Ashley’s POV

CHAPTER 1

“I told you already, Ash. The company’s going through a lot of financial crisis. Where exactly do you expect me to get money to afford those medications you’re requesting for?”

Alvin’s voice carried a faint edge of irritation. It wasn’t loud, but it was there. Sharp enough for me to notice.

It had been there a lot lately ever since that morning. Ever since the that shattered my life into something I could barely recognize happened three weeks ago.

I swallowed hard, my fingers tightening unconsciously around the cold metal rims of my wheelchair. The slight creak it made sounded too loud in the tense silence of the room as I turned myself slowly to face him properly.

The familiar pain in my lower body flared again with the movement, sharp and cruel, like something gnawing deep beneath my skin. It was the same pain I needed those medications for.

My breath hitched, but I bit it back, forcing my hands to stay steady as I adjusted my position.

Maybe if he looked at me.

Maybe if he actually saw me saw my pain he'd understand how important those medication were for me.

But Alvin stood in front of the dressing mirror, his back to me, completely absorbed in himself as he adjusted his tie.

He didn’t even spare me a glance.

My eyes lingered on the suit he was wearing. A designer piece. Clean and expensive yet it looked unfamiliar like he had bought it recently.

A strange unease settled in my chest.

“B… but these are important medications, Alvin.”

My voice came out softer than I intended, It trembled slightly, and I hated it.

Hell I didn’t even know why I was explaining this to him.

Of course he was my husband and he was supposed to know.

But lately… it felt like I had to explain everything, or he would twist it into something else entirely.

“Remember I told you about the pain in my lower body? It’s been getting worse…” I continued, my fingers curling tighter against the wheel as another dull ache spread through me. “I already spoke to Doctor Dan about it. He said it’s because I’m done with my first prescription and I need a refill.”

I paused, watching him carefully, searching for any reaction but there was none.

Just the calm, detached movement of his hands as he reached for a bottle of perfume.

“So are you trying to tell me Wellingspring has gone so broke that it can’t even afford a few medications?”

My voice shook again, confusion creeping in despite myself.

That company was mine.

I'd inherited it from my late parents and had ran it along with him as my partner until the accident happened and I left everything for him.

Before the accident, everything had been stable and thriving but now… just three weeks.

Three weeks of leaving everything in his hands and suddenly things were falling apart?

“We’ve got our separate trust fund account,” I added, my brows pulling together as my chest tightened. “The one we use to take care of house bills and personal expenses. I’ve been using that for my medical bills. We don’t touch the company funds for things like that, so what do you mean it’s failing? why can't you give me money?”

“Times change, Ashley. Stocks rise. Investors withdraw. Things happen.”

His tone was cold as he replied flat. Like he was reading from a script he didn’t care about.

That was it. N single ounce of shame or frustration that the company I left under him barely three weeks was failing.

“But how would you possibly know all that,” he continued, finally turning slightly, his reflection catching mine in the mirror, “when all you’ve been doing for the past three weeks is sitting on that chair while I work day and night at the office?”

The words landed before I could brace myself.

My chest tightened sharply, like something inside me had just cracked.

He turned fully this time, spraying the perfume against his neck. The scent drifted through the air almost immediately. Rich and expensive yet again time unfamiliar.

It was like everything about him suddenly felt unfamiliar.

“Alvin…” I called, my voice barely holding together as my vision blurred. “Are you… are you indirectly mocking me?”

The tears slipped out before I could stop them, warm against my cheeks but even that didn’t move him.

He just stood there, looking at me with an expression I couldn’t recognize anymore.

Still, I searched his face. Search desperately for the man I fell in love with.

The man who used to look at me like I was everything.

“Of course not,” he said, but there was no warmth in it. “But you’ve been going overboard recently, and it’s pissing me off. Someone needs to put you in your place.”

My breath caught.

“I’ve seen the way you go through the company files and ledgers when you think I’m not looking,” he continued, his eyes narrowing slightly. “I know you don’t trust me anymore. You think I’m lying. You think I’m squandering the company’s funds on irrelevant things. You think I’m deliberately being stingy.”

Each accusation hit harder than the last.

“But you should know your place, Ashley,” he added, his voice dropping lower and colder now. “I’ve been the one working my ass off while you’re doing nothing. Do you think it’s easy to handle the company alone? If it were easy, thousands of people would be doing it.”

It felt like something sharp was being driven straight into my chest again and again and for the first few seconds I couldn’t breathe properly.

Of course… I had been checking the company records when he wasn’t looking.

But that wasn’t new. I had always done that even before the accident.

It was my way of keeping track. Of reassuring myself that we were growing, that everything my parents left for me was still standing strong.

Back then, he never complained Infact he used to admire it.

So why… why was it suddenly a problem now?

Was it because I was in a wheelchair?

My fingers trembled slightly against the wheel.

What happened to him?

How did he become this… cold?

And the way he said I didn’t trust him…

Was that guilt about something I didn't know or what?

“You know, Alvin, that’s not true. You and I both know that…” My voice broke halfway, but I forced the words out.

“No.”

He cut me off sharply, his expression hardening.

“I’m not buying any of that shitty explanation you’re about to give.”

The finality in his tone made my stomach drop.

