Chapter 2

The city felt different as I drove, sharper and more real than it had in a long time. I found a small, quiet coffee shop and sat by the window, letting the hot ceramic mug warm my cold hands. The past-my first life-played out in my head like a tragic film.

It started small. Covering his rent when he "forgot." Paying his credit card bills after a "wild weekend." I remembered the exhaustion, the constant stress of juggling my own finances while trying to keep his afloat. I remembered the arguments with Daniel, my husband.

"Chloe, you can't keep doing this," he'd said, his face etched with worry. "He's taking advantage of you. This isn't helping him, it's crippling him."

I had defended Liam, reciting our mother's last words like a prayer. "I promised her, Daniel. He just needs a little more time to get on his feet."

But he never did. The demands grew. A down payment for a car he crashed a month later. "Seed money" for a business idea that vanished along with the cash. I drained our joint savings account, took out secret loans, and sold stocks I had been saving for our future. Each time, I told myself it was the last time.

The breaking point was when I sold our house. Daniel had been so proud of that house. We had picked it out together, dreaming of filling it with kids and laughter. I sold it to pay off a massive gambling debt Liam had gotten into with some very dangerous people.

That was when Daniel left. He didn't yell. His quiet disappointment was so much worse.

"I can't watch you do this to yourself anymore, Chloe," he had said, his bags packed by the door. "I love you, but I can't be part of this self-destruction. The woman I married is gone."

He was right. I was gone. A hollowed-out shell, running on the fumes of a misplaced sense of duty. After he left, things got worse. Liam's schemes escalated, culminating in the single greatest act of betrayal. He had drugged my coffee, and I woke up in that shipping container.

I took a shaky sip of my coffee, the heat a stark contrast to the cold dread that had settled in my stomach. I pulled out my phone again and looked at the date. My heart clenched. This was the week I was supposed to have a massive fight with Daniel. In my old life, Liam had been arrested for a DUI in the new car I had refused to co-sign for today. He called me from jail, and I, of course, ran to bail him out, using the money Daniel and I had saved for a vacation. When Daniel found out, it was the beginning of the end.

This time would be different.

My hands trembled as I found Daniel's number in my contacts. I had to fix this. I had to save us.

I pressed the call button before I could lose my nerve. It rang twice before he picked up.

"Chloe? Is everything okay?" His voice was full of concern, the voice of the man who still loved me, who hadn't yet been broken by my choices.

Tears pricked my eyes. "Daniel," I choked out, my voice thick with emotion. "Can... can we meet? Please. I need to see you."

"Of course. Where are you? I'll come right now."

I gave him the address of the coffee shop. While I waited, I felt a nervous flutter. What would I say? How could I explain this sudden change without sounding insane?

Twenty minutes later, his car pulled up outside. He rushed in, his eyes scanning the room until they found me. The relief on his face when he saw I was physically okay was palpable.

"Chloe, what's wrong? You sounded terrified," he said, sliding into the booth across from me.

"I'm sorry," I began, my voice barely a whisper. "I'm so, so sorry, Daniel."

He looked confused. "Sorry for what?"

"For everything. For putting Liam before you. Before us. For letting him drain our lives away. I've been so blind." I took a deep breath, choosing my words carefully. I couldn't tell him the truth, not the whole truth. "Something happened today. A... a wake-up call. I saw my whole life, our whole future, flashing before my eyes, and I saw what I was about to lose. I almost lost you, Daniel. I can't let that happen."

He listened intently, his expression softening. He reached across the table and took my hands in his. His were warm and strong.

"Chloe," he said softly. "I've just been worried about you. I love you. I just want my wife back."

"She's here," I promised, squeezing his hands. "She's back. And things are going to be different now. No more money for Liam. No more excuses. It's just you and me. Our life. Our future."

He stared into my eyes, searching for something. He must have found it, because a slow, hopeful smile spread across his face. It was the smile I had fallen in love with, the one I hadn't seen in so long.

"I'm so glad to hear you say that," he said, his voice thick with relief. "I've been so scared of where this was all going."

"It's not going there anymore," I said, a wave of peace washing over me. "It's over."

He nodded, his smile growing wider. "Okay. I'm with you. We're a team."

He held my hands, and for the first time since that cold splash of water, I felt safe. I had a second chance not just at life, but at love. And I would not waste it.