Chapter 3

Hearing that, she wiped away a tear with the back of her hand, as if scrubbing out weakness. She’d told herself she could hold it together that not even losing the child would break her. But this? Letting James believe the lie? That was the real wound.

Without a word, she snatched the divorce paper from the bed. Her fingers trembled as she gripped the pen, but she forced her name onto the line.

Then she flung the document at him. It slapped against his chest and slid to the floor.

“There!” she screamed, her voice hoarse, trembling. 

“You got the revenge you wanted.. I hope it keeps you up at night. I hope it rots in your chest.”

James didn’t move.

“Get out!” she shrieked, her chest heaving with fury.

“Get out, James! Take your lies, your disgust, and your guilt—because I never cheated on you! And one day, when the truth hits you, I hope it destroys you like you destroyed me.”

Tears blurred her vision, but she didn’t let them fall this time. She wouldn’t cry in front of him anymore.

James stared at her, his heart clenched behind his cold exterior, her reaction sent a chill down his spine but he said nothing.

He turned and walked out, slamming the door shut behind him.

Hannah collapsed onto the bed, her strength unraveling with every sob. She didn’t fight the tears anymore—she let them fall, hot and bitter, soaking into the sheets.

The man she loved. Her best friend.

They’d carved her heart out and left her bleeding.

“They’ll never get away with this,” she whispered, her voice shaking but laced with something colder than grief—promise.

“Op! I wonder what a pathetic woman like you can do to us,” Lyra sneered as she walked gracefully into the hospital ward, her heels clicking like nails on tile.

She’d been lurking outside, waiting for James to leave. Only when his car disappeared did she dare to step in.

With practiced poise, she sank into the chair opposite Hannah, crossing her legs with deliberate elegance. She tossed her long, straight hair over one shoulder, casually revealing a fresh hickey on her neck.

Hannah’s breath hitched. Her fingers curled into tight fists beneath the hospital sheet. The sight of Lyra—smug and unbothered—stoked the embers of her rage into a full blaze.

"You came here... to gloat?" Her voice, raw from hours of crying, carried a dangerous edge.

Lyra smirked. “To be honest? I came to see if you’d finally broken. Guess I got what I wanted.”

Hannah pushed herself upright, muscles trembling from exhaustion—but her eyes burned with something alive now. Fury. Fire. Fight.

Lyra’s gaze swept over her like a critic inspecting a ruined painting. She folded her arms and clicked her tongue.

“Wow. You look like death warmed over.”

Hannah blinked slowly, her voice a hoarse whisper. “What are you doing here?”

Lyra gave a mock shrug, her smile venom-sweet. “I figured I owed you a visit... after everything.”

“Don’t pretend to care,” Hannah rasped. “Not after what you did.”

Lyra’s smile widened, almost proud. “So, James finally showed you the folder, huh?”

Hannah turned her head slowly, eyes brimming with rage and pain. “Why, Lyra? Why would you do this to me?”

Lyra gave a little laugh, humorless and sharp. “Because you’re so damn careless, Hannah. You handed me your life on a silver platter. Your trust. And you never questioned anything. Just like always.”

“Is trusting you a sin?”

“It wouldn't have been a sin if you were nothing but sand under my feet. You’ve always had it all—the grades, the charm, the spotlight. Teachers adored you. Boys wanted you. Even James—the only one I ever looked at like that—fell for you. Not me.”

She let out a dry laugh.

Hannah’s heart squeezed, her breath catching in her throat.

“I walked in your shadow every damn day,” Lyra hissed. “And still, you got the best man, the dream wedding... everything. And you didn’t even appreciate it. You tossed it away like trash.”

“It should have been you,”

“You think you’ve won?” she said, her voice rising, shaking with wrath. “You think because you slept with my husband and fed him lies that makes you powerful?”

“I don’t think, Hannah. I know.”

“No,” Hannah snapped, eyes blazing now.

“You didn’t win. You settled. You crawled into my leftovers and tried to wear my skin like it would turn you into something better—but it didn’t.”

Lyra flinched, the smirk slipping from her lips.

“You’re still the same miserable, jealous girl who can’t stand to see someone else shine,” Hannah continued, her voice breaking with rage. “You used my phone, drugged me, ruined me… and for what? James? That spineless coward who believed a lie over his wife without a second thought?”

She flung the hospital blanket off her legs and stood, wavering on her feet but strong in her anger.

“Take him. Take all of it. You deserve each other.”

Lyra's face twisted into something between offense and disbelief.

“I took him on your wedding night—while you were waiting for him. I was giving him sex that made sure he never looked back. And he didn’t.”

“You bitch!”

“Yeah. That’s what James deserves. Not a boring pig who got pregnant after being touched maybe twice.”

“No,” Hannah spat. “I’m awake now. Finally. And you? You’re going to watch me rise from this. You’re going to watch me reclaim everything you tried to steal.”

She stepped forward, pointing at the door.

“Now get out. Before I call security and have them drag your venomous ass out of here.”

Lyra stood frozen for a second, lips parting like she might say something else—but Hannah didn’t give her the chance.

“Get. Out!”

“Dream on about reclaiming your life,” Lyra sneered. “I promise you, I’ll have you killed the moment your wreck of a life gets anywhere near James.”

Lyra walked out and the door closed, 

A few minutes later, the door creaked open again. A doctor stepped in, clipboard in hand. He moved briskly, checking her vitals without a word.

Then he began removing the medical equipment one by one.

Hannah was stunned and confused at the same time, then she asked, “What are you doing?”

He didn’t meet her eyes. “You’re being discharged.”

“What? I’m still weak...my body aches... just…”

He handed her a folded set of clothes.

“You can go to the government hospital if you like. But your ex-husband has already signed you out.”