Chapter 3

SkyGuard Rescue Group was located in the suburbs, requiring strict registration for entry and exit.

Seeing me dragging luggage, the security guards followed protocol and called Ryan to authorize a vehicle pass. His phone rang endlessly, completely unanswered.

He was likely keeping watch by Madeline's bedside.

The last shuttle bus had departed, and no ride-hailing drivers were taking orders. I waited at the security gate until dusk, ultimately forced to drag my suitcase to the temporary guest house.

Passing by the old hangar, I noticed Madeline walking through the side door all by herself.

Ryan and I were still legally married, so securing evidence of their long-term affair would make the divorce process much smoother. With my phone already recording in my grip, I stealthily followed her inside.

The hangar was dark, and Ryan was nowhere to be seen.

Instead, the door behind me clicked shut and locked.

Madeline stepped out of the shadows, shaking the very bottle of medicine I'd carried with me. "Are you looking for Ryan, Nina?"

I took a step back, my phone still recording securely in my coat pocket.

"What do you want?" I asked.

She replied, "I merely want you to give back the position that never belonged to you."

She twisted off the cap, a venomous smile spreading across her face.

She said, "Ryan never had any dysfunction. I was the one who personally slipped that medical report into his files.

"The night before you two registered your marriage five years ago, we made a bet. As long as I remained unmarried for five years, he could only be my friends-with-benefits. He was absolutely forbidden to touch you.

"If I still refused to marry him after five years, only then could he return and be a real husband to you."

"He actually agreed to such absurd terms?" I asked, my voice shaking uncontrollably.

Madeline scoffed. "Not only did he agree, he honored it perfectly for five whole years. Nina, he wants you waiting dutifully at home while also keeping me around to satisfy him. Did you honestly think you had won?"

I forced myself to maintain composure.

As long as I kept her talking, the recording in my pocket would solidify as undeniable proof.

Suddenly, Madeline dumped the liquid onto her own clothes. She ruined her hair, violently tore at her collar, and collapsed onto the floor, screaming, "Ryan, help me."

The door on the far side of the hangar was shoved open with brutal force.

Ryan charged into the room.

Madeline threw herself into his embrace, her body shaking with sobs. "Nina tricked me into coming here and called me a homewrecker. She said she was going to force the liquid down my throat and throw me out onto the freight highway.

"Ryan, I am so terrified."

Ryan snatched the bottle, fixing his icy stare on me.

Without asking a single question, he believed her entirely.

"I know five years in a sexless marriage left you resentful. But as a woman, how could you use such a vicious method to destroy Maddie?" he demanded.

I explained, "I didn't. She lured me in here. My phone has the entire-"

Madeline's legs buckled, and she let out a sharp cry.

Ryan immediately caught her, his eyes darkening even further. "Have you not always resented me for failing to satisfy you?"

He gripped my jaw, drenching my mouth with the remaining medicine.

Bitter liquid slid down my airway. I struggled with all my might, but his iron grip pinned me completely.

Crumpling to the floor, I clung desperately to the fabric of his pants.

"Take me to a hospital. I'm going to die," I pleaded.

His gaze paused on my disheveled collar for a brief moment, his Adam's apple bobbing slightly.

But Madeline leaned deeper into his chest, whispering about the pain in her ankle.

Ryan swiftly averted his eyes, yelling at me, "You have bought plenty of shady medications before, and nothing ever happened to you. Stop acting."

I used the very last ounce of my strength to pull on his hand, begging, "Ryan, please."