Where Freedom Begins

"Alina, after I'm gone... please… take care of yourself."

On the white hospital bed, my grandmother weakly reached out and stroked my face.

I sniffled, nodding through the tears that threatened to spill.

At 11:00 PM that night, the last family member I had left passed away.

I took out my phone and sent Chandler Armstrong back in the country a message. [My grandmother passed away.]

A short while later, a reply came through. [I'm sorry for your loss. She's just gone to heaven.

[Can you manage things on your own over there? If you need help, you can call Geoffrey—he's also in Damaria.

[I have some important matters to handle these next couple of days and can't be with you. I'm really sorry, Alina.]

His tone was still gentle, unchanged after seven years.

The only difference, perhaps, was that his words had grown fewer and he hardly called anymore.

I remembered the first three years I had spent abroad—Chandler couldn't go a day without calling me a dozen times.

We married at the height of our passion, but after that, we lived in separate countries. Through it all, Chandler had always been my rock.

I never questioned him; I just thought maybe he was busy. After all, he ran the huge Armstrong Industries, and there was no way he could have time to chat with me every day.

I turned off my phone and handled my grandmother's affairs alone.

As I stared up at the clear blue sky, a feeling of longing to return to the country began to take root in me.

It had been seven years.

From coming to Damaria alone to study and later taking care of my grandmother's medical needs, Chandler and I had been separated for seven years.

If he knew I was coming back, I bet he would be happy.

I unlocked my phone and stared at his cute black cat profile picture, which was a huge contrast to his usual serious self. I hesitated for a moment before closing the chat application.

I decided I wouldn't tell him just yet. It would be a surprise.

-

Two days later, I was back in the city I hadn't seen in years.

On my way to Chandler's house in a cab, I sent him a message. [Where are you right now?]

Two hours later, his black cat avatar buzzed and replied, [At home.]

I couldn't help but smile as I typed back, [Guess where I am right now?]

Chandler's reply was, [I guess... you're in Dewbrook?]

[Wrong. I'm home! Get ready for me!]

As soon as I hit send, the driver pulled up to a stop.

A beautiful villa came into view, the one Chandler and I had bought with the money we saved up together when we got married.

This house didn't belong to the Armstrongs, nor to my family, the Elledges—it belonged to the two of us.

All our sweetest memories were made here.

I raised my phone, thinking Chandler would be ecstatic.

But after a few minutes, he only replied with a question mark and then asked, [Are you serious?]

I frowned in confusion. [Of course, I'm serious. Do you think I'd joke about something like this?]

I snapped a photo of the villa and sent it to him. This time, he quickly responded and called me.

His familiar voice, deep and seductive, was like the smooth, rich flavor of red wine.

It had a captivating charm.

"Alina." His voice didn't carry the excitement I'd expected—instead, there was a touch of annoyance. "Why didn't you tell me in advance?"

"Because I wanted to surprise you. I was on a plane for over ten hours; I'm exhausted. Let's talk when we meet."

I hung up the phone and stepped inside the villa.

I was surprised to find that there wasn't a single servant in sight.

The clean living room was immaculate, but the windows were all tightly shut.

I opened the windows and then walked over to the cupboard.

Inside, the matching cups Chandler and I had bought were neatly placed in the corner.

Although there was no dust on them, their perfect arrangement made it clear they hadn't been used in a while.

"Chandler?" I called upstairs, but there was no response.

The huge villa felt eerily silent.