Chapter 3 No Way Back

Without hesitation, without a single question, I picked up the pen and signed my name.

After I finished signing the divorce agreement, I didn't ask Sebastian to come get me right away.

The final sculpture exhibition was entering a critical stage of preparation. It was my farewell ceremony to the past few years of my life.

Before I left, I wanted to see it through.

By the time I headed to the studio, night had already fallen.

As I passed through a narrow alley, several people suddenly rushed out. A piece of black cloth was yanked down over my head.

"Shameless bitch, you just won't stop clinging to Mr. Bennett!"

"You think you're worthy of bullying Hannah? If you had any sense, you'd have stepped aside long ago!"

"Guys, teach her a lesson!"

I curled up on the ground, both arms shielding my head.

Pain spread through my body, wave after wave. Yet inside, I felt only bitter absurdity. I had already signed the divorce agreement, and Hannah's fans still refused to let me go.

When they grew tired of hitting me and finished cursing, they quickly dispersed.

The alley was left with nothing but my broken sobs.

I struggled to pull the black cloth off my head and used the wall to steady myself as I stood. My lip was split, bruises bloomed all over my body, and a sharp pain throbbed near my ribs.

I returned to the empty studio and cleaned my wounds myself.

There was still work to finish. I swallowed a few painkillers and forced myself back into creation.

I didn't know how much time had passed when Theo stormed in, wrapped in raw hostility.

"Catherine, are you stupid? Why didn't you tell them we're already divorced when you got beaten? Come on, we're going to the hospital!"

I ignored him and kept working.

My indifference seemed to anger him. He paced back and forth across the studio, restless, his eyes sweeping the room before stopping on a dusty wooden carving in the corner.

It was a crude little rabbit.

Years ago, when he had developed a severe infection and a burning fever, I carved it bit by bit to comfort him.

I had stuffed the ugly little rabbit into his hand and told him that if he held it tight, the pain would fly away.

Theo picked up the wooden carving. For a brief moment, confusion flickered in his eyes. Then it vanished, swallowed by rage.

"You investigated me, didn't you? And you dare make such a lousy imitation just to trick me? I knew it. You deserved that beating. You must have gone to provoke Hannah again, right? Otherwise, why would her fans come after you?"

"It wasn't—" I tried to explain, but he was no longer listening.

With a cold laugh, he pulled out a lighter and flicked it on, bringing the flame close to the little wooden rabbit.

"No. You can't burn that!" I screamed and lunged forward, desperate to snatch back the last thing that meant anything to me.

He shoved me away hard. I staggered backward, my lower back slamming into the edge of the table.

A piercing pain tore through my body. The old surgical scar split open again. The agony was so intense that I nearly blacked out.

Theo saw the scar exposed at my lower back. He froze for a moment, then broke into a cruel smile.

"Whose idea of bedroom fun is this? I thought you said you couldn't live without me. And yet you're so desperate you're sleeping with other men? Are you really that starved?"

He tossed the wooden carving aside and advanced on me step by step. "Fine. Then I'll satisfy you."

He yanked me up and slammed me down onto the worktable.

Realizing what he was about to do, terror flooded me, and I struggled wildly.

"No, Theo, you can't! Let me go! Please… I'm leaving right away. I'll disappear. I'll never show up in front of you and Hannah again…"

"Begging now?" His voice was icy as he pinned me down. "Too late."

The unbearable pain that followed made my entire body tremble. My vision darkened in waves.

I felt as if I had been dragged back to that rainy night when we escaped. He had carried me on his back, every step heavy, yet he still tried to comfort me.

"Don't be afraid, sweetie. We'll be safe soon."

Pain and memory tangled together, my consciousness slipping.

"Sweetie… don't cry. The pain… the pain will fly away…"

The rough movement stopped abruptly.

Theo froze. He grabbed my face and forced me to look at him, his voice shaking. "What… What did you just say?"