You want a divorce?" Louis’s voice was cold, unreadable. "Yes," I typed on my iPad. "And this time, I won’t beg." For five years, I was nothing more than a ghost in my own marriage. A substitute bride, a deaf and mute wife who meant nothing to him. Louis never looked at me, never touched me. He paraded his mistresses in front of me, making sure I knew my place, nowhere. But I had secrets of my own. I wasn’t deaf. And I wasn’t weak. When I was kidnapped, I expected Louis to come for me. He didn’t. His indifference shattered me, but it also set me free. I made a deal with the devil, a dangerous man who helped me blackmail my own husband. If Louis wouldn’t let me go, I would destroy him. But things spiraled out of control. Now, I’m trapped. Not just between two dangerous men but between my heart and my freedom. Because despite everything… I think I still love him.
View MoreEvelyn's POV
"I want a divorce!"
I typed the words quickly on my iPad, holding it up for him to see. As someone who could hear but couldn't speak, my iPad had become my voice—my lifeline.
Louis barely glanced at the screen before scoffing, his eyes filled with indifference.
"You're not serious," he said, his tone dripping with arrogance.
"I'm damn serious!" I typed again, my hands trembling as I clenched the device. My heart pounded in my chest, anger bubbling inside me.
My grip tightened around the crumpled pieces of paper in my other hand—the divorce papers. Five years. Five years of a marriage that never should have happened. I was never supposed to be his wife. I was just a substitute, a stand-in for my sister, who had been betrothed to him since birth.
I still remembered my mother’s harsh voice ringing in my ears.
"You have to marry him, Evelyn. Now that your sister is gone, you must take her place!"
My father, who had never seen me as anything more than an illegitimate burden, decided to erase my past and mold me into my sister’s image. No one had ever seen her before, so they hid her death and forced me into her name—Evelyn. But my real name was Nana.
The secret funeral had barely ended when I first met Louis. And despite the circumstances, I fell for him instantly. Love at first sight.
But he was different.
"Why didn’t you tell me your daughter couldn’t speak?!" he had roared when he found out about my disability.
My mother had pleaded with him. "She can hear! She’ll be a good wife, please, just marry her!"
Reluctantly, he agreed.
That night, after we signed the marriage papers, I had tried to reach out to him. I had walked toward him, my fingers trembling as I attempted to remove his jacket. But before I could, his strong grip caught my wrist.
"Don’t ever touch me!" he spat, his cold blue eyes filled with disgust. "You're like glass—fragile, useless. Listen carefully. I don’t want you near me. And don’t ever fall in love with me, because it will only end badly for you. You’re not my type."
And just like that, he walked away, leaving me alone on our wedding night.
Now, standing in front of him, I shoved the iPad toward his face again, my message clear.
"Take these papers and sign them now!"
Instead of complying, he stepped closer. Instinctively, I took a step back. My breath hitched. He was so close, and even after everything, my heart still raced. How could I still love him after all he had done?
I wanted to scream at him, to throw every ounce of pain back in his face, but I couldn’t. He didn’t even understand sign language, the one way I could communicate freely.
Just last night, I had seen him with another woman. Their moans had echoed through our house, piercing my heart like a thousand knives. He hadn’t even tried to hide it.
And now, he had the audacity to say—
"I won’t divorce you."
His voice was firm, his fingers brushing against my hair. I slapped his hand away, my blood boiling.
"Don’t you dare touch me, you flirt!" I typed furiously, shoving the screen at him.
He let out a low chuckle, biting his lip. "I admit I’m a flirt," he said, his voice laced with amusement. "But I will never let you divorce me. Never."
I typed aggressively, my fingers jabbing at the screen.
"Why?! Why can’t you just let me go? Let me live my life!"
For the first time, he hesitated. His silence made my stomach twist. For a split second, I wondered—could he have developed feelings for me over the years?
But then he spoke, shattering that thought instantly.
"I have an upcoming election at the office. A divorce would be bad for my image," he said coldly.
Of course. It was never about me.
My hands shook with fury as I typed my response. "I don’t care! Sign the damn papers and let me go!"
I shoved the divorce papers into his hands along with a pen. My heart pounded as I watched him stare at them. But then, in one swift motion, he tore them into shreds.
I gasped, my eyes widening in shock.
"How dare you?!" I signed furiously, my hands moving aggressively in front of his face. "You evil, selfish man! You think just because you’re handsome, I won’t leave you? If you don’t divorce me, I swear I’ll chop off the balls you use to cheat on me!"
Louis frowned, staring at my hands in confusion. "Whatever you just said, I didn’t understand. Type it out." His smirk returned. "I bet you just cursed me, didn’t you?"
I gritted my teeth, rage consuming me.
Before I could type anything, his phone rang. He answered it with a smirk.
"Hello, babe," he said smoothly. His eyes flickered to mine, enjoying my reaction. "Yeah, I enjoyed every second of last night. Can’t wait to do it again tonight."
I didn’t think. My body moved before I could stop it.
SMACK!
My palm collided with his cheek so hard that my own hand stung.
For a moment, there was only silence. Even I was shocked by what I had done. His head slowly turned back to me, his jaw clenching. His eyes darkened with fury.
"You hit me?" he said, his voice dangerously low.
My breath caught in my throat. Before he could react, I spun around and ran. I didn’t know where I was going—I just needed to get away. My whole body trembled as I walked aimlessly through the streets.
My phone buzzed in my pocket, but I ignored it. Then, messages started flooding in.
Mom: "Your husband called! He said you ran away! What is wrong with you? Go back home now!"
I stopped walking, my knees giving out as I collapsed onto the cold pavement. My fingers trembled as I turned off my phone, shutting out the world.