“I already told you the company is struggling. I don’t have any money to give you,” he continued, his gaze sweeping over me in a way that made my chest tighten painfully. “And if you think I’m lying, then bring your ass to the company and come do the work yourself.”

The disgust in his eyes didn’t even try to hide itself and before I could say anything else, he turned and walked out.

Just like that.

The door clicked shut behind him, the sound echoing louder than it should have.

And I was left there all alone.

My grip slowly loosened on the wheelchair as my shoulders trembled, the tears falling freely now.

My heart felt like it was breaking all over again.

Oh God why was my marriage becoming like this?

* * *

It was late afternoon when the pain on my lower body started.

The rain had just begun to fall, soft at first, then steady, tapping against the windows like it knew exactly what was coming and just like every raining season, the pain followed painful and merciless.

Every part of my body from my waist down to my toe felt like it was on fire.

"Oh God—" The cry tore out of me before I could stop it, my whole body trembling violently. My fingers curled uselessly against armrest as I fought hard to breathe.

It always came like this

And it was crazy because on any other day after the accident I never felt anything on my lower body but when the rain came… it was hell and even the doctors had no answer.

My hands shook badly as I reached for my phone on the table beside me. My vision blurred slightly, either from the pain or the panic tightening in my chest.

Alvin.

I tapped his name with unsteady fingers and pressed the phone to my ear, my heart already racing ahead of me, hoping and praying that he should pick up.

However at the first ring nothing I dialed for a second time still nothing at he fourth dial my grip was already tightening but I didn't give up

By the sixth, my chest started to cave in.

Then the seventh that's when he finally picked.

"F**k, what is it, Ashley?"

His voice came sharp and irritated from the other end. No single ounce of warmth or concern. Just annoyance.

My lips parted, but the pain hit again before I could speak.

"It… it's…" My voice broke, stumbling over itself as another wave slammed through me. My body jerked slightly on the chair. "It’s the pain, Alvin. It’s back and it’s severe now. Please, I need you—"

"So sorry, Ashley, but I’m in the middle of something important right now. I can’t come." That was it cold and detached and just like that the line went dead before I could even finish.

For a moment, I just stared at the phone pressed against my ear, like maybe if I waited, he would come back. Like maybe he’d realize how serious this was.

But even after a few second passed nothing.

Another cry of pain broke from my lips immediately raw and helpless and it wasn't from the pain from my body but It was his voice. The way he dismissed my pain like it was nothing.

I swallowed hard, my throat tightening as heat spread through me again this time unbearable and suffocating.

My skin felt suddenly felt hot, too hot. My throat turned dry and scratchy, like I hadn’t had water in days.

I needed something.

Anything even water just to calm myself down.

My fingers trembled as they gripped the wheels of my chair. I tried to steady myself, breathing through the pain, but it only came harder and sharper, like punishment.

Still… I pushed.

It was either this or just sitting here and letting it consume me.

Slowly, painfully, I wheeled myself out of the bedroom. Each movement sent shocks up my side, my teeth clenching as I forced myself forward. The hallway felt longer than usual as I moved but I didn't stop.

By the time I reached the living room, my arms were weak, my breathing uneven.

The water dispenser stood beside the dining table.

Immediately I reached it with shaking hands, grab a cup from the side and filled it with water some of the water spilled over my fingers, but I didn’t care. I brought it to my lips immediately and took a quick gulp and only then did I feel my insides cool slightly.

A deep waved of relief washed over me immediately though it was just a little.

I closed my eyes briefly, letting the sensation settle, letting it ground me for a while before turning to leave.

And that was when I noticed the TV.

It was on.

Of course I didn't need to be told it was Alvin's doing that was him always so careless.

A small flicker of irritation sparked through the haze of pain as I reached for the remote, my fingers still unsteady, and pointed it toward the screen hell I just wanted silence.

I pressed a button however instead of turning it off, the channel switched. I frowned slightly, about to press again but then—

I froze.

The remote nearly slipped from my hand as the News station suddenly popped into view.

A news caster was speaking, her voice clear and bright, but it wasn’t her that caught me.

It was the words.

"...In other news, today marks the birthday of Elena Voss, widely recognized as the country’s most successful model. In celebration, her best friend and close associate, Alvin Wellington, presented her with an extraordinary set of gifts, including twelve-carat gold jewelry, a luxury villa, and a brand new Lamborghini valued at ten million dollars."

My breath hitched at that point every other thing suddenly turning to white noise.

No.

I blinked trying not to believe it but then scene changed.

And there he was, Alvin. My husband.

The same man who had just told me he was busy in a meeting few seconds ago.

He stood beside her. Elena Voss. The country’s most successful woman.

The woman I hated so much because of how she liked competing with me for Alvin's attention.

Their hands were intertwined not casually but tightly and familiar.

And he was looking at her in a way I hadn't seen in a long time… Soft and focused. Like she was the only thing in his world.

And she…She was smiling at him the same way.

My chest tightened even more as my gaze flickered Beside them sat Lamborghini Sleek and Expensive it was the latest edition and I recognized it instantly because it had been launched just last week.

And to think Alvin had told me just this morning that our company was folding up that he didn't have enough money to afford my bills but here he was...

My fingers tightened unconsciously around the armrest of my chair at that moment my blood turning to ice as I gawked shockingly at the screen.