Marjorie's entire body went rigid.
When it registered that Christian was the one who had leaked the videos, she lunged toward him, staring at his face in raw disbelief.
"Have you lost your mind? Christian, you cheated first! All I did was teach your mistress a lesson. What gives you the right to do this to me?"
She raised her hand to slap him, but he caught her wrist mid-swing.
"Marjorie, I think you've got it backwards. You slept with someone else first. Bridget and I only got together after that."
"I posted the video as a reminder: you were the one who made a mistake. You have no right to go after Bridget."
His grip was crushing. A red welt bloomed across her wrist almost instantly.
It hurt. But not as much as her heart.
She couldn't understand it. He had orchestrated this entire charade for another woman, deceived everyone around them. How had he managed to deceive himself in the process?
If she hadn't overheard that conversation between him and someone else, would she have spent the rest of her life in the dark, drowning in guilt that was never hers to carry?
Marjorie bit down on her lip so hard she nearly drew blood. The tears didn't fall.
Then she heard him continue:
"Bridget was slapped for no reason. Her reputation at school has been ruined. You're coming with me to Northgate University right now to give her a proper apology."
"Absolutely not. I—"
She tried to refuse, but he cut her off before she could finish.
"Then I'll take the video to your parents' grave and let them judge for themselves whether their precious daughter wronged her husband first."
"Oh, and if I remember right, your parents preferred peace and quiet when they were alive. Their ashes are buried deeper than most, aren't they? I might have to dig them up so they can get a good look at the footage."
Every word died in Marjorie's throat. She stared at Christian as if seeing him for the very first time.
Losing her parents was the wound that never closed. She still woke in the dead of night, clutching her pillow, sobbing from the sheer weight of missing them.
And every time, Christian had been the one to pull her into his arms and hold her until the crying stopped.
Now he was threatening to desecrate their ashes?
For another woman?
Marjorie stared at him, blank and still. Then she laughed. The sound was hollow, soaked in despair.
"Fine. I'll do it."
She spent the entire afternoon kneeling on the grounds of Northgate University, repeating the words "I'm sorry" to Bridget over and over again.
Her cheeks were already swollen high. Christian had held Bridget's hand and delivered each slap himself, one after another.
Bridget had been slapped five times. Christian demanded Marjorie repay it tenfold.
The first slap brought humiliation.
The second brought a pain that split her chest wide open.
By the third, all she could feel was confusion. How had the man who once loved her so deeply become this?
By the last slap, only hatred remained.
She hated Christian. She hated herself more for ever loving him.
When the ordeal was finally over, Marjorie dragged her exhausted body toward the exit. Someone grabbed her wrist.
She turned. Bridget stood behind her, triumph painted across every feature.
This was the first time Marjorie had faced Bridget directly. The sophomore held a smile between her teeth, eyes traveling up and down Marjorie's battered form.
"Did you really think those little tricks would drive me away from Christian? He was willing to divorce you for me. That alone proves I've already won."
"You. Lost."
Looking at the pride on Bridget's face, Marjorie saw a ghost of her former self.
She had once believed that having Christian's love meant having the whole world.
Reality had taught her otherwise. Christian's love wasn't even worth the trash it belonged in.
A man who could cheat would never be faithful to anyone.
But Marjorie couldn't be bothered to explain that to Bridget. She let out a quiet laugh and turned to leave, but Bridget leaned in close, her voice dropping to a whisper only the two of them could hear: "If you don't walk away from Christian on your own, I will keep framing you. Again and again, until you're dead."
The instant the words left her mouth, Bridget let out a piercing scream and toppled backward.
Marjorie stood perfectly still, watching Bridget's one-woman show, watching Christian sprint over with panic etched across his face. She was so tired she could barely feel anything at all.
So when Christian tenderly helped Bridget to her feet and turned toward Marjorie with his mouth already opening, she raised her hand and slapped herself across her own swollen cheek.
"I didn't push her. But you won't believe that. I've been punished. So may I leave now?"
The fury in Christian's chest guttered out the moment he met her eyes. They were empty. Completely, utterly empty.
His hand drifted to his chest without thinking. Something in there felt hollow.
