Chapter 3: The Spiral

Aria’s POV

I stood there, rooted to the spot, thinking about all the years I had poured myself into Mark, every bill, every sacrifice, every compromise, while he had money all along and pretended he did not. All this time, he had never been faithful. And worse, he had been waiting. Waiting for me to take a loan. Waiting for me to buy a house. Waiting for the moment he could move in with Clara and erase us.

My breathing grew shallow, uneven, as though the air itself had turned hostile.

“Aria?” Elliot called.

I looked at him, tears streaming freely down my face, yet something darker boiled beneath them. Rage. Hot and consuming. For a split second, the thought crossed my mind with frightening clarity.

I wanted to kill him.

Yes. I’ll kill him.

“Mum, Elliot,” I said suddenly, wiping my tears with the back of my hand, “let Hailey stay here with you. I need to take care of something.”

“Aria, don’t fall with him,” Elliot said quickly, as though he could read my thoughts.

“Whatever you do,” Mum added, her voice sharp with fear, “don’t be stupid.”

“I’m just going to get our things,” I replied. “Everything that belongs to me. By the time he returns home, he’ll find an empty house.”

Even as I said it, I knew that wasn’t the whole truth.

“I’m coming with you,” Elliot offered.

“No,” I said firmly. “I need to do this myself. Please… allow me to vent in my own way.”

They exchanged a glance, silent, loaded, and finally nodded.

I was too angry to drive. When the ride arrived and I stepped out of the compound, I glanced back once and saw Elliot watching me from an upstairs window.

“Mummy, where are you going?”

Hailey’s voice stopped me cold.

She stood in the garden with Helina, small hands clasped together, her eyes fixed on me.

“I’m going to bring Daddy,” I said quickly.

She frowned, studying me with an intensity far too old for her age.

“That’s weird, Mummy,” she said slowly. “You’re wearing the same dress from my dream. And you have the same smile. And you just said exactly what you said in my dream.”

My heart thudded painfully.

“Mummy,” she continued, her voice calm, almost rehearsed, “are you going to hit Daddy’s head with a wine bottle?”

She asked it the way a child might ask for sweets.

I froze.

Lowering myself to her level, I held her shoulders gently and brushed a strand of hair from her face.

“No,” I said softly. “No, honey. You just had a nightmare. That’s all.”

She didn’t look convinced.

“Mummy has no reason to hurt Daddy,” I added quickly. “I’ll be back soon. And guess what? We’re spending Christmas here with Grandma and Uncle Elliot.”

Her face lit up instantly. “Yeah.”

“I’m just going to get a few things for Christmas,” I said. “I’ll be back.”

I turned away before she could ask anything else.

During the ride, my fingers wandered through my phone gallery without purpose, anniversary photos, forced smiles, years carefully curated. That was when I saw it.

The video.

The one I hadn’t deleted.

My stomach twisted. I hesitated, then leaned forward.

“Sir,” I said quietly, “are you good with technology?”

“Yes,” the driver replied. “I'm good in IT.”

My pulse quickened. “So you can tell the difference between an AI video and a real one?”

“Yes.”

“Please,” I said, handing him my phone, “have a look and tell me if this is AI or not.”

He slowed the car, pulled over near a bus stop, and watched the video in silence. His expression changed almost immediately.

“This is not AI,” he said. “It’s real.”

I swallowed. “Someone told me it was AI.”

“Whoever said that lied,” he replied calmly. “This was recorded with a phone. The quality is just poor.”

He handed the phone back to me, then hesitated. “If you don’t mind me asking… why do you have a video like this?”

I don’t know why I told him everything. Perhaps because he was a stranger. Perhaps because I needed the truth spoken aloud.

He listened, then nodded slowly.

“What you told me is very painful,” he said as he dropped me off. “But please… don’t do something you’ll regret. You have a daughter. Right now, she has only you. Think about her.”

I watched the car disappear down the road.

The house felt wrong the moment I stepped inside. Hollow. Cold.

I wandered from room to room, touching walls, furniture, memories that no longer made sense. Finally, I called a colleague, a friend who drove one of our company’s transport trucks.

When he arrived, we packed everything that belonged to me.

That was when it hit me.

Nothing in the apartment was Mark’s.

No bed. No sofa. No television. Nothing he had bought. Just empty rooms echoing with absence.

We left.

Back at my parents’ house, Helina and Hailey were out, and relief washed over me. I couldn’t face explaining anything yet. My belongings were moved into the basement, spacious, silent. Once the truck left, I collapsed in the living room, sobbing into my hands, with Elliot and my mum comforting me.

Later that night, my phone rang.

Sandra.

She invited me out. For the first time ever, I didn’t hesitate.

Mark had always been the reason I said no.

I dressed carefully. Deliberately. Helina stayed with Hailey.

“Where are you going?” Elliot asked as I came downstairs.

“Out.”

“It’s past nine.”

“I know,” I said calmly. “I need fresh air.”

He studied me. “You’re not in the right frame of mind.”

“Sandra is already here,” I replied. “I said yes. I need this.”

A knock interrupted us.

“Please,” Elliot said quietly, “take care of yourself.”

I nodded and left.

The club assaulted my senses the moment we stepped inside, alcohol, smoke, heat, bodies pressed too close.

“I’m so glad you came,” Sandra said brightly.

She dragged me towards a VIP section, past a guarded door. Inside, it was quieter. Dimmer. Still thick with smoke.

Drinks arrived. I downed mine without thinking.

“Slow down,” Sandra warned. “These are spirits.”

I didn’t hear her.

When she asked what happened, I broke.

Everything spilled out.

“What a jerk,” she said. “Divorce, right?”

I nodded, draining another glass.

“I need the bathroom,” I muttered.

She helped me up, but a crowd separated us. I staggered down the hallway, pushed open a door.......

A bed.

“Where’s the bathroom?” I whispered.

“Down the hall,” a male voice replied.

Too late.

Warmth crept down my thigh.

“No… no…”

Next, I woke up naked in a bed.

My clothes were clean. Pressed. Hanging neatly.

“Oh dear Lord,” I whispered. “What did I do?”

I dressed quickly. My gaze caught on something resting nearby.

A bracelet.

Familiar… I picked it up trying to remember where I have seen it before.

A knock sounded, interrupting my thoughts. I held on to the bracelet and answered the door.

“There’s a ride waiting,” a man in a black suit said.

“Who sent you?”

“My boss. He owns this place.”

“Who is he?”

“I’m not permitted to say.”

I looked around and he seems trustworthy. 

I left immediately, taking the bracelet without realising.

At home, Elliot was asleep on the couch.

“Aria,” he said suddenly, “where were you last night?”

I froze mid-step.