"Where the hell are you?!" Brian's voice thundered through the phone, making me jerk it away from my ear. I pressed my palm to my forehead, trying to massage away the headache that was starting to build from his yelling. "Calyx has been calling me non-stop because you've been gone for two weeks! What the hell is wrong with you?! You're not a kid anymore, Severa! You're married! Stop acting like a child and go home!"
I exhaled a sharp breath.
It's been two weeks since I ran away from home, two weeks since I started putting distance between myself and Calyx, and now Brian knows about it too. Damn it. Why does he care? I'm married, as he loves to remind me. If I'm so grown up, why is he acting like I'm a child? He doesn't even really care about me—he just wants what he can take from me.
"Severa!" Brian snapped again, his tone dripping with frustration.
"What, Uncle Brian?" I replied, my voice laced with irritation.
Brian is my only guardian now. (Well, if you can even call him that.) He took over handling my dad's property after my father passed, but here's the thing—he's been trying to strip me of everything my father left for me. Every penny, every asset, every piece of my father's legacy has been left to me. And Brian? He's been scheming to take it all. But here's the real kicker: my father wasn't someone you could easily manipulate or outsmart.
My father was strict. He was hard as stone. He was a man who believed in discipline, in strength. And now, I don't want to talk about him, especially not while Brian is on the line trying to tear me apart.
"Jesus, Severa! When will you ever grow up?! And where the hell are you?" His voice cracked like a whip.
"I'm in the process of growing up, Uncle Brian," I said, trying to keep my calm. "And if you think for a second that I'm going to tell you where I am, you're dead wrong. So, stop bothering me and get back to whatever it is you're doing to try and steal everything from me. Because if you keep it up, once I'm done growing up, you'll lose everything. Everything—including all the efforts you've put into transferring my property into your name."
Before he could respond, I hung up. I couldn't listen to him anymore today. It's like he's a constant shadow, always hovering over me, trying to ruin everything I have. Why can't he just ask me to sign everything over? Because honestly, I'd probably give it to him just to get him off my back. Instead, he's hell-bent on making my life miserable.
And don't even get me started on Calyx. Why did he have to tell Brian about me running away? He knows how much I can't stand Brian, and yet here he is, making things worse. I don't hate Calyx. In fact, I love him, maybe a little obsessively—but I'm not the kind of person who wants to force someone to be with me. I don't need that kind of love. What I need is respect. And I respect Calyx.
But why is everything so complicated? Why can't we just live our lives without all this drama?
I shook my head and stood up from my little hotel room. I had to go home, whether I liked it or not. Two weeks away from my responsibilities. Two weeks away from everything. It was enough.
Before heading back, I decided to stop by Kaiser's place. I wasn't sure why. Maybe to clear my mind, maybe to vent, maybe because I just needed someone to talk to who understood what I was going through. He was the only one who seemed to get it.
When he saw me with my luggage, his eyes widened in surprise.
"Where the hell have you been?!" Kaiser asked, helping me with my bags. I had a 24-inch suitcase and two carry-ons, looking more like a world traveler than someone who'd just decided to get away for a while. "Calyx's been freaking out because you ran away from home! What were you thinking?"
My heart skipped a beat when I heard that, but I kept my face neutral. I wasn't about to let Kaiser see that hearing about Calyx bothered me too. This was too cliché. Don't tell me Calyx is going to suddenly fall for me now. No way.
"Hey!" Kaiser called, clearly irritated. "I've been talking to you, and you're not even listening!"
I smirked at him. "You've been talking a lot now, Kaiser."
"Tss. I'm talking to you because I actually need to talk to you." He exhaled deeply. His annoyed face shifted to a more serious expression. Back to the mysterious Kaiser. "What the hell is going on, Nine?"
"Can't you just be considerate, Kaiser? And offer me some water? I'm dying of thirst," I said, plopping onto his couch and crossing my legs. I avoided his gaze because I knew he wasn't just asking out of concern. He was going to interrogate me, and I didn't feel like answering any of his questions right now.
But he wasn't someone you could easily intimidate. Everyone else could easily be thrown off by his intense stare, but not me. I knew him too well.
I looked him dead in the eyes and smirked. "Why don't you just figure it out yourself? Or maybe ask your cousin?"
Kaiser stared at me, processing what I had just said. He had the skills to know everything if he really wanted to. He didn't need me to explain. He could have asked his cousin, and he would get the truth.
"I thought you guys came here because you already figured out what's going on in my life." I let my gaze harden, challenging him.
He shook his head, his expression unreadable. "Then why did you come here?"
I sighed, feeling a little cornered by his questioning. But I throw him questions instead of answering. "I understand why Lucien is here; his family's here, but you? Why are you here? And the others too? This isn't just a coincidence, is it?"
I stopped mid-sentence as I realized the real reason why they were here. The thought hit me like a ton of bricks, and my stomach churned with unease. My mind raced, but I couldn't find the answers.
Kaiser, sensing my hesitation, spoke again, his voice lowering. "Now tell me, Nine. What the hell is going on with your life?"
I closed my eyes for a moment, then sighed. There was no point hiding it anymore. "I had to get married. And Calyx agreed." The words sounded hollow, as if they didn't belong in my mouth.
Kaiser's eyes narrowed as he stared at me. He didn't ask any follow-up questions. He didn't need to. He already knew enough. He just stared, as if processing everything.
"You need to fix your life, Nine. Do it before it's too late." His voice softened, almost like a warning.