Tears blurred my vision.
Why was my life like this? Why did I always have to suffer?
I buried my face in my hands, letting out a silent sob.
Then, suddenly, a shadow loomed over me.
Before I could react, a hand clamped over my mouth.
They immediately pulled me to the van, throwing me in like I was some kind of dirt.Evelyn’s POVThe room was a storm of panic.Staff darted back and forth. Phones rang. Security guards whispered urgently into walkie-talkies. But everything faded into white noise as Louis stood behind the desk, his jaw tight, his eyes dark with fury. The moment they pulled up the security footage, the chaos screeched to a halt.There he was.A man in a black hoodie and a white surgical mask, wheeling my mother silently down the hallway. Her head lolled gently to the side, completely unaware. Sedated. Vulnerable. A nurse’s uniform hung off his shoulder, but even through the grainy footage, I knew.It was him.The masked monster behind everything.The one who had been texting me.The one I helped.My stomach turned violently.Louis leaned in, knuckles pressed hard against the table as he squinted at the screen. “Can you zoom in on his face?” he demanded.The guard shook his head. “The mask’s covering everything. We’ll run it through facial recognition anyway.”But none of it mattered.
Evelyn’s POVThe car ride was a blur.Louis drove like a man possessed. His hands were clenched tightly around the steering wheel, knuckles pale against the leather. His jaw was set, eyes burning straight ahead, scanning the dark road as if he could will us to move faster. The streetlights outside flashed across his face in intervals…light, shadow, light, shadow…like something out of a nightmare.Beside him, I sat frozen.My fingers clutched the iPad to my chest, like if I held it tight enough, I could hold back the terror clawing at my ribs. My breath came in shallow gasps, my heart thudding louder than the engine. My mind wouldn’t stop racing…images of my mother, alone, vulnerable in that care home, now in danger because of me.Please be okay.Please don’t let them touch her.Please.Louis's voice cut through the silence. “We’re almost there. Hang on.”I didn’t nod. Couldn’t. My body wouldn’t respond. All I could do was stare ahead, muscles tense, stomach churning, as the car sped
Evelyn’s POVThis is bad.So, so bad.My lungs were on fire, each breath like swallowing broken glass. My hands wouldn't stop trembling, fingers twitching like they didn’t belong to me. My legs barely held me up…I was practically floating, drowning, spiraling all at once.Louis had seen the card.He confronted me.And he didn’t believe me.Could he already know?That I’m not mute?That I’ve been hiding everything?That I’m the one behind the blackmail?The weight of those truths pressed on my chest like a thousand bricks. My heart pounded so hard I thought it would crack my ribs. A lump rose in my throat, thick and suffocating. It was like the air itself had turned against me….too thin to breathe, too heavy to escape.The second Louis walked out of the room, I ran. I didn’t think. My feet just moved on their own, carrying me like a frightened child through the halls until I burst into my bedroom. I slammed the door behind me and locked it with shaking fingers. My knees gave out, and
Evelyn's POVA sharp, blinding light pierced my eyelids. The sterile scent of antiseptic clung to the air around me. My body felt like lead…aching, drained, every muscle sore. I blinked slowly, once, twice, until the blur faded and I saw him.Louis.My husband.His tall frame was hunched over the edge of the hospital bed, his fingers wrapped around mine like a lifeline. His hair was damp and disheveled, clinging to his forehead. His face…God, his face…ooked like it had aged ten years. Shadows hollowed his cheeks, and worry carved into every line around his eyes.As soon as my eyes fluttered open, he noticed."Evelyn?" His voice cracked as he leaned closer, brushing my hair away from my forehead. "You’re awake... thank God. How are you feeling? Are you okay? Does anything hurt?" He was speaking too fast, panic bleeding into every word.I turned my head slightly and spotted the iPad on the side table. My trembling fingers reached for it, and Louis quickly helped me position it. I typed
Louis' POVThe rain was already falling when Dave pulled into the compound. I didn’t wait for the car to fully stop. I yanked the door open, my shoes splashing into a shallow puddle as I stormed across the gravel, coat flapping behind me.“Dave,” I called, breath steaming in the cold night air. “What about my wife? Where is she?”He stepped out slowly, face pale under the dim porch light. Water clung to his brows, his shirt soaked through beneath his open jacket. He looked like a man who had been chasing shadows.“We didn’t find her,” he said quietly.I stopped in my tracks.“What?”Dave didn’t meet my eyes. “We searched every where, and threre’s nothing. Not even a trace of your wife.”My hand balled into a fist. Rain slicked over my knuckles.“No.” My voice was flat, but inside me, everything screamed. “She has to be somewhere. She wouldn’t just vanish.”“She did,” Dave said, voice low. “Louis, we’ve hit dead ends all day.”I turned away, breath catching in my throat. The rain soake
Evelyn’s POVThe moment the lock clicked behind him, I collapsed back against the cold mattress, clutching my side. My fingertips came away sticky, still blood. Still pain. Still trapped.I glanced around, my pulse pounding against my temples. The room, though regal in appearance, was nothing more than a gilded cage. Every corner was watched. Every object, controlled. But something inside me stirred, faint and fragile.Run.The voice in my head wasn’t loud, but it was determined.I shifted slowly, groaning as I swung my legs to the side of the bed. My hospital gown clung to my body, damp with sweat and blood. Every breath was a battle. But I had to move.I had to fight.I reached up, shakily, and pulled a single pin from my tangled hair, a thin silver clip I always kept tucked behind my ear. My hands trembled violently as I crouched by the door, jamming the pin into the keyhole. Click. Twist. Rattle. My heartbeat was deafening in the silence.It didn’t work.“Damn it,” I whispered, my
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