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All Chapters of Betrayal in the Rain: Chapter 1 - Chapter 10

10 Chapters

Chapter 1 The Fifty-Ninth Cup

The bedroom door was slightly ajar, a warm, golden light spilling through the gap.Lyra was speaking in a hushed voice.Forrest let out a short laugh, his deep voice as familiar as ever.My hand was still on the suitcase handle. Two steps forward, and I could push the door open. But I did not.The display cabinet in the living room took up an entire wall, filled with 58 ceramic cups.They were like 58 silent mouths, all clamoring to tell me just how busy Forrest had been over the past two months.The whole thing felt absurd.Before I left, I was still upset about our argument. Forrest had resented me for bringing trouble into our home, and I had thought he was cruel and heartless.Then he started buying a cup from the pottery shop every day. I assumed he was trying to apologize in his own clumsy way.It turned out that the apology was a lie. The affair was real.A muffled groan came from the bedroom.I let go of the suitcase handle and walked out the front door.Once downst

Chapter 2 The Name on the Receipt

The alarm in Lyra's eyes lasted only a moment.She quickly smiled, set the pot on the dining table, and picked up the ceramic mug with both hands."Cleo, you're back! This just came out of the kiln. I was going to have Forrest bring it back, but you got here first."I took the mug and checked the date newly engraved on the bottom.It was dated last night."Forrest told me your stomach has been bothering you, so I made you some soup. It simmered for over three hours."Her gaze fell on my clothes. "Cleo, that outfit looks gorgeous on you. Forrest told me last night that my skin was too rough for fabric like this. You really are lucky."I smiled and placed the mug in an empty spot in the display cabinet. "He's right. That kind of fabric isn't for you."Lyra's smile stiffened.I lifted the lid off the pot. Inside was soup made with wild mushrooms and scallops."Your shop was still losing money last month. You can't afford ingredients like these. Give me the receipt later. I don't

Chapter 3 The Promise He Broke

When I got home, Forrest was on the balcony, talking on the phone.He had his back to me, his voice gentle. "Stop crying. The necklace was my way of making it up to you. Whatever she has, you'll have too."I stopped in the living room, sweat dampening one corner of the pregnancy test results in my hand.He had made a similar promise to me once.In our second year of marriage, the company was struggling badly. He missed my birthday, then bought me a cheap, thin chain necklace.As he fastened it around my neck, he promised that once the company got back on its feet, he would give me the best of everything.Back then, I thought I already had the best thing in the world.Now, he was splitting that same promise between two women.Forrest ended the call and turned around. His gaze landed on the paper bag in my hand. "Where have you been?"I did not take out the pregnancy test results. "The lease on the pottery studio expires next month. I'm going to take it back."His brows drew to

Chapter 4 The Last Time I Waited

Forrest's hands trembled so badly that he could not undo my coat as he carried me onto the hospital bed.He stopped a passing nurse, his voice strained. "She's pregnant. She's lost a lot of blood. Please, help her first."The nurse pushed him out of the examination area.Before the curtain closed, I saw him standing there, panic flashing across his face for the first time.That glimpse of fear gave me hope.Maybe he would stay. Maybe this baby would remind him that we were his family.After the examination, the doctor ordered me to stay in bed to try to save the pregnancy.Forrest sat beside my bed and carefully tucked in the blanket around me. "Why didn't you tell me you were pregnant?"I looked at him. "I was going to. That day, you were on the phone with Lyra."His hand froze in midair. "Lyra and I—"His phone rang, cutting him off. Lyra's name flashed across the screen again and again.Forrest declined the call.Less than thirty seconds later, it rang again. He put it o

Chapter 5 The Truth He Never Asked For

I checked into a hotel near the office and changed my phone number that afternoon.I left my old phone on and gave it to my lawyer to preserve the call logs and messages.Forrest called me 47 times after he got home.In less than half an hour, his calls went from demanding answers to sounding panicked.Eventually, he found the hotel.When I stepped out of the elevator after my meeting with the lawyer, I saw him being stopped by security in the lobby.After two days apart, dark stubble shadowed his jaw, and his shirt was badly wrinkled.The moment he saw me, he wrenched himself free of the guard. "Honey."I stopped for a moment at the familiar endearment.He grabbed my wrist, but the moment he noticed the marks left by the IV on the back of my hand, he abruptly let go."Where have you been? I went back to the hospital looking for you. The doctors said you'd already been discharged."I handed my key card to my assistant and asked her to go upstairs ahead of me. "Did you see th

