Chapter 4
909 Words
Connor stared down at the divorce papers, his face turning a deep shade of gray with anger. "You will pray to Mount Rubidoux Shrine for Lily’s safety and the health of our child."
"I will not do that," Ella said flatly.
"Ella," he said, his voice low and threatening. "If you want me to sign these papers, you will do exactly as I say."
The burning ache in her eyes had long since dried up. Numbly, she knelt down on the hard floor and bowed her head to the ground, then started praying.
Mount Rubidoux Shrine is famous for its long, steep trail made of thousands of stone steps winding all the way to the summit, roughly three thousand in all. This was the second time she had knelt her way up every single one. The first time had been for their own lost child. Connor had never believed in God or any kind of spirit. He had refused to hold any service or remembrance for the baby. So she had made that difficult climb all alone, kneeling step after bleeding step, and lit a perpetual candle at the shrine to honor the little life they had lost.
Now he was forcing her to pray for Lily and her unborn child instead.
Her knees were raw and bleeding by the time she reached the hospital, after kneeling all that way for so long. She had no time to clean herself up before she stood at the door of Lily’s room, and their eyes met through the glass.
Lily raised an eyebrow in mock surprise as she spoke to Connor beside her bed. "You made her pray? But you know, I was only pretending to be hurt. I am perfectly fine. Are you going to be mad at me?"
Connor reached out and gently flicked her nose, his expression full of fondness. "My little troublemaker. Of course, I knew you were faking. Let her kneel all she wants. The only thing that matters is that you feel better."
Ella pushed open the door and walked inside. "The papers. Sign them now."
Connor let out a harsh laugh. He grabbed the pen and scrawled his name across the bottom without a second glance. "Ella, try to keep this up this time. Do not come crawling back to me in two days like you always do."
He did not believe she was serious about leaving. After all, the first time he had cheated, she had made a huge scene. He had signed divorce papers then too, but she had never had the courage to follow through.
Ella said nothing to explain. Soon enough, he would learn that this time was different.
Connor left to take care of Lily’s discharge papers, leaving Ella and Lily alone in the room.
Lily twirled the blessed token from Mount Rubidoux Shrine between her fingers, her sweet smile replaced by a cold glare. "It is a shame this useless thing will not help you. The doctor said this baby was never going to make it anyway," she continued, her voice dropping to a whisper. "So I might as well let him do one last thing for me."
A chill ran down Ella’s spine. Before she could react, Lily lunged forward, grabbed her hand, and pulled her hard, slamming her own body against the sharp corner of the bedside table.
"Ah! Ella, please do not!" Lily screamed at the top of her lungs.
Connor burst back into the room and gathered the bloodied Lily in his arms.
"Our baby…" Lily sobbed uncontrollably.
"Ella!" Before she could even speak, Connor’s hands were wrapped around her throat. He pinned her against the wall, cutting off her air.
As the darkness closed in, she found herself laughing, no tears left to cry.
This was the man she had loved for seventeen years. He had convicted her without hearing a single word from her.
"Are you going to kill me then?" she managed to choke out.
The pressure on her throat suddenly loosened. Ella collapsed to the floor, gasping and coughing.
She pulled herself up to her feet and wiped away the last traces of moisture from her face.
"You need to stay calm," she said quietly. "Can you even race tomorrow without me?"
Connor ground his teeth as he spoke, each word sharp and bitter. "Then we will settle this account properly after the race is over."
*****
"Connor! Go, Connor! Go! Go! Go!"
It was one of the top racing events in the country. Thousands of fans filled the stands, and the whole thing was being broadcast live across the nation. The roar of the crowd was deafening.
Ella sat in the co‑driver’s seat beside Connor. As the engine roared to life, he slammed his foot on the gas, and his car shot forward to take the lead.
She held the route book in her hands, calling out directions in a steady, clear voice, "Turn coming up in 400 meters."
The moment the words left her mouth, her heart skipped a beat.
Something was wrong. The numbers did not match. Someone had tampered with her route book.
She had given him the wrong direction.
She tried to shout a correction, but at such high speed, there was no time. Amid the screams of the crowd, she watched in horror as Connor wrenched the steering wheel hard, and their car veered off the track and into the barrier beyond.
- Writer
