Tristram finished speaking, then left with Lois in his arms. Not a shred of hesitation.
I sat on the floor, clutching my mother's memorial portrait, eyes squeezed shut.
“Mom, I'm sorry. I couldn't protect you. Your daughter is useless.”
“Just hold on a little longer. We're leaving this place soon.”
Two days later, Tristram and I signed the divorce papers.
Five days after that, he was set to marry Lois.
Those few days, Lois was busy with dress fittings and venue selections, so she didn't have time to bother me.
I used the window to get everything in order for what came next.
The night before Tristram and Lois's wedding, I sent a message to that person：
“Tomorrow. On schedule.”
The reply came instantly：
“OK.”
I got up to close the door, only to find Lois standing in the doorway. I had no idea how long she'd been there.
She looked at me with open mockery：
“Claudia, you really are pathetic. Your husband already has a child with another woman, and you're still clinging to this place like a parasite, making everyone sick.”
I stared back at her, my gaze ice-cold：
“You're one to talk. You knew he was married and still threw yourself at him without a shred of shame.”
She was about to snap back, but something crossed her mind and she smiled instead：
“Hmph. What do you have to be so proud of, Claudia?”
She leaned in close to my ear. I moved to push her away, but the words that left her mouth froze me where I stood.
“You think losing your uterus during that last miscarriage was an accident?”
“Tristram arranged the whole thing. He never loved you. In his eyes, you were nothing but a tool to satisfy his needs.”
She watched the color drain from my face, smiled with satisfaction, and left.
I gasped for air, my legs giving out beneath me as I collapsed to the floor.
My hand drifted to my lower abdomen without thinking.
So that was how it happened.
A simple abortion procedure. How could it possibly have been severe enough to remove a uterus?
Of course. Of course that was it.
Tears fell silently. The pain in my chest was so sharp I couldn't breathe.
“Tristram, how could you be so heartless.”
Early the next morning, Tristram stood in a crisp suit, ready to head out with his groomsmen to pick up the bride.
Before leaving, he pushed open my bedroom door：
“Claudia, this is all just for show. In my heart, you'll always be the one I love most.”
“Be a good girl and stay home these next few days. Once Lois and I are back from the honeymoon, I'll make it up to you.”
I looked at him, dressed exactly the way he'd been the day he came to marry me five years ago. I swallowed the bile rising in my throat and nodded.
He left, satisfied.
I stood by the window watching him get into the wedding car. The warmth in my eyes bled away, degree by degree.
Half an hour later, a black car pulled up in front of the villa.
I walked out holding my mother's memorial portrait. A man in black stepped out of the car and opened the door for me.
After I got in, I took one last look at the villa and parted my lips：
“Tristram. Until we meet again.”