Chapter 6 The Price of Betrayal

Forrest arrived ten minutes late for the first pretrial mediation.He wore a black suit, and his hair had been freshly styled, but the dark circles under his eyes were impossible to hide.He sat across from me, his gaze fixed on me instead of turning to the lawyers first. "You've lost weight."I slid the proposed settlement across the table. "End the marriage, recover all illegally transferred assets, and continue the company audit."He did not even open the document. "After all these years together, do we really have to make a spectacle of ourselves in court? Lift the asset-preservation order. I'll close the pottery studio and never see Lyra again."This was probably the first time he had genuinely been willing to give up Lyra.If he had said those words just two weeks earlier, I might have held that pregnancy test report and cried as I forgave him.Now, I simply tossed a stack of photos and transaction records in front of him.Hotel records, door-lock logs, jewelry bills, pro

Chapter 7 The Price of Freedom

The night before the hearing, Forrest called my work phone.I did not hang up right away.His voice was calmer than it had been the last time we spoke. It was almost as if we were discussing an ordinary business dispute."The old house your parents left you is still tied up in the company's loan collateral. If I refuse to cooperate with the loan renewal, the bank will start proceedings to seize or sell the collateral next month."I gripped my phone and walked to the window.The house had been empty for years, but it still contained the study my parents had used when they were alive.Back then, I'd signed the guarantee to help Forrest through a difficult time. He had promised that even if the company went under, he would never let anything happen to the house.Now he was using that very promise to force my hand."What do you want?""Drop the lawsuit and have the asset restrictions lifted."He paused, then softened his voice. "Honey, I don't want to hurt you. I just want to pro

Chapter 8 The Last Secret

The trial did not go the way Forrest had expected.My lawyer began by laying out the full money trail. Company funds had passed through three shell companies posing as suppliers before ending up in accounts controlled by Lyra. The money was then divided up and used to purchase real estate, jewelry, and financial investments.Forrest still tried to maintain appearances. "These were legitimate investments. The plaintiff is deliberately misrepresenting them as asset transfers."His lawyer then submitted my psychological evaluation. "After her miscarriage, the plaintiff exhibited trauma-related symptoms. Her perception of what happened in her marriage may be distorted."I did not argue. I simply signaled to my lawyer to play the access logs, transaction receipts, and hospital timeline.The evidence spoke more clearly than any tearful plea could.The 58 nights Forrest had spent with Lyra matched my solo trips abroad perfectly.For the first time, his act could no longer hide the

Chapter 9 The Final Goodbye

Forrest had moved into a low-rent apartment on the west side of the city.When I found him, he was downstairs repairing a broken chair.He used to measure his time in minutes, with secretaries and clients constantly surrounding him. Now he wore a faded shirt, sawdust clinging to his cuffs.When he saw me, his eyes lit up. "Did you come to see me?"I placed the bank transfer receipt on the seat of the chair. "Explain this."The moment he recognized the account number, the excitement gradually faded from his face.After a long silence, he let out a sudden laugh. It was an ugly sound."So you found out after all.""Did you arrange the harassment back then?"Forrest lowered his head, still holding a screwdriver. "At first, I only asked the guy to give her a little trouble so I could step in and rescue her. I never told him to lay a hand on her."I stared at him. "But he did. And Lyra really did nearly take her own life."He jerked his head up. "She never intended to die. She cal

Chapter 10 My Own Life

The airport announcements played as Forrest stood outside the security checkpoint, blocking my way.He was thinner than the last time I had seen him. His coat hung loosely from his shoulders, and his expression was stubborn."Honey, I know you're still upset."I handed my ID to the security officer.Forrest followed me forward, only to be stopped by the barrier."Go clear your head. I'll wait here for you. I won't fight over the company anymore, and I won't touch the old family home again. You're the only person I've ever loved, and the only one I'll ever love."A few people nearby glanced our way.I did not argue or mock him.I had heard those words too many times for them to mean anything anymore.Forrest was still making plans for our future. He was convinced I was only leaving to clear my head, that with time, he would forget what had happened, and that eventually, my life would fall back into the one he had planned for me.I walked around him and headed for the security

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