Chapter 4
Henry handed me a dry towel.
The car was quiet, with a light woody scent that made the air feel warm and cozy despite the rain outside.
I thanked him.
He looked at me through the rearview mirror.
"Attorney Clark's already at the firm waiting for you. She watched the dashcam video from the highway and said you shouldn't let them off easy," Henry said.
"I'm not letting it slide either," I replied.
When I said those words, my voice was so calm it felt almost unfamiliar, even to myself.
My phone buzzed.
It was a message from Edward.
Edward: [Get out of the car. Don't ride with a stranger.]
Another message popped up right after.
Edward: [Olivia, don't mess with me like this.]
Through the rain, I could see his car still parked outside the police station.
Sophia sat in the front seat, her hand pressed to the window, watching me through the downpour.
I turned off my phone screen.
Henry didn't say anything else, just turned up the heater.
"Do you want to go to the hospital first?" he asked.
"No, thanks," I said.
"Your wrist is bleeding," he said.
I glanced down and realized that the edge of his watch had cut my wrist over the bone when I yanked my arm free from Edward.
The cut wasn't deep, but the bright red was almost blinding.
I grabbed a tissue and pressed it to the cut.
"Can you drop me off at the law firm?" I asked.
Henry nodded.
As soon as we pulled away from the police station, Edward called.
I hung up.
He kept calling.
On the fifth call, I finally picked up.
"Olivia, do you even know what you're doing?" Edward snapped, his voice tight with frustration.
"I know exactly what I'm doing," I shot back, my voice steady and cold.
"Who's that guy?" Edward demanded.
"None of your business," I replied.
He was breathing hard on the other end.
"So you got into any car just to provoke me? Are you really that reckless, Olivia? Don't you have any sense?" Edward snapped, his voice tight with frustration.
Boundaries.
When he had someone lock my car, boundaries meant nothing to him.
When he left me standing in the rain, he didn't care about boundaries at all.
But now that I was getting into a car sent to pick me up, suddenly he was all about boundaries.
"Edward, I don't need to report my every move to you," I said, my voice cold and steady.
"You're still my fiancée," he snapped.
"Not anymore," I shot back.
His voice went cold.
"The wedding invitations are out, the venue's booked. You're just going to cancel everything, just like that? Seriously, what are you going to tell your parents?" Edward snapped, his voice tight with frustration.
When he brought up my parents, my fingers froze for a moment.
My mom had a weak heart.
She had been waiting for me to settle down for years.
Edward knew exactly how to push my buttons.
"I'll tell her myself," I said.
He let out a soft laugh.
"You will? Do you really think your mom could handle you calling off the engagement over something this trivial?" Edward said.
My heart clenched.
This wasn't concern.
It was a threat.
"Then let her know you almost got me killed," I shot back.
Edward went quiet for a moment.
"Did you really have to say it like that?" he said.
"Well, the truth hurts," I shot back.
The call cut off.
It wasn't me who hung up.
He was the one who couldn't handle it.
*****
The lights at the law firm were still on.
Emma Clark, my senior from college, now handled cases that mixed criminal and civil law.
After reading through the files, she looked at me and asked, "Are you sure you want to go all the way with this?"
I nodded.
She slid a few power of attorney forms across the table.
She said, "On the criminal side, we'll cooperate with the police. For the civil case, we'll push for compensation for both the damages and your emotional distress.
"Plus, your car, insurance, and the car's onboard system are all under your name. Since they tampered with it without your consent, both the platform and the individual will be held accountable."
I gripped the pen in my hand.
Over the past seven years, I'd signed away so much, always compromising for Edward.
I helped him get loans, co-signed for him, and sat through endless meetings about buying a house.
But this time, I was doing it for myself.
As I finished signing the last page, my phone lit up.
Edward had posted a photo from a dinner party on his social media.
Janet and Sammuel were sitting at the head of the table.
Sophia was snuggled up next to him, throwing up a peace sign.
The caption read: [My family's first time in Seaford. Hope I gave them a warm welcome.]
One of our mutual friends commented under the photo: [Where's Olivia?]
Edward replied: [She's upset. I'll go make it up to her later.]
I couldn't take my eyes off his reply.
Later?
It turned out, my life, my pain, and seven years of love could all be put on hold for him.
Emma noticed my expression and reached over to cover my phone.
"Don't look," she said.
I forced a smile.
"It's fine," I said.
Then I opened my photo album.
The pinned photo was a picture of Edward and me at the beach last year.
He was holding up the ring box, his eyes sparkling with boyish excitement.
He said, "Olivia, marry me. I'll give you my whole future."
I selected the photo and deleted it.
My phone asked if I was sure I wanted to delete it.
Just as my finger was about to tap confirm, there was a knock at the door.
Henry walked in, holding a clear evidence bag.
"Ms. Bennett, the police station had the tow truck driver bring this over," he said.
Inside the bag was a printout of the suspicious activity logs from the car's onboard system, proof that someone had messed with it without permission.
The top line was a note about the operation.
[At Mr. Foster's request, the car was stopped so Ms. Lane's family could check it out.]
I crumpled the paper in my hand.
Just as Emma was about to take a photo for evidence, Edward called again.
This time, his voice was laced with anger he could barely control.
"Olivia, get to the hotel right now and apologize to Sophia's parents," he snapped.