Chapter 2
2
The next day, I went back to the Tribeca townhouse to pack my things.
I pushed the door open. Eli was sitting on the living room couch, hugging a throw pillow.
When he saw me, he smiled, slowly stood up, and pressed a hand to his chest, making sure I saw the deliberate flutter of his fingers.
"Adrian. You're finally here. I didn't think you'd actually come back to pack."
"I already sorted your things for you. Take a look and see what you want to bring."
He lowered his voice as he walked past me.
"This house is really nice. I'm very comfortable here. Oh, by the way, I swapped the bed in the master. The old one... Victoria and I agreed it was bad energy."
Every word was a blade.
He spoke with the exact same sense of entitlement he had when I first brought him into this home.
Eli was my adopted brother.
He was taken in by Richard and Elaine Cole when he was five, raised in the Cole household. My parents always favored him over me.
After I got married, I felt bad that he always seemed like a drifter, so I offered to let him move in with Victoria and me.
I had held his hand and told Victoria, "He's my brother. Please be good to him."
She had smiled and agreed.
And how did that turn out?
He wore my pajamas and slept in my bed.
And Victoria slept right next to him.
I stared at Eli's hand resting on his chest, and the memories of my past life surged up again.
It was right after their child was born that Victoria completely lost her patience with me.
I was strapped to a bed in the psychiatric facility when I heard the news: Victoria had left everything to the child she had with Eli.
I couldn't even cry.
I wasn't given a second chance at life just to be thrown back into the psychiatric system.
I took a breath and started packing, my face completely blank.
There wasn't much to take.
A few clothes, some books, an old picture frame.
That was all seven years of marriage had left me.
Seeing that I wasn't reacting, Eli started getting anxious.
"Adrian, why aren't you saying anything? Are you upset?"
I looked up at him.
"What do you want me to say, Eli? Congratulations?"
He froze.
"I don't want this house anymore," I said. "Enjoy your stay."
I grabbed my suitcase and headed for the door.
As I passed the study, I glanced at a hidden corner.
The indoor security camera I installed the day I agreed to the divorce was right there.
In my past life, I lost because I had no receipts.
In this life, I was leaving a paper trail for every single step.
That evening, Victoria asked me to meet to sign the supplementary agreements.
She skimmed the documents I handed back to her and suddenly said, "Adrian, you're acting much more mature this time."
I put my pen down and looked at her.
"You call this maturity, Victoria?"
She paused, her coffee cup hovering in the air.
"Drop the act," I said. "Sleeping with my brother while we're still legally married isn't exactly a great look for a public CEO, is it?"
She frowned but didn't lash out.
Her biggest fear right now was me turning this into a public scandal.
She needed everyone to believe that we were rationally separating due to irreconcilable differences.
Not that she had been chronically cheating on me with my brother.
I knew her too well.
But she had never truly known me.
Just as we finished signing, Eli walked in from outside.
He clutched his chest, his voice trembling.
"Victoria... my chest. It's tight again..."
Victoria slammed her coffee down and rushed over to catch him.
She wrapped one arm around his waist and gently rubbed his back with her other hand.
"It's okay, I'm right here."
The panic and heartache on her face were things I had rarely seen in seven years.
I stood in the entryway, watching the scene unfold, and laughed.
The irony.
This woman had painted me as a lunatic, yet she treated another man like he was made of glass.
I pushed the door open and stepped out into the biting night wind.
Victoria's voice called out from behind me.
"Drive safe, Adrian."
I didn't look back.
Save the fake concern.