Collin's calls had dwindled to sporadic, emotionless texts. "How's your arm?" "Busy day, won't be home." "Golden Spoon prep is intense." Each message a fresh cut, a reminder of his indifference. My physical wound, the mangled flesh on my arm, was slowly, painfully knitting itself back together. It was a visible scar, a map of my trauma. But the wounds within, the ones he'd inflicted on my heart and soul, festered, deep and invisible.

I sought solace in the familiar, a futile attempt to recapture a past that was already a lie. I drove to the little Italian bistro, 'Bella Luna,' where Collin had first proposed. The cozy corner table, the flickering candlelight, the shared tiramisu – it was all etched in my memory. This is where our story truly begins, Emma. Forever. He'd promised, his eyes shining with a devotion I now knew was hollow.

I parked across the street, watching the warm glow from the windows, a knot of nostalgia and pain tightening in my chest. I remembered the way he' d gotten down on one knee, the hesitant thrill in my stomach, the world shrinking to just us two. It felt like a lifetime ago. A different life.

Then, I saw them.

Collin and Casey, sitting at our table, illuminated by the soft glow of the candlelight. His head was close to hers, his hand covering hers on the table. Casey laughed, a bright, tinkling sound, and leaned into him, her head resting on his shoulder. They looked perfect, a picture of blissful intimacy. He was recreating our memories, our sacred spaces, with her. The casual cruelty of it all made my breath catch.

A couple walking by, a woman with a kind face, paused. "Oh, look!" she whispered to her husband, pointing to Bella Luna. "It's Collin Sweeney and his wife! She looks so young and happy. I thought she had an accident."

The wife. Not me. Her.

Casey caught Collin's eye, a possessive glint in her gaze. She squeezed his hand. "Darling," she purred, loud enough for me to hear from my car, "this place is so special. You said it was where you first fell in love."

Collin smiled, a genuine, unguarded smile that shattered my fragile composure. "It is, sweetheart. It always will be. With you, everything feels... real."

Real. His words echoed, defiling every memory, every tender moment we had shared. He had never loved me. He had only performed.

A cold, bitter understanding settled over me. Casey wasn't just a younger version of me; she was everything he thought he wanted in me. The unquestioning adoration, the fresh ambition. And for him, that was enough. My individuality, my talent, my spirit – it had all been too much, too complicated. He wanted a mirror, not a partner.

I started the car, my hands gripping the steering wheel. I needed to leave. Before he saw me.

As I was pulling away, I saw a familiar figure step out of the restaurant, talking on her phone. Casey. She looked upset, her face flushed, her voice sharp.

"He called me 'Em' tonight!" she hissed into the phone, clearly not knowing I was within earshot. "Can you believe it? He caught himself, but still! He's still thinking of her. I hate it. I hate her."

A tiny, cruel satisfaction bloomed in my chest. So, he wasn't completely over me after all. Or perhaps, he was just used to the name. Either way, it was a small, fleeting moment of vindication.

Suddenly, a waiter, rushing out of the restaurant with a tray of hot food, bumped into Casey. The tray flew from his hands, plates shattering, food splattering across her expensive dress.

Casey shrieked, a high-pitched sound of pure outrage. "My dress! You clumsy oaf! Do you know how much this cost?!"

The waiter, a young man, looked horrified. "I'm so sorry, ma'am! I didn't see you."

"Of course you didn't, you're incompetent!" she screeched, already reaching for her phone. "I'm calling your manager! You're fired!"

Just then, Collin rushed out, his face a mixture of concern and irritation. "Casey! What happened?" He saw her ruined dress, the shattered plates, the distraught waiter. His eyes flickered to me, still in my car, a silent witness. A flash of something like accusation, then a deliberate hardening of his gaze.

"Emma," he said, his voice cold, sharp, and laced with venom. He didn' t care about the accident, or the waiter, or even Casey' s dress. He cared that I was there, that I had seen. "What are you still doing here? Are you following us?" His eyes were filled with a raw, ugly hatred. "It was you, wasn't it? You pushed that waiter, didn't you? You're trying to ruin this for me, aren't you?"

My jaw dropped. The sheer audacity of his accusation, the immediate turn to blame, to twist the narrative into my malice – it was breathtaking. I was frozen, unable to utter a word.

