The Wife He Never Noticed.

Episode 2

Amber's POV

> Three Years Ago—The Sinclairs' Mansion St. Mark's Hospital >>>

"Mr. and Mrs. Sinclair?" a nurse asked immediately after we stepped foot into the hospital.

That's weird. In a hospital as big as this and filled with so many people, how did she know we're Chloe's family? I didn't ask any questions, though.

"Yes," my mother answered urgently.

"Come with me," she said.

We followed her. After walking for a moment and taking a few turns, we finally made it to a ward, but it was in a slightly isolated area. Only a few wards and patients were there—maybe this was a private ward. The nurse pushed the door open and entered while we quickly followed.

The moment my mother saw Chloe, she cried, "Oh, my baby!" then rushed to hug her.

My mouth hung open as confusion washed over my face. Wasn't she involved in an accident? Why was she looking healthier than me?

Chloe was peeling an orange when we entered, so she didn't notice us at first. Although her left leg was in a cast, she folded her legs while casually peeling the orange. It wasn't until my mother cried, "Oh, my baby!" that she quickly dropped the orange, lifted her casted leg up, and began crying.

"Mom, Dad..."

I looked around to see if anyone noticed what just happened, but nobody did. My mother and stepfather simply seemed worried about her injured leg—fake injured leg, to be precise.

"What happened? Why were you in an accident?" my mother asked worriedly.

Chloe pulled away from the hug. "I was trying to get away," she sniffed.

"Trying to get away from what?" my stepfather asked for the first time since we entered the ward.

"Vincent," she said.

I frowned. Why would she be trying to get away from Vincent? Aren't they supposed to be lovers? Something's not adding up here.

My mother gave her a confused look. "What do you mean you were trying to get away from Vincent?"

Chloe gave us a scared and conflicted look. "I can't marry him."

"Why?" I asked before I could stop myself. My stepfather gave me a side-eye, but I wasn't fazed because I wanted to know why she wouldn't want to marry the man she claimed to be in love with since childhood.

I raised my brows, waiting for her answer.

"There's something about Vincent that I haven't told anyone," she paused briefly, gulped, and continued. "He abuses me."

"What?!" my mother exclaimed.

Chloe nodded and continued. "He pretends to love me and showers me with so much love, but he abuses and threatens me behind closed doors." To prove her point, she raised her arms, and we saw multiple bruises that had turned purple. "I've been hiding these from you all. I thought I could handle it, but I can't anymore."

My mother reached for her hands with teary eyes. I almost rolled my eyes at how easily Chloe was fooling our mother, because I knew for a fact that my stepfather, who, by the way, is Chloe's father, was skeptical about her story.

"Oh my goodness. Why didn't you tell us sooner?" my mother lamented, then turned to my stepfather. "The wedding..."

"The wedding is in four days, and we can't call it off!" he interrupted her. "You know we can't call off the wedding."

"But I can't let my daughter get married to an abuser," my mother argued, her voice slightly raised.

"Then we'll find a substitute."

"From where?" my mother asked.

As if they had planned it beforehand, my stepfather and Chloe turned toward me expectantly.