Chapter 4
When Edward got back, he didn't show up to see me.
Instead, he sent his secretary over with a prenuptial agreement.
The agreement said I had to quit the company after we got married and keep out of his relationship with Olivia. If I left home for more than seventy-two hours again, I'd forfeit all our shared assets.
He left a sticky note at the end: [Sign it, and the wedding goes on as planned. Don't let me down.]
I handed the agreement over to my lawyer, Grace Wright.
At nightfall, Jason sent me an encrypted file.
[Don't ask why I'm sending this. Some people are already getting calls from investigators. I'm just trying to cover my own ass,] he texted me.
The file came from the group chat called Table Seven.
The first bet was placed three months into my relationship with Edward.
He purposely disappeared for two days to see if I'd show up at his office looking for him.
On the security footage, I was there all night, cradling a bowl of oatmeal, waiting on the steps.
Someone off-camera snickered, "Man, Claire really knows how to stick it out."
Edward sent a few dollars to the group and declared, [I won.]
The second bet happened when my dad was on his deathbed.
Edward promised he'd be there to sign the surgery consent form with me, but Olivia called him away at the last minute.
On the video, I was clinging to his car door, sobbing so hard that I could barely stand.
"Edward, I'm all my dad has left. Please, don't go," I begged.
He gently pried my fingers off one by one, his voice still soft.
"Olivia took some pills. I'll check on her and be right back. Sign the papers first. I promise I'll make it back in time," he said.
After his car pulled away, I was left sitting on the pavement for what felt like forever, completely lost.
My dad died on the operating table.
In the group chat, Olivia typed: [Wait, her dad really died?]
Someone chimed in: [This is serious now, huh?]
Ten minutes later, Edward came online. [It's not on us. Surgery always has risks.]
Olivia asked, [Do you think she'll hate you?]
He replied, [She's got nobody left but me. I won't answer the phone immediately. She'll fall apart on her own, and after this, she won't use leaving as a threat anymore.]
I covered my mouth, the metallic taste of blood filling my throat.
That night, I called him forty-seven times.
When he finally picked up, all I could say was, "Edward, I don't have a dad anymore."
He was silent for a few seconds before hanging up.
The next day, he rushed to the hospital, held me tight, and cried, saying he'd come too late.
I was the one comforting him instead.
I reassured him that my dad's death wasn't his fault.
I kept scrolling through the group files.
The third folder had no preview image.
It was named: [Baby Test: Failed.]
My finger paused on the mouse.
The screen showed [Wrong Password.]
Jason hadn't given me the password.
Under the folder, a line of comments popped up.
Olivia: [I wanted to know whether or not you'd still pick me if she got pregnant.]
Edward: [Delete everything. Don't let her see it.]
My phone suddenly rang.
Grace was talking a mile a minute. "The bank filed for early repayment. The mortgage documents might have been falsified, but the manager pushed them through even though it was against the rules. The court hasn't frozen the process yet."
"How much time do we have?" I asked.
"At most seven days. If we want to save the house, we need the original authorization and evidence of the manager's misconduct."
'Seven days,' I repeated inwardly.
Then, my phone buzzed with a voice message.
Edward had landed. He sounded exhausted, but his voice was as gentle as ever, the same tone he'd always used to softly lure me back home.
He said, "Claire, it's been three days since you left. That's enough now.
"I've got the camellias you love all set. The wedding's still going ahead, as we planned.
"Come back and sign the papers. I'll handle the house debt for you."
He paused for a couple of seconds and let out a quiet sigh.
"Don't try to handle everything on your own out there. Besides me, where else do you have to go?" he continued.
I stared at that locked folder.
It was about the child I'd lost.
But the person holding the password was waiting for me to give up my whole future in exchange.