Chapter 3

After everything that happened the night before, I didn't think Caleb would come home for Valentine's Day.

But right before midnight, he stumbled in, reeking of alcohol.

Honestly, ever since he got together with Kayla, he hardly ever came back. They had a place across the river from his office. It was a massive luxury condo with a stunning view.

I knew that building. Back when they were still pouring the foundation, I stood with Caleb outside the construction site, pointing at the renderings behind the fence.

"One day, I want to buy the top floor in that middle tower," I'd said with a smile. "It'll be our home after we get married. River view, perfect sunsets. It'll be ours."

The building was finished now, and Caleb bought that dream apartment.

But it was for another woman.

"Why are you here?" I asked.

I leaned against the stair railing, looking down at Caleb. He stood swaying in the middle of the living room, drunk out of his mind.

My voice came out flat and emotionless.

He scowled, clearly annoyed. "This is my house!"

I blinked. It had been a long time since I heard him say that, and the words felt foreign.

For a moment, the room fell into a weird, heavy silence.

His ragged breathing, thick with alcohol, made my stomach churn.

And I gagged. More than once.

Caleb's face twisted with anger.

He grabbed me and yanked me down the stairs, shoving me up against the floor-to-ceiling window. Outside, the dim garden lights cast shadows across his face, cutting sharp lines into his usually smooth features.

"You think I'm disgusting?"

I stared at him, speechless.

Was that even a question?

After everything?

For years, Caleb had buried himself in other women, chasing revenge for something I never even got the chance to explain. Every time I tried to talk to him, to set the record straight, he'd shut me down with that same cold, bitter voice.

"Lily," he growled. "You don't get to bring up the past. When I begged you in the rain, that was the last chance for us. And you blew it."

His grip tightened around my wrist. It hurt, but I smiled and nodded anyway.

"You're right. I do think you're disgusting."

Caleb's eyes narrowed, and he sneered. "Not as disgusting as you were back then."

With that, he grabbed my wrist and shoved me down onto the living room couch.

I struggled with everything I had, landing a hard kick to his thigh. He doubled over in pain, and I took the chance to make a run for it. Just as the clock struck midnight and I was nearly at the front door, he caught up to me and yanked me back.

One rough pull, and I was yanked back straight into his arms.

His body was hot and solid.

Caleb grabbed me from behind, his grip like a vise. Then his hands went to my clothes, tearing at the fabric like a man possessed.

Maybe it was the alcohol, or maybe Kayla hadn't satisfied him. Whatever the reason, his touch was brutal, like he had no intention of letting me go.

"Let go of me!" I screamed, my voice raw and cracking.

A wave of nausea surged through me, followed by a sharp pain in my abdomen. It made everything worse.

I didn't know how much longer I could stay on my feet, or if I'd survive this almost torturous love.

"Lily, this is your duty as my wife!"

I fought him with everything I had, but it wasn't enough.

He slammed my hands against the wall, pinning me in place.

The brass vase by the entryway gleamed like a mirror, reflecting my twisted, contorted face.

It felt like I had been dragged through a century's worth of chaos and ruin. Just when I thought I was really going to die there, Caleb scooped me up and carried me into the bedroom.

Tears blurred everything. I curled up under the covers and didn't move an inch. My whole body ached, every inch of me burning and bruised. I bit down hard on my lower lip, trying to stay silent through the pain that wouldn't stop.

Caleb sat on the edge of the bed. He leaned down, pressing his forehead to mine.

"Lily, what am I supposed to do with you?"

His voice was tender, almost affectionate. It was just like the way he used to sound back when he loved me the most.

If not for the pain, so real and gut-wrenching, I might've believed that everything that happened before was just a bad dream.

Caleb must have felt my trembling and resistance. A warm droplet fell onto my cheek.

I kept my eyes shut. I didn't move or say a word.

"I just wanted you to love me," Caleb said softly. "Like you used to. If you'd just act sweet again, I'd forgive everything. Why won't you? Why don't you feel anything, no matter what I do?"

It wasn't that I felt nothing.

It was that I was dying.

And long before my body gave out, my heart had already stopped trying.