Vance w

ist she paraded around New York

one marrow tr

was my mother

, my wife, u

' retirement savings, th

fied, agreed to

, to talk to Ameli

er, Amelia, th

ity locked me in a wing

copter take my m

door until my

ne c

Amelia stoo

hen she thought I was

successful. Jul

was flat,

angement, Ethan. Did you

red a

melia I knew, the one

d fighting for me in anothe

you talking abou

Your affections are worthl

leaving me in the sil

orld

r coldness, i

floor, my he

disorienting, ri

ded in, not just of thi

s re

ered eve

lia loved me with a f

l CEO of Hayes Indu

reet fool, arro

nience, a strategic all

loe Davenport, my college sw

e public humiliation, the

t, to protect me from Chloe' s schem

lo

ver lo

orts, were bitter riva

r information, to sabo

into a disastrous

ntain retreat, she ar

aged

now chilling my b

ed me, suspec

s men, desperate,

red her,

ved too l

lia, broken but still

ealization: Amelia loved me. Truly

wanted e

ayes Industr

oyalty, that if I truly loved her, I'd carve Amelia

but still too blind to s

ered was meant to b

rtly after me f

how knew, was for me

en, da

I wo

e.

of our purely tran

bo

chance

oy washed over me, quickly

protect Amelia, cherish h

ast. I would love

ng before me just now

ver my mother, her open dev

't make

ieving, loving Ame

s someo

e terr

par

er, retired teachers.

arcus, would

hem, hurt them, j

, recovering from a coer

o get t

ruelty... it was a wall

, I was allowed

their New England home

ice on the phon

ng on with Amelia?

no a

ad. I'm trying t

ould just... leave her,

ing? After realizing the

had to make her see

o show her my chan

nder bender on the way to a pharmacy

my hands sha

cene, not with conce

like always. Julian wou

own at me in our past life, years into our marri

llel was

nner she insisted we have,

and a primal fea

llf

life, I' d nearly died from an anaphylactic reac

frantic then,

e impassive, as I started to

t the bowl. "Shellfi

always on call, ad

sping on the sofa,

That specific reaction? It only happ

d her wine,

hen I discussed dietary needs for her r

s perfect,

about that near-fatal incident. Only Amelia from

t struck me: Could

elty... it

ied loving me wo

ld

onstrous. She was just being cruel, u

of suspicio