Chapter 2
“That’s my home.” Courtney was losing control. She struggled to hold back her emotions, using sign language to tell Austin that it was her home. Austin didn’t understand sign language. Despite their physical closeness, an invisible chasm of unfamiliarity and distance stretched between them. Courtney gradually fell silent, swallowing her pain in solitude. Over the past five years, she had learned how to endure.
Tears slipped from her eyes, splashing onto the back of her trembling hand. With unsteady fingers, she gripped a pen and scribbled messily on a piece of paper. [I just want to go home and get some things…]
Austin seemed to want to say something, but when he saw her tears, he only opened his mouth and then closed it again. Finally, he nodded. “All
right…
The drive was quiet o
quiet. Courtney sat silently, staring out the window
Once, she had believed the
passenger seat of Austin’s car would always belong to her. But now, the dashboard was adorned with cartoon stickers and trinkets from his current wife.
The man who had said “I love you” to her word by word and promise to never let her down had become someone else’s husband by her third year of absence.
Compared to the endless dessert in Zomlonia, Henisburg’s dazzling nightlife felt overwhelming, a world almost too extravagant to comprehend. It had only been five years since she left, but it felt like the entire world had abandoned her.
[Do my parents not want me anymore?] She finally wrote, unable to suppress her thoughts.
There had been six people in the team kidnapped with Courney. Her elderly mentor was taken in by her children. A senior colleague, who had been on the brink of divorce before the incident, was greeted at the airport by her husband upon their return
Everyone had someone waiting for them. Everyone except Courtney.
She had memorized every important phone number by heart, yet none of them worked when she called.
When Austin didn’t come to meet her, she had told herself he was likely caught up with emergencies at the hospital,
When her parents didn’t come. she had convinced herself they were old and might not have seen the n
news or received the notice.
But reality y was unbearably cruel
“Courtney, can we talk about your parents tomorrow?” Austin asked nervously, pulling into a parking spot and glancing at her anxiously. Courney’s heart sank. An ominous feeling took hold. She shook her head insistently, desperate to know what had happened to her parents. “Let’s go upstairs first. My wife made dinner. Austin got out of the car quickly, avoiding her gaze as he opened the door for her.
Some habits hadn’t changed. As Courtney stepped out, Austin instinctively placed his hand over her head, shielding her from hitting it on the car
frame.
Once, she had thought that this kind of care and affection was hers alone. But it turned out that everything changes. Love didn’t just fade–it moved on
“She’s someone you know” Perhaps to prevent Courtney from becoming too emotional, Austin spoke again as they entered the elevator.
“She’s Mr. Lewis’s daughter. She helped me a lot,” he went on. “During the years you were missing. I lost my mind searching for you, and she was the one who pulled me out of that dark place and stayed by my side.”
Courney lowered her head, her hands clenched into fists. Austin was talking about Vera Lewis, their junior from university, who had openly pursued Austin back then.
She even had publicly challenged Courtney with brazen words. “I don’t care if he has a girlfriend. As long as he’s not married, he’ll be mine someday.”
At the time, Courtney had brushed her off, too confident in Austin’s love for her. She had believed in him wholeheartedly,
But in the end, the one who lost was
hier.
The elevator stopped at the 19th floor, but Courtney didn’t step out immediately.
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Chapter 2
They had chosen this apartment as their marital home because Courtney loved high floors, and the 19th floor had a stunning view of the river running through Henisburg
Because of the river view, this apartment had been significantly more expensive than other units. Courtney, worried about putting pressure on Austin’s family, had convinced her parents to contribute an additional 80 thousand dollars.
This was their home, their shared space after marriage. And now, another woman lived here.
Austin entered the code, and the door clicked open. Courtney stared at him. After five years, he hadn’t even changed the password. The irony was sharp–it was her birthday.
“Daddy!” Before Courtney could react, a linle girl ran out from inside and flung herself into Austin’s arms
Austin shot Courtney a nervous glance before turning to Vera, who had appeared at the doorway. His tone was filled with frustration. “I told you to take her to your parents‘ place!”
Vera said nothing, her gaze fixed on Courtney. Courtney, however, couldn’t take her eyes off the girl.
Austin had remarried three years after her disappearance. But this child didn’t look like she was one or two years old. She seemed closer to four or five
Courtney’s head snapped up, her eyes blazing with anger as she locked onto Austin. She demanded an explanation
SIND GUIT
