Chapter 3
The next morning, the villa's keypad lock made a crisp beep as Edward walked in.
Edward stepped inside, still damp from the morning dew, and couldn't hide his exhaustion.
I sat at the top of the stairs, watching him head straight for the storage cabinet in the living room.
He opened the cabinet door and pulled out a dust bag with a designer logo on it.
Inside was my ultra-rare, limited-edition heated blanket.
I'd paid a fortune to have a friend track it down for me, specifically to help with my post-pregnancy joint pain.
He didn't even look up or say a word to me. He folded the blanket with practiced ease and stuffed it into another tote bag.
I gripped the stair railing and slowly made my way down the steps.
"What are you doing?" I asked.
My voice was soft, but in the empty living room, it rang out clear.
Edward turned to me, his eyes calm and matter-of-fact.
"Stella sat out in the cold all night. Her knees are so stiff from the chill that she can't even get out of bed," he said.
"You have underfloor heating at home, so this blanket's collecting dust anyway.
"I'm taking it to her for now, and I'll have someone get you a new one later."
I walked up to him and held onto the strap of the tote bag.
"That blanket is for my back, after having the baby, I need it," I said.
"I literally took it out of the package yesterday. I was about to start using it.
"Edward, how could you give your wife's personal things to another woman?"
Edward's eyes dimmed for a moment.
Then, he gave me that suffocatingly gentle smile, so tolerant it almost made me choke.
He reached out, gently took my wrist, and moved my hand away from the tote bag.
"Laurie, you've never been this petty before," he said.
"It's a blanket. Why make it sound so dramatic by calling her 'another woman'?
"Stella's blind, Laurie. She's someone who could hurt herself at any moment.
"Are you really going to argue with a patient over something so small?"
As he pulled the tote bag away, a sharp pain shot through my lower back.
It was like someone was tearing open my C-section scar all over again.
My face went pale, and I almost lost my balance. I had to grip the back of the sofa to steady myself.
He was too busy untangling the power cord in the bag to even notice how much pain I was in.
Then, my phone on the coffee table started ringing.
It was a call from the hospital's neonatal unit.
The nurse reminded us to bring the specified diapers and preemie care cream for the baby in the incubator.
Edward listened to the nurse's voice on speaker, absentmindedly straightening his tie.
He said, "The housekeeper will be here soon. Let her take care of it.
"I need to get the blanket to Stel right now. She can't be left alone."
I gritted my teeth against the pain in my stomach and shot him a cold look.
I said, "That's your own flesh and blood.
"You didn't even look at him when he was born, and now you can't even spare a minute to take him what he needs?"
Edward stopped in his tracks.
He turned around and gave me that classic "you're being ridiculous" look.
He said, "Laurie, the hospital has the best nurses, and the housekeeper knows what she's doing.
"What am I supposed to do there? Looking at him through the glass isn't going to magically cure him.
"But for Stella, I'm all she's got.
"Can you stop using the baby to emotionally blackmail me?"
Hearing those words, the last ripple of warmth in my heart turned to ice.
So in his eyes, the child I'd fought to bring into this world at the edge of life and death was nothing more than leverage I used to trap him.
I let go of the sofa and took a step back.
I said, "You're right.
"You don't have to go."
Edward looked pleased with how "reasonable" I was being.
He walked over, about to kiss my forehead like he always did, but I turned my head away.
Edward's hand froze mid-air.
He pulled his hand back, his fingers fidgeting with the edge of his suit jacket.
He seemed a bit irritated by my coldness, but quickly suppressed it.
"Get some rest," he said.
"I'll come back later to keep you company," Edward added.
The door closed again, stirring a faint chill in the air.
I leaned against the wall and slowly shuffled back upstairs to my bedroom, changing into some baggy clothes.
From all that pulling earlier, my C-section scar started bleeding again, soaking a small patch of the gauze with red.
I didn't bother calling the driver. I forced myself to walk to the gate and hailed a cab.
Every time the cab jolted over a speed bump, cold sweat broke out all over my back.
I gritted my teeth and handed the diapers and care cream to the nurse in the neonatal unit myself.
Through the thick glass, I watched the tiny baby in the incubator, with tubes attached to his fragile body.
He was so small, his skin a sickly yellow, his breathing so faint it felt like it could stop at any moment.
I silently told him in my heart, 'Baby, from now on, it's you and me.'
By the time I got back to the villa, it was already afternoon.
The housekeeper Edward kept saying would show up any minute still hadn't appeared.
I found a huge black trash bag.
I walked into the master bathroom and looked over the counter, taking in all the paired items.
His-and-hers electric toothbrushes, custom towels embroidered with our initials, and the maternity skincare products he once picked out for me.
Anything that represented our marriage, I dumped into the trash bag without a second thought.
Then I moved on to the walk-in closet, where I found all those clothes he'd bought me as "surprises", none of which I actually liked.
I tied the bag in a tight knot and dragged it out to the trash can outside.
After I finished, I sat down on the edge of the bare bed.
This house, once filled with all the beautiful things he picked out for me, now felt emptier with every item I cleared away.
With each silent purge, it was slowly turning into an empty shell, stripped of any trace of Laura.