Chapter Twenty — “Storming Out”

“Then maybe you should’ve picked someone stronger,” he said.

I didn’t move.

Not at first.

I just stared at him. That single sentence cracked through me louder than the shatter of anything I could’ve thrown. I didn’t even flinch when the tears hit the back of my throat. I just stood there, chest tight, my vision burning.

“Stronger?” I repeated, low and disbelieving. “That’s what you think this is about?”

Damian didn’t say a word. His jaw was tight. His arms crossed. Like he was holding something back.

“You think I wanted him?” I took a step closer. “You think I stayed because I was weak?”

Still no answer. But something flickered in his expression. Something close to regret but he buried it before I could be sure.

My voice cracked. “You don’t get it. I stayed alive because of Lily. I stayed quiet because I was protecting her. You think I wanted to be someone’s punching bag?”

His silence was worse than shouting.

So I did the one thing I never thought I would do. I grabbed the wine glass from the marble tray and threw it against the floor.

It exploded, red shards and wine scattering across the room like blood.

“Say something!” I screamed.

He looked at me then. Really looked at me. His voice was quiet. Too quiet.

“You treat me like a threat and a trophy,” I yelled, 

“I’m your wife, remember?”

And then he snapped.

“That’s the problem,” he said, stepping forward. “You’re not supposed to matter.”

The silence that followed was louder than the shatter.

Something inside me cracked open. Not just pain, something deeper. I didn’t yell again. I didn’t cry. I just walked past him. Past the glass. Past the fire and the cold.

My coat was still near the door. I didn’t grab it.

I didn’t need anything but out.

I slammed the door behind me hard enough to wake the whole damn estate.

The air outside slapped me in the face. It was colder than I expected. Rain hung heavy in the sky, just beginning to fall, fat drops hitting my skin like truth.

I walked.

No direction.

No plan.

Just my feet moving as fast as my chest was unravelling.

I didn’t check my phone. I didn’t care who saw me. Let the reporters snap their pictures. Let the staff whisper. I was done pretending.

I walked until my legs went numb. Until I couldn’t feel my hands. Until the only thought left was her.

The rain picked up. Cold and sharp. But I didn’t stop.

And still, I walked.

Only one place made sense.

Only one person still mattered.

Lily.

I made it to the hospital.

I didn’t go inside.

I sat outside Lily’s hospital wing, under the pale overhang near the emergency entrance, curled on a stone bench like a child. The rain poured sideways. I let it. Let it soak into my bones like punishment.

I didn’t know how long I sat there. Minutes. Hours. The sky was dark and everything blurred.

That’s when I heard footsteps.

I didn’t look up right away. I thought it was just another nurse.

But then I heard his voice.

“Ava?”

I blinked hard. Looked up.

It was Mark.

“He rushed over and dropped his jacket around me.

“You’re freezing.”

“I didn’t know where else to go,” I said, lips numb.

“I’ve been calling. Damian’s been…” He stopped. 

“Forget it. You need to get warm.”

And then, another pair of footsteps.

Harder. Angrier.

Damian.

He stopped short when he saw me.

The fury on his face cracked. Just… collapsed. Like the sight of me soaked and shivering short-circuited whatever rage he’d walked in with.

He didn’t say a word.

Not a damn word.

Whatever rage he had melted away.

He didn’t say anything.

He just looked at me. Like he didn’t expect this. Like seeing me like that broke something in him too.

I didn’t speak.

And I… I wanted to say something cruel. I wanted to remind him of what he said. But I couldn’t.

Because I couldn’t feel anything anymore.

I swayed.

Then the sky tilted.

And the world went black.

The last thing I felt was someone catching me before I hit the ground.

Hands. Warm. Familiar.

Damian.