### Chapter 3
They thought I'd back down after all that.
I didn't.
I pushed the divorce papers closer：
“No explanations needed. Sign, Frederick.”
He stared for two full seconds, then let out a cold laugh：
“Don't be stupid. Walk out that door and you can't even feed yourself.”
I looked at the face in front of me, so familiar yet so foreign, and felt a disappointment I had never known before.
So even he saw me that way.
Then why was I still bending over backward for this?
I was about to speak when his phone rang at his waist.
He answered, and his expression shifted：“Don't be scared. I'm coming right now.”
Then he looked at me, impatient：
“Vanessa's being harassed by some guys. I have to go.”
“I've been good enough to you all these years. Vanessa and I are just friends. Don't you dare start this again.”
He swept the divorce papers into the trash and slammed the door on his way out.
Bertha watched him go and let out a sharp snort：“Ungrateful little wretch. Get out of my house.”
I didn't bother acknowledging the insults at my back. I walked straight out.
It wasn't until I reached the road that I realized Frederick had already taken the car to pick up Vanessa.
He couldn't bear the thought of her getting hurt at all, yet he'd forgotten I was pregnant.
And he'd forgotten that five years ago, kneeling at my parents' graves, he'd sworn to protect me for the rest of my life.
Maybe the vow had been sincere at the time. Too bad hearts change.
The person who promised to protect me was the one who hurt me the most.
The area was remote. There wasn't a single cab to hail.
I stared down the pitch-black mountain road, clenched my fists, and started walking.
By the time my legs felt like lead, my phone buzzed with a message from an unknown number.
It was Vanessa.
“Did you and Frederick have a fight? He looked awful when he got here.”
“He's in a much better mood now, though. I took very good care of him.”
In the photo she'd attached, a man stood with his back to the camera, showering. Scratch marks streaked across his back, and the steam did nothing to hide that tall, familiar frame.
I saved the photo without a word and called a friend who worked as a private investigator.
“You said you had dirt on Vanessa Sterling? I'll buy it. Whatever it costs.”
“And dig into my husband's assets while you're at it.”
It took me a full four hours to walk home. The instant I turned the key, I heard laughter inside.
“Just relax and stay here. Nobody's going to bother you.”
Frederick's voice. Soft. Gentle.
I pushed the door open. Vanessa was on the couch. Frederick stood over her holding a bowl of something nutritious, spooning it carefully to her lips：
“The doctor said you unsettled the baby. Stay still—I've got it.”
I stood there, staring at the two of them, and a sharp pain pushed through my chest, as if the home I'd lived in for five years had really been theirs all along.
Vanessa spotted me and immediately stood：
“Audrey, you're back.”
She still had that flawless skin, that perfect face. She didn't look pregnant at all.
Meanwhile the hormones had wrecked me. My once-clear complexion had broken out, I'd gained over twenty pounds, and the face reflected in the glass cabinet was oily and hollowed out.
Frederick set the bowl down and glanced at me, his tone flat：
“Vanessa's apartment was tracked down by some obsessive fans. I told her she could stay with us a few days.”
Vanessa came over and reached for my hand：
“I was just so scared, and Frederick insisted on bringing me here. You don't mind, right?”
I shook her hand off and stared at her, cold.
“You're a celebrity. You think seducing a married man is something to be proud of?”
“That's not what this is, I……”
Vanessa turned to Frederick with wounded eyes, her lashes already glistening, a tear about to fall.
He pulled her behind him instantly and fixed me with a hard stare：“I told you, there's nothing between me and Vanessa. Can you stop with the pointless jealousy?”
The way he shielded her from me made me feel like I was the shameless other woman.
I swallowed the burn in my nose and pulled out the divorce papers I'd fished back out of the trash, every word deliberate.
“I'm not jealous. I'm giving you what you want.”
My eyes, steady and unblinking, held his.
“Audrey……”
His heartbeat stuttered without warning, and he reached for me.
