جميع فصول : الفصل -الفصل 9

My ex-husband, Tobias Clark, had taken time off from the department to be there for his new wife, Celeste White, as she gave birth. That's when the detectives rang him. The moment he heard that both Celeste and the baby were fine, tears streamed down his face. He'd cried just like that when he'd first learned I was pregnant, calling them tears of joy and promising to treasure me for the rest of his life. Just then, my gaze landed on Tobias' finger. He and Celeste had already replaced their old rings with a new set. When they couldn't reach Tobias by phone, the detectives went straight to Celeste's hospital room. Tobias had just soothed the baby to sleep. As soon as he saw the detectives, irritation flickered across his face. "Captain Thompson, I've been working nonstop for three years, and my wife just had a baby. Whatever it is, it can wait until I'm back on duty," he said coldly. Jimmy Thompson, Tobias' captain, knew better than to mess with his personal life. He gave Tob

Tobias trembled slightly when he heard that. He wanted to deny it outright, but then he remembered that he hadn't heard from me in three years—not since I left him. His throat tightened. Still, he stubbornly insisted, "No, that's impossible! Adeline signed for the divorce papers I sent her. How could she be dead?"Without waiting for Glenn to respond, Tobias rushed out of the interrogation room, his face deathly pale. He braced himself against the wall and took a moment to steady himself.…As soon as Glenn revealed where he'd hidden my body, the team set out for the location with a group of officers. Tobias sat in the car and watched the streets slide past, each corner more familiar than the last. Then, memories of how we met came flooding back. It had happened on this very street. He'd borrowed my art tube and used it to knock a fugitive out. The man had passed out on the spot, but the tube had been badly bent in the process. Inside the tube was a unique piece by a famou

Tobias whipped around to look at the officer who had spoken. The man was standing before a sculpture. The rest of the team joined him, crowding in so tightly that Tobias couldn't make out the face. Unable to believe it, Tobias murmured, "How could this be? How could it be Adeline? She'd even signed for the divorce papers…"He moved stiffly toward the sculpture, still clinging to the last thread of hope. Maybe it was another victim. Tobias' pace slowed as a growing sense of dread threatened to overwhelm him. Just then, he heard one of the officers say, "Long hair. Plaster sculpture, approximately five feet three inches tall, and has a prominent baby bump. Most of the details match Detective Clark's deion. "Some parts sound hollow when tapped, while others sound dull. We've recovered fingerprints from the plaster. We're using X-rays to confirm…"As the officer listed his findings, Tobias' mind reeled. He stood there in a daze and stared at the sculpture. In the next instant

Tobias remembered that I'd stopped responding to his messages after sending him the divorce papers. He'd assumed I wanted to cut him out of my life for good. After all, I'd been heartless enough to end my pregnancy when I was five months along. So when I stopped replying, he gave up on me completely. Later, Celeste started texting Tobias regularly. At first, he firmly turned her down. But gradually, he got used to having her around. By the time she graduated last year, the two of them were together. Tobias thought back on the past year. During every moment he'd been happy, I'd been buried in the plaster, unable to breathe. Something dark settled over him, yet he couldn't name it. All he felt was the weight on his chest.…Tobias had barely gotten into his car when a message from Celeste popped up. It read, "Tobias, the baby's crying. Do you think she's hungry? When are you coming back?"His expression darkened at once. Celeste was the reason Tobias and I had ended up like

But Tobias had no idea how I truly felt. After all, the living and the dead were separated by a gulf no one could cross. He couldn't see or hear me, and we couldn't communicate.Later, the court sentenced Glenn and Celeste. Their fingerprints on the plaster provided conclusive evidence against them. Celeste had tried to leverage her relationship with Tobias, but he'd refused to visit her even once. Guilt over what had happened to me weighed so heavily on him that he couldn't bear to see her.However, Celeste had used me to persuade Tobias to visit her. She promised to tell him what I'd said before I died, but only if he agreed to come. So, Tobias agreed to see her. The moment Celeste saw him, her eyes lit up. "Tobias, you came!" She played the victim and said, "Tobias, it's so cold in here. I miss you and our daughter. Can't you get me out of here?"Tobias had no intention of discussing anything else with Celeste. He stared coldly at her through the glass. "Celeste, I ca