I knew—Ethan was protecting her.
If I hadn’t acted quickly, I wouldn’t even have learned her name.
I confronted Ethan:
“You like her that much, that you’d even block information from me?”
He sighed. “Sophia, what’s the point of holding on to her?”
Once more, I threw the divorce papers in front of him:
“Sign them, and I won’t pursue her any further.”
The papers didn’t last two seconds in his hands before being ripped to shreds.
He flung the scraps into the air.
“I told you, between us there’s no divorce. Only widowhood.”
I laughed.
The next second, a wine bottle crashed against his head.
Red liquid slid down his face, impossible to tell whether it was wine or blood.
I grabbed the knife from the table and drove it toward him.
He caught my wrist in an iron grip, resisting my downward force.
“Ethan.”
Our faces were less than an inch apart.
“You really think I won’t do it?”
Our hands trembled, but I refused to yield.
“Divorce—or one of us dies.”
The standoff lasted only a few seconds.
Then, with a quiet laugh, he shifted the force toward himself.
My hand, trapped in his, sank the blade deep into his shoulder.
Blood splattered across my face.
“I told you, I won’t let you die before me.”
“Ethan!”
Through gritted teeth, I watched him release my hand.
“Do it, Sophia.”
I wrenched the knife free.
He groaned, blood covering my face.
The scent of iron pulled my mind back to that rainy night in high school.
I staggered and fell, but he caught me swiftly.
“Don’t be afraid. It’s okay, I’m here.”
His hand brushed my cheek gently.
Blood from his forehead dripped onto my face, one drop after another.
His eyes held no concern for his own wound, only worry for me.
On countless nights when my father beat me half to death, he had held me the same way. Shielding me with his back against beer bottles, chairs, even knives.
Grinning at me through the curses:
“Don’t be afraid. It’s okay, I’m here.”
We once embraced in blood, kissed in storms.
When love reaches its peak, betrayal becomes all the more monstrous.
I shoved him away.
“Don’t touch me.”
Stumbling, I left that room thick with blood.
For a time, we stayed apart.
And the girl—she remained sheltered under his protection, hidden beyond my reach.
But in the end, the girl was still young.
She couldn’t hold herself back and came to find me.
“Have you been looking for him lately? I’ll just tell you—he’s with me.”
Dressed in couture, she smirked triumphantly.