouting.

"Steve, look at what you've done!"

I looked up and froze.

The living room was a complete mess.

Luis's enormous portrait had been thrown onto the floor, its frame shattered into pieces. Someone had taken a red marker and scrawled words like ‘homewrecker’ and ‘slut’ all over his face.

I frowned and turned to Jade.

"What does this have to do with me? I haven't even been home for the past few days."

The veins at her temples bulged. She pointed a finger so close to my face that it nearly touched my nose.

"Still trying to deny it?

"Who else would do something like this?

"Even if you don't like Luis, how could you be so vicious?

"There's absolutely nothing going on between us! I only started looking after him because I felt sorry for a young intern who had just joined the company. He's already had such a hard time in life. Why do you keep going out of your way to hurt him?"

I opened my mouth, wanting to tell her that I had no idea when the portrait had been smashed. However, when I saw the fury in her eyes, the way she looked ready to tear me apart, the words died in my throat.

I had explained myself countless times over the peanut butter incident, and she had refused to believe a single word.

What good would denying this do?

When I remained silent, Jade suddenly pulled open the TV cabinet and took out a thick stack of photographs.

"Since you're so attached to these things, I'll show you what it feels like to have something precious taken away!"

She grabbed the top photograph and ripped it in half, then tossed it onto the floor.

The sound of tearing paper filled the room, one rip after another.

I lowered my eyes and finally recognized them.

They were our pictures together, from our college days all the way to our wedding.

Jade had once treasured those photographs so much that she had carefully arranged them into several thick albums. Even a slightly curled corner was enough to make her fret for ages.

However, now she was tearing them apart without a second thought, ripping each photograph straight down the middle.

The pictures of us holding hands on the beach, kissing on our wedding day, and all the precious moments we once shared were being destroyed one by one.

Jade and I were torn onto opposite sides of each picture, just like our relationship now. There was no way we could ever go back to the way things had been.

When the last photograph hit the floor, she dusted off her hands and finally softened her tone.

"Don't be too upset. We can always take more pictures in the future.

"Luis has been through so much. I have to let him get even somehow."

With that, she pulled out her phone, took pictures of the shredded photographs scattered across the floor, and sent them to Luis.

Strangely enough, I did not feel angry at all.

Those memories had once meant everything to me. Now they lay in pieces at my feet, yet I did not even feel like picking them up.

Jade had already dialed Luis's number.

"Luis, did you get the pictures? See? I've already made sure that—"

She did not get to finish.

Luis's panicked voice suddenly burst through the phone.

"Ms. Smith! You have to come save me! Mr. Hoffman says that since I love having my picture taken so much, he's going to take some special photos of me—"

The call abruptly disconnected.

Jade whipped around. Her eyes were bloodshot, and her expression was terrifying.

"Is what he said true? Are you really going to force him to pose for photos?

"Steve, wasn't destroying his photographs enough? Now you want to destroy him, too?"

I looked straight at her and asked, slowly and clearly, "If I tell you I didn't do it, will you believe me?"

Her answer was a hard slap across my face.

A sharp ringing filled my ears. One side of my face burned, and I tasted blood in my mouth.

"Steve, just you wait! If anything happens to Luis, I swear you'll regret it!"