I groaned, tired of hearing my name in that tone. "Stop calling me 'Nine,' will you?" I couldn't help the slight irritation that laced my voice.
Kaiser smirked, offering me his hand. I took it, pulling myself to my feet. "Let's get you home."
When we arrived at the house, everything felt wrong. A hollow silence hung in the air, thick and heavy. The usual warmth that greeted us at the door was absent, replaced by an eerie chill. The house was dark, too quiet. The lights were off, the garage was left ajar, and the door stood slightly open, as if left hastily forgotten. This was not Calyx. If he were home, everything would've been secure—his meticulous nature never allowed a door to be left unlocked. Nothing was the way it should be.
Kaiser was about to spring into action, his instincts sharp, but I stopped him with a quick shake of my head. I wasn't about to turn this into a scene. It wasn't necessary. This was still our home, even if it didn't feel like it. But something had shifted. Something had changed.
Calyx's car was parked in the garage. That meant he was here. So why did everything feel off? Why was there a sense of wrongness suffocating the air, pressing in on my chest?
Kaiser's voice broke through the silence, low, almost a whisper. "Someone broke into your house, Nine."
I didn't need him to tell me what I already knew. I could smell it—the familiar scent of Sweet Honesty. Her scent. The one I'd always known was Calyx's preferred fragrance for women. I didn't need to see the evidence to know who was here.
The moment I stepped toward the stairs, the cold, suffocating weight of dread settled deep in my stomach. I should've turned back. Should've stopped, should've run, but I couldn't. Something within me wouldn't let me. My instincts screamed at me to move forward, to see it with my own eyes. I had to know what was happening here, in the place that was supposed to be my sanctuary.
Every step I took up the stairs felt heavier, like the floor beneath me was sinking, pulling me deeper into a nightmare. And then, I heard it—a low, unmistakable moan that stopped my heart cold.
My pulse pounded in my ears as ice flooded my veins. I was shaking, my hands trembling, but I didn't stop. I couldn't. Tears welled in my eyes, but I refused to blink them away. There was no turning back now.
I pressed forward, every part of me begging me to stop, but I couldn't. I was too far gone. The truth was already seeping through the cracks of the walls. I had to face it. I had to know.
I reached the door to Calyx's room, and the sounds were unmistakable now. The sounds of their bodies entangled, of breath and motion that didn't belong to me. Their sounds.
I knew. I knew before I even opened the door.
"Ughhhhh," a groan slipped through the door, confirming everything I'd feared.
But I didn't hesitate. I didn't turn away. I pushed the door open with sudden force, the sound of it creaking like the final snap of a thread. They froze. Calyx and Jillian—caught in the act. There was no pretense, no shame. Naked and exposed.
My stomach turned violently at the sight of them, but I felt numb. The world had stopped making sense, and all I could feel was an icy calm. Anger? It felt distant, too far for me to reach. It was as if I were floating above it all, unable to touch the emotions that should have surged through me.
Calyx's eyes locked onto mine, wide with panic, guilt painting his face in stark shades of betrayal. "Severa," he whispered my name, a fragile thread of regret in his voice.
I stared at him. I looked at his body, and then at Jillian's disheveled form beneath him. I should've screamed, should've thrown something—anything—but all I could do was watch. Watch them, frozen in their mess. My heart felt like it was breaking in slow motion, each beat a silent echo of everything I thought I had.
Jillian sneered, her voice biting. "Who the hell is she?"
I didn't waste my breath answering her. Instead, I turned my icy gaze to Calyx, and spoke with a coldness I hadn't known I was capable of.
"Why don't you introduce me to your mistress, my dear husband?"
Jillian scoffed, her eyes narrowing. "You? Wife? Are you serious, girl?" She laughed sharply, the sound grating in my ears. "Calyx, what is she saying?"
Calyx remained silent for a moment, but the tension in the room was palpable, and Jillian's irritation flared. "Don't tell me that Kaiser was telling the truth?" she snapped, her voice rising with anger.
I wasn't going to let Calyx explain himself, or give him the chance to lie. "Kaiser Sven Lockhorst is telling you the truth," I said, my voice cutting through the air like a blade. "Calyx is already married. To me." I let the words hang in the air like smoke, suffocating the space between us. "I am Severa Trexler-Lockhorst. Nice to meet you, Jillian Smith."
Jillian's face went pale, her mouth gaping open in shock. The shock wasn't for me—it was for her own stupidity. She hadn't even known who I was, hadn't thought to ask. Hadn't thought to care.
I turned away from her and directed my cold gaze back to Calyx. His face was still filled with confusion, but there was a flicker of guilt there. Did he think I didn't know? That I hadn't done my homework, that I was too blind to see?
I took a deep breath, trying to keep my voice steady, though every word burned like acid in my throat. "Get her out of our house, Calyx. Don't make me drag her out."
I didn't wait for his response. I turned on my heel and walked out of the room, every step taking me farther from the betrayal that was now etched into the fabric of my life. My chest ached, hollow and raw. The weight of the truth pressed down on me, heavy and suffocating. I pressed my hand to my chest, the familiar ache of betrayal turning into something I couldn't name.
I had let them hurt me. Of course, they had the right to hurt me because I was the one who pushed myself into this marriage. I am probably his wife, but I'm not really the one who owns his heart. I'm not the one Calyx loves.
Still, I am his wife. And I wasn't finished yet. I wouldn't be. I was Severa Trexler-Lockhorst, and I was ready to fight for what was mine—whatever it took. Even if it meant losing everything in the process.