CHAPTER2
1139 Words
CHAPTER TWO
THE HUSBAND I DON’T REMEMBER
“I had?”
The words barely left my mouth.
Adrian didn’t respond.
He simply stood there, staring at me as though I’d just opened a door he had spent years trying to keep locked.
“Have I met her?” I asked again.
His silence became unbearable.
“Adrian.”
“You’re tired.”
I almost laughed.
“Tired?”
“It’s been a long night. We should talk about this tomorrow.”
“No.”
His eyebrows pulled together.
“No?”
“I don’t want tomorrow. I want the truth tonight.”
He looked away.
That small movement told me more than any confession could.
Adrian was hiding something.
Something about me.
Something about Evelyn.
And possibly something about the night I couldn’t remember.
I picked up the photograph again.
“Where was this taken?”
He didn’t answer.
“Who took it?”
Nothing.
“Why was I there?”
His head snapped toward me.
“What?”
I stared at him.
“I said, why was I there?”
“You weren’t.”
My heart stopped.
“I wasn’t?”
“No.”
“But you just looked at me like you knew I was there.”
“You’re confused.”
“Am I?”
I held up the photograph.
“There are two people standing beside you.”
Adrian’s eyes narrowed.
“One of them is Evelyn.”
“And the other?”
He said nothing.
I studied the photograph again.
There was something about the second figure.
A woman standing several feet behind Evelyn.
Her face wasn’t clear.
But the dress—
My breath caught.
It was white.
Simple.
Elegant.
And strangely familiar.
I turned the photograph toward the light.
“Who is that?”
Adrian walked toward me.
“Give me the picture.”
“No.”
“Please, Elena.”
That frightened me more than his anger would have.
Adrian Vale rarely said please.
I tightened my grip.
“Who is she?”
“I don’t know.”
“You’re lying.”
His jaw clenched.
“You don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“Then explain the dress.”
He froze.
I looked at him carefully.
“You recognized it.”
“I didn’t.”
“You did.”
He turned away.
I followed him.
“Adrian.”
“Stop.”
“Why?”
“Because you’re digging into something that should stay buried.”
The words hung between us.
Buried.
Not forgotten.
Not finished.
Buried.
I felt a strange chill crawl across my skin.
“What happened to Evelyn?”
His shoulders stiffened.
“She died.”
The answer came too quickly.
“How?”
“An accident.”
“What kind of accident?”
“Car accident.”
“When?”
“Three years ago.”
I stared at him.
“Then why does the photograph look like a wedding?”
Adrian didn’t answer.
My heart began beating faster.
“You married her, didn’t you?”
His silence was confirmation.
I looked down at the photograph.
The woman beside him was smiling.
She looked happy.
But there was something about her eyes that bothered me.
She looked like someone who knew a secret.
Someone who was waiting for something.
I touched the photograph.
And suddenly—
A flash.
A hallway.
A white door.
A woman’s hand gripping mine.
“Don’t let him find out.”
I gasped.
The image disappeared.
I stumbled backward.
Adrian caught me.
“Elena!”
I pushed against his chest.
“Don’t touch me.”
He immediately released me.
I pressed my fingers against my temple.
“What happened?”
“I remembered something.”
His face drained of color.
“What?”
“A hallway.”
He stared at me.
“A white door.”
His breathing changed.
“And a woman.”
“Stop.”
I looked at him.
“She said something.”
“Stop, Elena.”
“She said—”
“Stop!”
His voice echoed through the room.
I had never heard Adrian shout at me before.
Never.
For a moment, we simply stared at each other.
Then he lowered his voice.
“You don’t know what you’re remembering.”
“Then tell me.”
“I can’t.”
“Why?”
“Because some memories are better left alone.”
I felt tears burn behind my eyes.
“Are you protecting me?”
“Yes.”
“From what?”
He didn’t answer.
“From Evelyn?”
Still nothing.
“From yourself?”
His expression cracked.
Just for a second.
Then it disappeared.
I walked past him.
“Where are you going?”
“To bed.”
“You should rest.”
I stopped at the bedroom door.
“Do you know what hurts the most?”
He didn’t speak.
“I can accept that you had a life before me.”
I turned toward him.
“I can accept that you were married before. What I can’t accept is that you’re standing there looking at me like I’m supposed to know something I don’t.”
His eyes softened.
“I never wanted to hurt you.”
“But you did.”
He lowered his head.
I walked into the bedroom.
Behind me, I heard the door close.
I waited until I was certain he had gone before reaching for the photograph again.
I stared at Evelyn’s face.
Then I noticed something I hadn’t seen before.
A small mark on her wrist.
A crescent-shaped scar.
My fingers moved unconsciously toward my own wrist.
I had the same scar.
My heart began pounding.
“No…”
I turned the photograph over.
There was something written beneath the date.
Something faint.
Almost erased.
I brought it closer to the lamp.
Four words.
My breath caught.
For Elena, if I disappear.
I stared at the message.
Then I heard footsteps outside my bedroom.
The door opened.
Adrian stood there.
His eyes immediately went to the photograph in my hand.
And this time, there was no fear in his face.
There was desperation.
“Where did you find that?”
I swallowed.
“Who wrote this?”
He didn’t answer.
I held up the photograph.
“Did Evelyn write this?”
Adrian closed his eyes.
And when he opened them again, he whispered the words that made my blood run cold.
“Yes.”
I stared at him.
“Why would Evelyn leave a message for me?”
His face turned pale.
“Because she knew something was going to happen.”
“What?”
He looked at me for a long moment.
Then he said,
“She knew you would forget.”
My heart stopped.
“Forget what?”
Adrian didn’t answer.
And somehow, I already knew the answer would change everything.
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