Chapter 16
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Heading those words, Robert’s body went rigid. His eyes widened in disbelief.
Enola didn’t look at his reaction. She simply continued to unveil the memories she had buried deep inside her heart, “Robbie, do you know? All I ever wanted was to stay by your side back then.
“I never prepared myself for a life abroad. When I first arrived, I was alone in an unfamiliar place, struggling just to get by.
“And Melcian… Melcian was dangerous. I encountered four shoot–outs in just two months. Gunfire and screams tangled together, and I was caught in the chaos of panicked crowds.
“had to be wary not just of the bullets but of being trampled. In the midst of it all, I lost my sense of direction that I didn’t even know where to run.
“That was the first time I came so close to death. Robbie, a bullet grazed past my ear. If it had been just a fraction closer, the best outcome for me would have been losing an ear. “I called you that day. I sent you messages, begging you over and over to take me back. But you never replied–not even once.”
She gently lifted her hair from the side of her face, revealing a faint scar just behind her ear.
Just hearing her recount those moments made Robert’s heart pound violently in his chest. He didn’t even dare to imagine how much fear and despair she must have felt in that situation
But Enola simply continued, “The second time I got caught in a shoot–out, I had gained a little experience. At least I knew which direction to run. But Robbie, I dodged the bullets only to be trampled instead. It hurt so badly when they stepped on me.
“The third time it happened, I twisted my ankle while trying to escape. That was the closest I had ever been to dying.”
She pointed at her chest. “Just a little closer, and that bullet would have gone straight through my heart. If it weren’t for Parker, I would have died right there.”
*Enola no longer telt afraid as she recalled those events from the past. She had made it through every danger unharmed, and she had met Parker–a man who loved her deeply and
gave her everything she ever wanted.
But the calmer she was, the more it tore Robert apart.
It felt as if countless knives were stabbing into his heart, twisting mercilessly until he was bleeding and unable to breathe. A suffocating wave of regret crashed over him, drowning him in an agony so intense that he couldn’t escape.
He buried his face in his hands, unable to control his sobs. His voice trembled as he kept repeating the same words over and over.
“Ennie, I’m sorry…. I really didn’t know…I thought… I thought…”
“You thought I was lying and that I was just trying to cling to you, didn’t you?” Enola finished the sentence for him, her tone calm yet heavy.
Watching him crumble, she let out a deep sigh. “Just like this past month after I returned, you believed I hadn’t moved on and couldn’t accept anyone by your side. No matter what happened, you always believed Chloe, and you kept assuming I was targeting her.
“Whether it was about me throwing milk at her and calling the police on her for what she did. You never believed my side of the story. Robbie, I simply loved you in the past. And yet, in your eyes, I was a monster.
“Een when I told you I was getting married, you assumed it was a lie. Did you ever try to investigate the truth, even once?
“Robbie, have you ever–just once–truly believed in me?”
Robert froze. The certainty he once had crumbled in an instant, full of cracks he could no longer ignore.
Enola was right. She had let go of him two years ago. She had already decided to marry another man when she returned. What reason would she have had to target Chloe?
He opened his mouth, but no words came out of it. After a long silence, Enola turned around. She opened the door and met Parker’s gaze outside the stairwell.
