Semua Bab Blood and Aurora: Bab 1 - Bab 10

The camera in Cole’s hand slipped with a sharp click, knocking against the corner of the table.He looked at me blankly.“Divorce? Why? Because I didn’t buy that pot? Or because I bought plane tickets to Iceland without discussing it with you first? Sadie, you want a divorce over something so small?”They were all small things, but when enough seeds scatter across the ground, picking them up one by one could drive anyone to the edge.“Cole, I’ve told you this many times. I don’t want to live like this anymore. I don’t want our bank balance dropping to single digits every month. I don’t want to swipe a credit card every time we pay for something. I don’t want us running around the city again and again, renting one place after another. Being with you… is exhausting.”Cole looked like he had just heard the biggest joke in the world. His voice rose as he argued back, “Being with me is exhausting? I work hard every day. I want to take you to see the most beautiful landscapes. I want to

Cold rain poured down the back of my neck, but I was past the point of shivering. I struggled with everything I had, yet my sick body was no match for the strength of three grown men.My raincoat was twisted out of shape as they grabbed at me. The sour, filthy heat from their bodies surrounded me.“Help!”In the end, I couldn’t stop myself from screaming. I knew it was useless, but I was terrified.They burst into rough, hoarse laughter, as if my fear were part of the entertainment. Then, they shoved me backward until my back slammed into the cold, wet trunk of a tree. A heavy body pressed down on me, and breath thick with alcohol was in my face. While one hand clamped over my mouth, the other started tearing at my clothes, reaching inside… The world shrank to the twisted faces in front of me and the disgusting laughter ringing in my ears.“Bang!”A gunshot cracked through the forest.“Bang! Bang!”Two more followed. My hand trembled violently as I gripped the gun. I wasn’t

The rain kept getting heavier, so I had no choice but to slow the car. My voice, however, stayed as calm as ever.“I loved him… very much.”Ava turned to look at me in shock.“Then why did you…”My eyes drifted down to my wrist. The bruises that once covered it had long since faded.“Ava, love isn’t everything in life, and romance certainly isn’t. Love couldn’t keep me from dying during those nights when my fever burned too high. Love couldn’t turn into a gun or a box of cold medicine. If Cole and I had continued living together in that state, it would’ve been unbearable. He would’ve been consumed by guilt, and I would’ve been full of resentment. No matter how much love remained, it would only have turned into mutual torment… a slow kind of suicide.”I paused and let out a long sigh. “Separating was actually better for both of us. It’s just… I never expected Cole to end up like this.”Ava nodded and looked out at the rain pouring down the window. Then, she sighed along with me.

Harry answered quickly. His voice carried that familiar calm, with just a hint of amusement.“Sadie, calling at this hour is rare for you.”I hesitated for a moment, then decided to get straight to the point, not wanting any misunderstandings.“I… need to tell you something. I brought Cole home. Seattle’s storm was bad, and I worried for his safety, so…”There was a silence on the other end of the line for two seconds. I had imagined his reaction—shock, anger, and maybe even a full-blown outburst. After all, bringing your partner’s ex into your home always feels like crossing a line. However, Harry’s response was different.“First of all, Sadie, I’m actually happy.”He said my name gently, and for a moment, I froze.Then, he continued, “Since we started dating, you’ve always been guarded about your past, especially your previous marriage. But you chose to bring him into our home and tell me honestly, instead of leaving him somewhere else and hiding it. I think… this has drawn us

The next morning, when I went downstairs, the guest room door was already wide open, and Cole was gone.I was still pondering this when I heard footsteps behind me. Harry was carrying two cups of freshly brewed coffee and handed one to me.“He left?” I asked.“At dawn, I heard some movement downstairs. He packed up quietly, probably didn’t want to wake us,” Harry replied.I raised my eyes at him, a little surprised. He caught my gaze, and the corner of his lips curved into a reassuring smile.“Don’t look at me like that. After you went to rest last night, I just went downstairs again and had a little chat with him.”I raised an eyebrow and asked again, “A chat?”Harry’s tone grew slightly more serious. “Yes. I mostly just listened to him talk about some of his past projects. Putting everything else aside, Sadie, he really knows his stuff when it comes to low-level computing architecture and optimization algorithms. His thinking is clear, and he has solid hands-on experience.“D