Lahat ng Kabanata ng OBSESSED WITH MY EX-WIFE : Kabanata 71 - Kabanata 79

Ms. Claire was sitting on the floor of the hallway outside her own apartment when I arrived, wrapped in a cardigan, her knees pulled to her chest. A neighbor hovered nearby looking helpless. The apartment door behind her was open and even from the hallway I could see it the chaos from here.I braced myself in the car and told myself I knew what I was walking into, even tho still wasn't ready."Lydia breathe, pull yourself together" I whispered to myself and got out of the car.It covered most of the living room wall, wide smears, fingers dragged through something dark and rust colored, the kind of red that had dried at the edges and was still slightly glossy in the center where it was thicker. And the words, written large, deliberate, each letter formed slowly enough that you could see where the hand had paused and pressed harder. It read:“I WILL MAKE YOUR LIFE A LIVING HELL.”I crouched down next to Ms. Claire. She flinched at the movement and then saw it was me and grabbed my hand

LYDIA'S POVI called Maya at seven in the morning, still sitting on the floor behind my front door.She picked up after several calls."Lydia?""Hey… M… Maya." My voice shook."Hey, you good? You sound disturbed. Hold on, I'm coming," she said and hung up.******She was at my door in thirty minutes with two coffees and a paper bag from the bakery around the corner. That was Maya , coming through when I needed her to. She walked in, looked at me, scanned the apartment, then looked at me again.Then she set the coffees on the counter and opened her arms. I walked into them and fell apart completely. I couldn't hold it all together anymore.The farm. Ms. Claire's wall. The photograph of the woman at the barn. David on the other side of my door last night and in my bed."I don't know what I'm doing, Maya." My voice came out muffled and broken. "I don't know what I'm doing. The farm is gone. Someone is still out there. Ms. Claire is terrified. And I—" I pulled back enough to look at her.

LYDIA'S POVI woke up to the smell of coffee.For a second, I forgot everything about the fire escape, the letters scored into the metal , Ethan at my kitchen table at 4 am. I just smelled coffee and heard the city outside my window doing its morning thing.I sat up, reached for my robe, and walked out.Ethan was at my kitchen counter with two cups already poured. He was still in yesterday's clothes. His hair was flat on one side from the couch cushion. He looked up when I walked in."Morning, Lydia," he said."Hey, you're up early." I took the cup he slid toward me.We stood on opposite sides of the counter for a moment, drinking, no one spoke. That awkward silence of two people who have something between them and are deciding who goes first.Ethan went first."What happened the night before?" he said.I looked at my cup."Which part?" I said carefully."Before yesterday, Lydia." He set his cup down. "David said you would talk today about last night. What happened between you two, Ly

LYDIA'S POV"What in the world have you done?"Ethan was on the floor, one hand pressed to his ribs. His lip was split, and each breath looked painful.David stood over him, his chest rising and falling hard, his knuckles red."David." I stepped between them. "Stop. Look at me. I need you to stop this madness."His gaze snapped to mine.But he didn't look calm. He looked like a man still deciding whether he was finished."What happened?" I looked from Ethan to David. "What did he say to you?"David's jaw tightened. He wiped his mouth with the back of his hand and looked at me with burning eyes."Is Ethan Noah's father?" His voice was low and thick.The corridor went silent.I stared at him, my head spinning."What kind of question is that?""Answer me!" David barked. "Is he?""David—""Is Ethan Noah's father, Lydia?" His voice was louder this time.At the end of the corridor, the patrol officer glanced over."Lower your voice," I said, gesturing."I don't care about my voice right now