he Unkept Promise) Chapter 8
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The first day, when Bethany sent a picture of Silas peeling shrimp for her,
Amelia built a bonfire and burned every photo she had of them together.
The second day, when Bethany sent a picture of them kissing under a
sycamore tree, Amelia hired landscapers to cut down the cherry orchard Silas
had planted in their backyard.
The third day, when Bethany sent a compilation of Silas’s declarations of
love from her livestreams, Amelia dug out the hundreds of love letters Silas had
written her. The paper was yellowed with age, but the ink was still vibrant. She
ran her fingers over the words, then fed them into a shredder without a second
thought.
The morning of her departure arrived. Amelia opened her eyes to find Silas
standing over her bed. He held her phone, his expression grim.“Amy, you just got
a text. Something about a cancellation being successful. What did you cancel?”
Amelia’s heart skipped a beat. She snatched her phone. The confirmation
text for her identity erasure was on the screen. Thankfully, her phone was
password–protected; Silas had only seen the notification.
“Oh, that,” she said casually.“One of my social media accounts got hacked. I
didn’t feel safe, so I deleted it.”
Silas visibly relaxed, pulling her into a hug.“Hey, sweetheart, guess what I got
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you? Your favorite.”
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She paused.“Sticky buns from that bakery downtown?”
“How did you know?” Silas looked surprised.
How could she not? Whenever they were dating and he’d upset her, he’d drive all the way downtown to get her those sticky buns as a peace offering. The sweet, cinnamon scent always softened her anger. She didn’t care about jewelry
or fancy cars. Just those sticky buns.
“My Amy is so easy to please,” he’d tease.
you.”
She’d poke his forehead.“Not easy to please. Easy to forgive, because I love
“If I ever stop loving you,” she’d warned, “you could kill yourself in front of
me and I wouldn’t care.”
Lost in the memory, Silas produced a box from behind his back.“I guess I can‘
t keep any secrets from you.”
Amelia smiled.“No, you can’t.”
Silas’s heart skipped another beat.“Amy…”
She simply got out of bed and went to the bathroom.
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When she came out, Silas was gone.
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Amelia followed, a sense of foreboding washing over her. She stopped at the
front door. Bethany was standing in the driveway.
She had the audacity to come to their house?
Silas was even more shocked. He strode towards Bethany, his face
thunderous.“Are you insane? Why are you here? I told you, you’re not to show up
when Amy’s around!”
Bethany flinched, tears welling in her eyes. She tugged at his sleeve.“I can’t stay away from you! And neither can the baby.” She took his hand and placed it
on her stomach.
He pulled away.“Don’t be ridiculous. I’ll have my assistant take you home. I’ll
see you and the baby in a few days.”
Bethany refused to let go.“No! I don’t want to go with your assistant. I want
you to take me!” She stood on tiptoe, pulling him down by his tie for a kiss.
Silas frowned, trying to push her away, but her persistence wore him down.
He kissed her back, their embrace deepening.
They stood in the garden, lost in the kiss. His hand slipped under her shin.
Just as things were about to escalate, he pulled away. “You need to go.”
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Bethany clung to him, tears in her eyes
expression changed.
“Fine,” he relented. I’ll stay with you today. Get in the car. I’ll be right there”
Bethany’s face lit up. She got into the car, a triumphant smile on her face
As Silas turned to go back inside, Amelia quickly slipped back into the house
Silas walked in, his voice apologetic.“Amy, I was going to spend the day with
you, but I just got a call. Something urgent at work. Be a good girl and stay here.
I’ll be home as soon as I can, and then I’ll spend all day with you tomorrow. Okay?
He waited anxiously for her response. Amelia simply looked at him.
That look stopped him cold. The light had gone out of her eyes.
He swallowed, his voice barely a whisper.“Amy…”
Before he could say anything else, she spoke, a faint smile on her face. “Go.
Take care of your work.” Her voice was gentle, betraying nothing.
Reassured, he ruffled her hair and left.
The sound of the car engine filled the air, fading into the distance until it
was gone.
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Amelia’s smile disappeared, replaced by two streams of tears. She wiped them away, dumped the sticky buns in the trash, went to her room, and retrieved
her packed suitcase.
She took one last look at the house, then sent Silas a final text.
“Two weeks are up. You can open your anniversary gift now.”
His reply was almost instant.“Sweetheart, I’ll be home soon. We’ll open it
together.”
Amelia laughed. Together? You’ll be alone, Silas. All alone.
She forwarded all of Bethany’s messages to Silas, then snapped her SIM card
in half.
She picked up her suitcase and walked out the door.
The sun was shining. A beautiful day.
From now on, no one would ever find Amelia Evans.
