Five Years of Lies: My Secret Escape

Out of the ten dates arranged by the Sullivans, I only ever saw Robert Sullivan and Maisie Corbus, but never Xavier Sullivan himself.

He always had countless excuses over the phone—he was in a meeting at work, drinking at a bar, or in bed with a woman.

I thought that our agreed marriage would automatically fall through due to his lack of cooperation.

But Xavier's parents, Robert and Maisie, looked at me with determination and said, "Once he sees you, he will agree to marry you."

When Xavier finally met me, he seemed completely entranced and agreed to the marriage right away.

I thought he had fallen in love with me at first sight. But later, I discovered that I was merely a stand-in for his first love, Elsa Zermeno.

The first time I saw Elsa was in a photo I found hidden inside one of Xavier's books. She looked very much like me, except for her eyes.

I had round doe-eyes that looked innocent and unassuming, whereas Elsa had upturned eyes that were seductive and alluring.

So, I confronted Xavier with the photo. He snatched it away and pushed me to the ground mercilessly.

With a frosty expression, he sneered, "Don't touch that photo. You're not worthy."

The second time I heard Elsa's name was in bed. Xavier was drunk and suddenly became uncharacteristically tender. As he kissed me, it was as if he was handling a fragile piece of art.

His gentle touch stirred my emotions. But as he leaned close to my ear, he whispered softly,

"Elsa."

I froze in an instant when I heard that name.

The next day, I went to Xavier's parents and asked, "Who is Elsa? Is she the woman who looks like me?"

Their expressions faltered immediately.

Maisie spat, "She's the temptress who almost cost Xavier his life!"

Robert tried to reassure me. "Don't worry, we've already sent her out of the country."

They kindly informed me that Elsa liked to wear jasmine-scented perfume because that was Xavier's favorite scent.

Xavier had a ghastly scar that was about eight inches on his leg. But every time I asked about it, he refused to tell me how he got it.

When I got home, I sprayed on the jasmine perfume I had just bought and coaxed Xavier into drinking with me.

Usually, he ignored me when he came home, but this time, he surprisingly agreed. I got Xavier drunk and asked him about the scar.

With red eyes, he confided, "Elsa and I were traveling in the snowy mountains when the paths got blocked. She suddenly came down with a fever and passed out. I carried her on my back and hiked down the mountain, but I fell into a cave, and my leg got cut by a piece of scrap metal.

"I'm a man, so having a scar on my body isn't a big deal. But the doctor said that if we had been an hour later, her life might have been in danger."

Elsa being in a life-threatening condition was merely a possibility at that time. Yet, the fear it brought him lingered for a long time after that incident.

I used to think Xavier was born emotionally distant. I assumed that even with someone he loved, he would be cold and distant most of the time. It would be on very rare occasions that his tenderness would shine through.

Little did I know that he had given all his burning love to Elsa, and what was left for me was just cold indifference.

The next day, I woke up before dawn and noticed the screen of Xavier's phone glowing. He was turned away from me, chatting with someone saved in his contacts as "El".

"Xavier, I'm coming back. I had only left five years ago because your parents told me you had decided to marry Halyna Joffrin."