Chapter 2

Vanya POv

The kiss was hungry, desperate, like they had been starving for each other for years. Bernard's hands gripped Tracy's waist possessively as he pressed her against the hospital wall, their bodies molding together in a way that made my stomach turn. This wasn't a gentle, loving kiss. This was raw passion, lust, everything that had been missing from my marriage for so long.

I stood frozen in the doorway, unable to move as I watched my husband devour my best friend's mouth like a man dying of thirst. Tracy moaned softly against his lips, her fingers tangling in his hair as she pulled him closer, deeper into the kiss that was destroying my entire world.

"God, I've missed you so much," Bernard whispered against her neck, his voice thick with desire I hadn't heard in years. "These past few days of pretending to care about her have been torture."

Tracy giggled breathlessly, tilting her head back to give him better access to her throat. "I know, baby. But we have to be careful. She could wake up any minute."

"I don't care," he growled, his hands roaming over her body with a familiarity that made my heart shatter. "I need you so badly right now. Watching her throw herself in front of that car, seeing her all broken and pathetic, it just reminded me how much I hate being tied to her."

My legs felt like they might give out beneath me, but I couldn't look away from the horrific scene unfolding before my eyes.

"She looked so stupid," Tracy laughed cruelly, "diving in front of that car like some kind of hero. If only she knew that the two people she saved would rather see her dead."

Bernard's laugh was even more vicious. "Trust me, she'll find out soon enough. I can't keep pretending much longer. Her disgusting body makes me sick every time I have to touch her."

Tracy pulled back slightly, her eyes bright with malicious excitement. "What if we just had a quickie right here? She's completely unconscious. She'll never know."

The suggestion hit me like a physical blow. They were actually considering having sex right outside my hospital room while I lay broken and bleeding inside.

"Are you serious?" Bernard asked, but his voice was already thick with arousal.

"Dead serious," Tracy purred, pressing herself against him. "I can't wait to feel you inside me again. I want to taste you, to have you pound me like you used to before you had to waste time with that pathetic excuse for a wife."

Bernard groaned and pushed her harder against the wall. "God, Tracy, the things you do to me. I've missed your sweet body so much. You're so perfect, so beautiful, nothing like that disgusting skeleton I'm married to."

"I know, baby," she moaned, her hands already working at his belt. "I can't wait to suck you until you forget that worthless woman even exists. I want you to use me, to remind yourself what real passion feels like."

"You're incredible," he whispered, his hands sliding under her shirt. "I don't know how I survived being married to someone so cold and lifeless when I could have been with you this whole time. Your body is like heaven compared to hers."

Tracy laughed breathlessly. "I want you to fill me up completely. I want to feel every inch of you inside me while she lies there helpless and clueless. God, you make me so wet just thinking about it."

I couldn't take another second. The bile rising in my throat threatened to choke me as I stumbled backwards, desperate to escape the nightmare I was witnessing. These weren't the people I loved. These were monsters wearing familiar faces, destroying everything I had ever believed about loyalty and love.

I managed to make it back to my hospital bed without them noticing, my whole body shaking as I climbed under the covers and squeezed my eyes shut. Hot tears streamed down my face as their cruel words echoed in my mind, each memory like a knife twisting deeper into my heart.

"I gave you everything," I whispered to myself, my voice breaking with the weight of my pain. "I gave up my art, my dreams, my entire life because I thought you loved me. I believed in us, Bernard. I believed in our friendship, Tracy. How could you do this to me?"

The sobs came harder now, my entire body shaking with the force of my grief. Five years of marriage, ten years of friendship, all of it had been a lie. While I was sacrificing everything to make them happy, they were laughing at me behind my back and planning my destruction.

"I can't do this anymore," I cried into my pillow. "I can't keep living this lie. I want a divorce. I want them both out of my life forever."

The moment those words left my lips, something incredible happened. The antique necklace my grandmother had given me began to glow with a soft, golden light. The metal felt warm against my skin, pulsing with an energy that seemed to flow directly into my bloodstream.

Then I heard it. A voice, clear and powerful, speaking directly into my mind.

"Finally, my daughter. You have awakened the strength that has been sleeping within you."

My eyes flew open, scanning the empty hospital room frantically. "Who's there? Who said that?"

The voice came again, gentle but commanding. "I am Athena, the Goddess of Justice and Wisdom. I have been waiting within your family's sacred necklace for generations, waiting for a woman brave enough to claim her power."

"This can't be real," I whispered, touching the glowing necklace with trembling fingers. "I must be hallucinating from the concussion."

"You are not hallucinating, dear child," Athena replied warmly. "Your bloodline carries ancient magic, passed down through generations of strong women who refused to be broken by those who would harm them. You have just taken the first step toward reclaiming your destiny."

"I don't understand," I said, my voice shaking with confusion and disbelief.

"You chose to demand the respect you deserve instead of accepting their cruelty," the goddess explained. "For this act of courage, I am unlocking your first reward. Fifty million dollars will be transferred to your account within minutes to help you build the life you truly deserve."

My heart stopped beating. "Fifty million dollars? That's impossible."

"Nothing is impossible when you have the power of the divine on your side," Athena said with what sounded like a smile in her voice. "This is only the beginning, Vanya. There is so much more waiting for you once you fully embrace your strength."

Before I could respond, my phone buzzed loudly on the bedside table. The sound echoed through the quiet room like thunder, and when I saw the notification on the screen, my entire world shifted on its axis.

The numbers glowing on my banking app made my vision blur and my hands shake uncontrollably, because what I was seeing would change everything I thought I knew about what was possible in this world.