chapter 10

Afterwards, Leander could never clearly remember the details of that night. But he would never forget the crash—the devastating hangover that hit him once he became lucid. It was a blow so brutal it almost killed him on the spot.

He slept until the next afternoon. He finally heard the phone ringing. It had been called so many times it was nearly dead. It was his mother. The moment he answered and heard her first words, his soul left his body.

Olivia's entire family had arrived.

At the hospital, outside the morgue, Olivia's older brother lunged at Leander like a madman, pounding his fists into Leander.

"I never should have let Olivia marry you.

"She believed your smooth talk, trusted you to be good to her, and that's exactly how you got her killed.

"Leander, you owe the Hood Family a life."

Leander just stood there, numb, and took the beating.

Fiona's sobbing voice from the phone call echoed faintly in his ears. After he left home last night, Olivia had set their marital home on fire and trapped herself inside.

By the time the neighbors in the villa district noticed the flames and called the fire department, it was too late. Olivia's body was burned beyond recognition. She was already gone when they pulled her out.

Leander didn't even get to see her one last time.

The Hood Family was crying, gasping for air between sobs.

"Olivia. I want to see Olivia. I don't believe it. She was fine when I left. She said she'd wait for me to come home. She wouldn't leave me. This is impossible!" Leander was the only one not crying.

He stubbornly insisted on seeing her. He wanted to tell her, "Olivia, I was wrong. I'll never, ever leave you for someone else again. You're the most important person to me. You're my... everything."

But the Hood Family wouldn't allow it.

Olivia's older brother slammed his fist into Leander, sending him to the floor. His voice was cold and vicious. "Leander, you are never laying eyes on Olivia again. From this moment on, you and Olivia are nothing to each other."

With that, the Hood Family forcefully took Olivia's body and left the hospital.

Leander sat on the floor, his face covered in blood, and suddenly let out a hollow, broken laugh.

So, that night, when he'd cautiously asked Olivia if he could go see Juniper one more time…

That absurd conversation had been their final goodbye.

Leander finally couldn't hold it in anymore. He vomited a mouthful of dark blood.

He locked himself in the scorched bedroom for three whole days. He didn't eat or drink. He just kept thinking, over and over. How much pain must she have been in when she set herself on fire?

Olivia was so afraid of pain. Even getting a shot made her nervous for hours.

On their wedding day, he'd sworn in front of everyone to protect her and make her happy for the rest of her life.

And in the end, what had he done?

Look what he'd done.

Olivia was gone. He didn't want to live either. He climbed onto the balcony and looked down at the dark ground below. He felt no fear. Just as he was about to step off, a pair of hands grabbed him from behind and pulled him to safety.

Smack!

A sharp slap landed across his face.

Leander stared blankly at the woman in front of him, tears streaming down his face. "Mom..."

Fiona didn't give him time to wallow. She shoved the phone Olivia had left in the living room that day into his hands. "See for yourself. See what that woman you're so hung up on did to Olivia."