Memories flooded me—ten years of rebuilding, the nights we stayed late at the factory, the time she carried my jacket through winter, the promise she made when my ribs were broken. All of it now felt like a bargain she had rescinded. I had loved her with a trust that made me blind; now that trust lay in pieces. I wondered who had quietly replaced the woman I knew.
The police officer met Clara’s gaze and hesitated.
“Boss Lynn, Ethan is your husband. If you press charges, he’ll go to jail and get a criminal record. That follows him for life. Are you sure?”
Clara’s face was unreadable; she lifted her chin.
“I’m sure. Unless he kneels and publicly apologizes to Felix, swearing never to strike him again.”
Her calm unmoored me. I forced a smile I didn’t feel.
“Clara, are you sure? You want me to beg a mistress?”
“What mistress?” she snapped. “Don’t slander. Felix is my brother—my benefactor’s son.”
I let the sneer show. “Stop pretending. I saw the way you look at him.”
She stared at me for a long moment. “I didn’t betray our marriage,” she said.
“Fine. Wait for the court.”
An officer took my arm. “Mr. Hill, you’ve been wronged, but you can’t act on impulse. If this goes to court, you could be jailed.”
He leaned close. “That pretty boy doesn’t look harmless. If you go inside, will he let you out? Think carefully.”
The warning landed like a weight. With Clara shielding him, I had no protector. The room tightened.
In the interrogation room, I rose and bowed my head to apologize to Felix.
Before I could speak, Clara cut in. “Kneel and beg three times,” she ordered. “Then swear that if you ever target Felix again, you’ll die a miserable death.”
The demand stunned me. She wanted humiliation for another man she favored.
Felix watched with contempt and satisfaction. The policeman nudged my knee with his boot.
“A real man can bend,” he said. “Apologize.”
I ground my teeth and forced the words out, each syllable tasting of defeat. “I’m sorry. It was my fault. I swear I’ll never fight Felix again. If I break this promise, may I die a miserable death?”
Clara’s face softened into a small, satisfied smile. “ Ethan,” she said, “I knew you wouldn’t make things difficult.”
She gave orders. “You go to the company. I’ll take Felix to the hospital and stay with him for a few days. You manage the rest.”
She took Felix’s arm and left. Outside the station, my phone rang.