Chapter 3

I didn't bother with him. I picked up Andy and gently soothed him.

After a while, Joseph appeared at the door, looking frazzled, spatula in hand.

"Emma, can you show me how to make soup?" he asked.

I was caught off guard.

In the seven years I had known him, he had always been particular about his appearance. I had rarely seen him this flustered.

The only other time was when he rescued me from a group of thugs and got retaliated against with a bucket of paint.

I pressed my lips together, gently placed Andy in his crib, and followed Joseph out of the room.

I turned on the stove and started making soup, while he watched intently, jotting down every step.

This was the kind of moment I'd always longed for. Funny how it finally happened, all thanks to Olivia.

As Joseph headed out with the soup, he caught sight of the attic's yellow bulb flickering.

He looked over at me. "I'll change the bulb when I get back."

I stayed quiet, tilting my head up to the attic light.

I opened the drawer, took out a new bulb, and changed it out with practiced ease.

For seven years, every time he came home, he'd promise to change the bulb when he got back.

Without fail, he'd forget.

Eventually, I learned to do it myself.

I didn't need him anymore.

Joseph didn't come back.

Instead, he messaged me: [Thunderstorm tonight. Ben's scared, so I'll stay with him.]

I scrolled up through our chat history. It was just me, talking to myself the whole time.

His last reply was a year and a half ago.

I couldn't help but smile bitterly. Andy was scared of thunder too, but Joseph never bothered to comfort his own child.

I left his message on read, holding Andy tight as he sobbed nonstop, terrified by the thunder.

The next morning, my phone woke me up.

I answered without even thinking. Joseph was on the line. "Why didn't you reply to my message? Get ready. I'm coming to grab you for the party."

I was about to say no when I saw a message from an old friend I hadn't heard from in ages.

Grace Harper was back in the country, and she was going to be at the party too.

While I was still hesitating, I heard a woman's voice on the other end. "Joseph, I can't get the zipper up. Can you come help me?"

The call ended abruptly.

I didn't care about it. I called the nanny over to take care of Andy.

I quickly got myself together and headed out.

I had no intention of going to the gathering. I was just meeting up with Grace nearby to catch up.

But as I walked past the room where Grace and I were supposed to meet, I overheard someone in the next room saying my name.

I froze mid-step.

"I heard Emma's coming today. She's not going to give Olivia a hard time again, is she?"

"Oh, relax. Have you forgotten how Joseph dealt with her back then?"

"Joseph rushed to leave the military and come back the moment Olivia returned to the country. If Olivia hadn't married Michael, he wouldn't have been with Emma simply to get back at her."

"After Michael died, Joseph kept offering to take care of Olivia and Ben, but Olivia turned him down because she didn't want to fuel the rumors. That's how he married Emma."

"Joseph busted his ass in the military to get special leave to see Olivia. Even when Emma was kidnapped, he didn't bother coming back."

In that moment, my blood ran cold and I stood frozen in place.

Tears fell hard, splattering onto the floor.

So this whole time, I was Joseph's tool.

Turns out, he actually had leave all along.

When I was kidnapped, he could have applied for special approval to come back and save me right away.

But it wasn't until my dad begged every connection he had and sold our house to scrape together the ransom that I was finally freed.

Joseph showed up late, gave me a cold look, and made some excuse about work at the unit before leaving.

My hand instinctively went to the scar on my wrist. I remembered those seven miserable days locked up in that abandoned factory, with no light and no hope.

There was nothing but endless curses, humiliation, and pain. They even ripped out my fingernails and ripped my clothes off...

Suddenly, I couldn't breathe, and my vision went dark.

Right before I completely passed out, a familiar figure caught me in their arms.

When I woke up, I was in the hospital.

The phone rang several times before I finally managed to answer.

Joseph's voice came through, icy and sharp. "Emma, where are you? Be on time next time. I've been waiting here for an hour."

Before I could say anything, Grace grabbed the phone right out of my hand.

"Joseph, what kind of husband are you? Your wife fainted and ended up in the hospital. Where are you?" she snapped, the hung up.

Her eyes glistened red as she looked at me. "Why did you keep all this from me?"

I gave her a wry smile. "Now that you're back, can you help me draw up a divorce agreement?"

Grace hurried back to her law firm to get started on the paperwork for me.

When Joseph found me, I was asleep.

As soon as he took my hand, I instantly woke up and pulled it back.

Seeing his hand now empty, he frowned almost imperceptibly.

He didn't blow up, though. Instead, he sat down in front of me, picked up a bowl of soup, and was about to feed me.

"I spoke to the doctor. There's nothing serious," he said.

I turned my face away, not touching the soup.

A bitter smile tugged at my lips. "We've known each other seven years, and you didn't know I can't stand parsley?"