Chapter 6

When Bradley woke up again, he was lying in a shabby room, his entire body wrapped in bandages until he looked like a human mummy.

The nurse handling his IV needle was anything but gentle.

However, Bradley had already grown numb to the pain. His eyes were unfocused as he lay helplessly on the bed.

"Just look at you. You’re a perfectly respectable young man. Why would you go into someone's house to steal? Getting beaten half to death serves you right.

"And you chose to steal from Johnson Group, of all places. They practically rule this city. Do you have a death wish?

"Once you recover, you’ll probably spend several days in detention."

The nurse kept talking without pause. Bradley parted his lips, but the movement pulled at the cracks in his dry, broken mouth, sending a sharp stab of pain through him.

"Miss, could I make a phone call?"

The nurse looked genuinely surprised and instinctively pressed the back of her hand against his forehead.

"Are you seriously out of your mind? Do you even know where you are? This is the police station's medical clinic. You were brought here because you committed theft.

“Do you understand? All your belongings have been confiscated. Once you’re feeling better, you’ll still have to serve time in detention."

Tears gathered in Bradley's eyes as he murmured, "What about Lilian? Could I see her?"

Before he had been knocked unconscious, he had managed to get the marriage certificate belonging to him and Lilian. However, the name and photograph on it had belonged to Matthias.

Right now, all Bradley wanted was to ask Lilian what had happened.

Why? How had his identity changed so suddenly from her lawful husband into her illegitimate lover?

He had always believed that as long as he was her husband, he could endure anything. Even if people insulted him, misunderstood him, and called for his punishment, the day would come when Lilian made their marriage public.

Then he could finally stand proudly by her side.

At worst, people would call him a kept man, a useless freeloader everyone loved to hate. However, the one marriage certificate that could prove who he really was had sent him straight into hell.

He had endured everything for so long, only to discover such a cruel truth.

He could not accept it.

"Could you please help me call Lilian? Just tell her that Bradley is looking for her. I really have something important to discuss with her."

The young nurse looked at him as if he were a hopeless lunatic.

"Ms. Johnson is on vacation with her fiancé. Someone like you can’t just demand to contact her whenever you feel like it. Have you completely lost your mind?"

Seeing the despair on Bradley's face, the nurse sighed.

"Here. Look for yourself. You are a thief. Even if you want to beg Ms. Johnson for mercy, there’s no way she is going to see you."

Bradley glanced at the phone screen and saw an intimate photograph of Lilian and Matthias. The two of them were openly showing off their affection.

Lilian's face was filled with happiness and contentment, and the sight tore at Bradley's heart.

With tears in his eyes, he grabbed the nurse's wrist and pleaded, "I really just want to make one phone call. Please, can you help me? Just one call."

The nurse looked helpless, but Bradley's agitated state made her uneasy, so she tried to calm him down.

"I can’t make that decision myself. You should rest for now. I’ll go speak to my supervisor."

Half an hour later, Bradley finally got his phone back and was given permission to make one call to Lilian.

He gripped the phone tightly as the call connected, his heart pounding like a drum. If Lilian could confirm his identity to the police, they would release him. He would also get the chance to see her and find out the truth about the marriage certificate.

Then came a single tone.

Beep.

The call ended, brutally snapping the fragile thread of hope he had been holding on to.

"I told you. She’s the person in charge of Johnson Group. Why would she have time for someone like you?

“All right. That’s enough. Stop wasting our time."

A police officer roughly snatched the phone from his hand.

Bradley stood there, frozen, unable to process what had happened.

Lilian had never ignored one of his calls before. However, now that she was with Matthias, she had no time for anything else. She did not even care that Bradley had been misunderstood, arrested, and locked up at the police station.

He stood there like a lost soul as tears slowly spilled from his eyes.

The officer clicked his tongue impatiently, his face full of contempt.

"Looks like you won't believe it until you hit a brick wall. Fine. Open your eyes and watch. I’ll call her myself."

This time, the call was answered almost immediately. Lilian's icy, distant voice came through the receiver.

"Hello? Who is this?"

"Hello, Ms. Johnson. We’re sorry to disturb you. This is the First Precinct of the Alderwood City Police Department. There is a Mr. Bradley Chapman here who says he needs to speak with you—"

Before he could finish, Lilian's voice turned even sharper. She cut him off in irritation.

"I don't know him. This is my private number. If you have any questions, please contact my assistant."

Beep.

The officer slowly lowered the phone and snorted.

"There. See? You really are crazy. You brought this on yourself."

Bradley's hand fell limply to his side. He stared at the floor without moving for a long, long time.

Then, slowly, the corners of his lips lifted into a smile filled with unbearable sorrow.

One week later, Bradley was transferred to a detention center.

The iron doors swung open with a deafening boom. Someone shoved him hard in the back, and he stumbled inside.