chapter 71: mia?

Anabella’s Pov.

I hadn’t seen Daniel since that night.

The echo of his hand across my cheek still lingered, the sting long faded but the humiliation carved so deep into me that I carried it with every breath. In all the years I had known him, through the betrayal, through the ruin of promises, through the endless storms, he had never raised his hand against me until then. He had hurt me in a thousand different ways, yes, but never like that. That slap was the final crack in whatever illusion I had left of the boy I once thought I would marry.

And then, he disappeared.

Days stretched like shadows, heavy and unrelenting. No footsteps in the hall, no sound of doors opening, no deep voice curling through the silence. Only reminders of him. Flowers delivered each morning, enormous arrangements that made the rooms feel more like tombs. Their perfume saturated the air until it felt like I was breathing rot. Among the roses, lilies, and orchids, one small card had arrived, scrawled with his h