Chapter 1

VERA

The scraping of her knee against the pavement was nothing compared to the joy and relief swelling in Vera’s chest as she saw her home again.

The car sped off, leaving dust and debris behind, but she didn’t look back. Tears blurred her vision as exhaustion finally claimed her body. Years of survival weighed on every muscle; each breath felt earned. She was back.

Vera tipped her face toward the sky, letting warm sunlight wash over her. Tears slid down her cheeks as a long, unsteady sigh escaped her lips.

The sky had never looked so beautiful.

Her legs trembled as she stood, weak from the journey that had carried her away for nearly three years.

With a soft, watery smile, she pushed open the iron-barred gate. The screech of metal against metal rang out, harsh, ugly, and perfect. She lingered, fingers curled around the cold steel, grounding herself in the reality of her return.

Nothing had changed.

Her home.

Tears burned again, but she forced them back. They could wait. They would come later—when she was finally with her family.

The front doors stood ajar. A flicker of unease crossed her face, but she stepped inside anyway, her senses flooding with familiarity. Every corner, every faint scent, every memory embedded in the walls welcomed her home.

And yet—something was different.

Her gaze dropped.

Red roses littered the marble floor. Vera froze. Her heart leapt violently.

Was this for her?

Did he know she was coming home today?

Joy surged so sharply it stole her voice.

She followed the trail through the hall and into the garden, her pulse quickening with every step. The scent of fresh blooms mingled with the air she knew so well, and the happiness swelling in her chest became almost unbearable.

The roses led her to the garden she had nurtured for years.

And there he was.

Charles Donovan.

His back was to her, but she would have known him anywhere, the man she had lived with for three years and loved for five. He stood surrounded by soft light, carefully arranged food and drinks, her garden transformed into something reverent, almost sacred.

“Charles?” Vera whispered softly, barely hearing herself over the pounding of her own heart.

He released a shaky sigh. “Don’t come. Just listen.” His back remained to her.

Vera nodded, even though he could not see her. Her body was trembling, and she was sobbing so hard that her tears fell freely, but she couldn’t stop. She could hardly believe he had done this for her, that he had thought of this moment, that he had waited.

He began, his voice low and filled with vulnerability she had not heard before. “I know this wasn’t what we planned, baby. But I couldn’t hold myself. I have replayed this day so many times in my head, saw it in my dreams, planned the words so many times I rehearsed them in front of the mirror, even in the bathroom when no one was watching.”

Vera laughed softly through her tears.

“But nothing,” he continued, “nothing could compare to actually living it. Actually seeing the smile on your face when I hand you your favorite flowers. Baby, you made me the happiest man alive when you agreed to date me. Made me even happier when you told me you loved me. But you… you will make my joy complete, my life fulfilled, if you agree to be my wife.”

Vera’s mind wanted to interrupt, to remind him, I’m already your wife. But she kept quiet.

“The timing might not be what you want,” he said, his voice catching slightly, “but why wait? I can’t wait to do this with you.”

“I can’t wait to do this with you too,” Vera muttered amidst sobs, feeling a warmth in her chest she hadn’t known she could feel after the long, lonely years. For a fleeting moment, it was as if the past two years and six months had never existed.

He nodded, bending his head, sniffing to hold back the emotions. “I’m going to ask this while backing you, because I am a coward. And if you refuse me…” He let out a small laugh, dark and self-conscious. “…I could kill myself.”

Vera giggled through her tears, brushing her hands across her face to wipe away the stream of emotions.

“Baby girl,” he continued, a note of tenderness cutting through the nervousness in his voice, “as I often called you…”

Huh? Vera’s breath caught.

“Will you make my joy complete by accepting to marry me?”

Without hesitation, without thought, without a moment of doubt, Vera screamed, “Yes, Charles! I would love to be your wife!”

Charles laughed with joy and turned toward her, ready to take her into his embrace — but the smile froze on his face, and the laughter died. His frown hit her like a punch straight to the stomach. The flowers slipped from his hands, the ring fell, clattering across the stones, and his body stiffened as if he had seen a ghost.

“Vera?” His voice trembled. “No, this isn’t—“ 

Vera’s steps faltered. Her hands reached toward him, but he stepped back, putting distance between them. The shock of the sudden change, the sudden heaviness in the air—knotted in her stomach and coiled like a weight she couldn’t lift.

“Charles—what’s… what’s wrong?” Her voice shook violently, and dread spread from her stomach through her chest, making it hard to breathe.

“You are supposed to be dead,” he said, his tone sharp, and low, filled with malice she had never heard before. His eyes, once warm and full of love, now glinted with a malice that froze her in place.

Vera flinched. “What? Why? I—I’m not—”

“Charles?” A voice called from behind her, cold and familiar, the sound cutting through the air like glass.

Vera’s head turned slowly.

Her body trembled, legs threatening to buckle under the weight of shock and disbelief. Her eyes locked onto the brown eyes of the woman she had once trusted, once called her best friend.

 “What… what is happening?” Vera’s voice shook as she looked between them. Her stomach twisted violently. “Why is Didi here?”

“You aren’t supposed to be here,” Charles insisted again, shaking his head slowly, like he was still trying to wake himself from a bad dream. His eyes never left her face, wide and unsettled, as if her presence alone was unraveling something carefully buried.

Vera felt anger surge through her chest, hot and sudden, burning away the shock. “Well, I am,” she snapped. Her hands curled into fists at her sides as she forced herself to stand taller, even though her knees still trembled. “And someone better start talking before I lose my cool.”

Charles and Didi exchanged a glance.

It was quick and Familiar.

That look alone made bile rise in Vera’s throat. It was the look of two people who shared something without her. A shared secret or A shared lie.

Didi stepped forward, just as she always used to when things got uncomfortable. Confident and bold. Acting like she owned the space.

“Welcome back from the dead, Vera,” Didi said lightly, her lips curling into a smile that didn’t reach her eyes. “And since you asked so kindly, why don’t you take a seat?”

She gestured casually toward the table, as if this were a friendly gathering and not the moment Vera’s world was falling apart.

“We wouldn’t want you fainting when you find out everything now, would we?”