"Collin, baby, she's probably just jealous," Casey whimpered, clinging to his arm, her eyes wide and innocent, playing the victim. "She's been so... erratic lately. Ever since the accident in the kitchen. Maybe she needs help."

"Of course she does," Collin growled, his eyes still fixed on me, burning with an irrational fury. "Trying to sabotage my happiness. My future." He pulled Casey closer, cradling her as if she were a wounded bird, his gaze daring me to refute his lies. "You're a menace, Emma. A bitter, jealous woman. Stay away from us. From my family."

Family. The word felt like a stake through my heart. He was already building a new one, with her, on the ruins of our shared life. He was rewriting history, painting me as the villain. The anger, the injustice, the sheer, mind-numbing cruelty of it all was overwhelming.

"Don't worry, darling," Collin whispered to Casey, loud enough for me to hear. "I'll make sure she never bothers us again. She won't touch a hair on your head. Or our children's." He looked at me, a chilling threat in his eyes, promising to protect his new life, his new woman, from the 'crazy ex-wife.'

My head reeled. The injustice of it all, the blatant lies, the public shaming – it was too much. He hated me. He wanted me gone. He was willing to destroy my reputation, my sanity, to achieve it.

A fresh, hot wave of tears blurred my vision, but this time, they were not tears of sorrow. They were tears of pure, unadulterated rage. He had pushed me too far. He had twisted every truth, every memory. He had turned me into a villain in his story.

Then, a sudden, blinding pain shot through my arm. The old wound, re-injured. I gasped, clutching my arm, the blood once again seeping through the bandage. The pain was excruciating, but it was nothing compared to the agony in my soul.

Collin saw it, a fresh stain of red against the white. He didn't flinch. His eyes simply narrowed, a flicker of irritation, then a cold, hard calculation. "Look what you've done, Emma," he snarled, as if I had intentionally wounded myself to garner sympathy. "Always a drama queen."

He turned away from me, his eyes now solely on Casey, whose tears – real or fake, I no longer cared – seemed to melt him. He picked her up, bridal style, and carried her back into the restaurant, leaving me abandoned on the street.

"I'm taking her to the hospital!" he yelled over his shoulder, his voice loud enough for the onlookers, the waiter, the world to hear. "She's too distraught. You need to be more careful, Emma. You're becoming a real problem."

I stood there, alone, the throbbing pain in my arm echoing the throbbing pain in my head. He had just publicly accused me, humiliated me, and left me for dead. He hadn't just betrayed me; he had tried to erase my existence.

As he disappeared inside, the doors closing behind him, I heard the faint murmurs of the crowd. She's unstable. Poor Collin. Such a shame.

The irony was not lost on me. He was going to the hospital for Casey's distress and a minor scratch, while I, the one with a genuine injury, was left to bleed on the street.

I hailed a cab, my body trembling, my mind a storm of pain and fury. I went back to the same emergency room, the same kind nurse, Maria, shaking her head sadly as she saw me. "Mrs. Sweeney, please, you need to tell someone what's happening."

I just shook my head, my lips sealed. What was the point? He had already won the narrative.

As I sat there, waiting for my arm to be re-examined, I overheard two nurses whispering. "Did you see that Collin Sweeney again? Brought his new girlfriend in. Such a caring man. Said he couldn't leave her side."

"He even agreed to donate blood, did you hear? She needs a transfusion. Rare type."

A transfusion. Blood. My blood type was rare. Collin's was universal. He was always so proud of that. He would always joke, "I'm a lifesaver, Em. Literally."

And now, he was literally being a lifesaver for Casey. The same blood that flowed through my veins, that we had once hoped would flow into our children, was now being given to my replacement.

I saw him then, Collin, his face pale, sitting beside Casey's gurney, holding her hand. He looked exhausted, but devoted. He had given his blood for her. He had chosen her. He had truly, irrevocably, left me.

A sudden, fierce conviction burned through me, hotter than any fire, sharper than any knife. He thought he could bury me? He thought he could erase me? No. I would disappear, yes. But not for him. For me. And when I was gone, he would realize the true depth of his loss.

My phone vibrated. An email notification: Your new passport is ready for collection.

It was time. I would vanish. I would become a ghost, a myth, a legend. And he would be left with nothing but shadows.

Chapter 4

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