Chapter 4

The next morning, Damon tried to make up for his "late night at work." He presented me with a velvet box at the breakfast table. Inside was a ridiculously expensive diamond necklace.

"I'm sorry about last night," he said, his eyes pleading. "Please, forgive me."

I looked at the necklace, a cold, glittering thing. It felt like a payment for my silence, for my compliance. I closed the box and pushed it back across the table.

"It's beautiful, Damon. But you don't need to buy me things."

I stood up and went to the study. I came back with a small, elegantly wrapped gift box. I had prepared it last week.

"I have something for you, too," I said, placing it in his hands.

"But I want you to wait. Don't open it until the day after tomorrow."

My escape was scheduled for tomorrow. By the time he opened it, I would be long gone.

Inside the box was my wedding ring and my house key. A clean, simple message. Goodbye.

"What is it?" he asked, shaking the box curiously.

"Something to remember me by," I said with a small, cryptic smile. "A reminder of the past ten years."

He beamed, his guilt obviously eased by the exchange of gifts. He thought we were back to normal.

"I can't wait," he said, placing the box carefully on the table. "I'll open it first thing in the morning, the day after tomorrow."

Just then, the doorbell rang. A series of sharp, frantic presses.

Damon's face clouded with annoyance. He went to the door, and I heard him gasp.

Kandy Morris was standing on our doorstep, her face streaked with tears.

Damon's expression shifted from annoyance to pure panic. He quickly pulled her outside, into the front garden, trying to keep her out of my line of sight.

"I'll be right back, Alana," he called out, his voice strained. "Just a neighbor with a problem."

I walked calmly to the living room window, which overlooked the garden. I watched as Kandy threw herself into Damon's arms, sobbing.

He pushed her away, his face a mask of anger and fear.

"What the hell are you doing here?" he hissed, his voice low but sharp. "I told you never to come to my house!"

Kandy didn't seem to care. She cried harder, holding out a piece of paper. A medical report.

"Damon," she wailed, her voice carrying across the perfectly manicured lawn. "I'm pregnant."

Her words hit me with the force of a physical blow. I froze, my hand gripping the windowsill. I couldn't breathe.

Pregnant.

"I went to the doctor this morning," she sobbed. "I was feeling sick. He said... he said the baby might not be healthy because of all the stress."

Pregnant. The word echoed in the sudden silence of my mind.

I remembered all the times Damon and I had talked about having children. He always said he wasn't ready. He wanted to focus on the company, on building our future. Another lie. He wasn't ready to have a child with me.

Through the window, I saw Damon's shock melt away, replaced by something else. A flicker of... joy.

He took the paper from her hand, his eyes scanning it quickly.

"How far along?" he asked, his voice suddenly urgent.

"Six weeks," she whispered.

He looked at her, then at her stomach. A slow smile spread across his face. He was going to be a father.

"We'll protect this baby," he said, his voice filled with a fierce determination I hadn't heard in years. "I'll take care of everything."

Kandy's tears stopped. She looked up at him, her eyes shining with triumph. She threw her arms around his neck and kissed him.

For a moment, he responded, kissing her back with a passion that made my stomach turn. Then he seemed to remember where he was. He pushed her away gently.

"You need to leave now," he whispered. "I'll call you. We'll figure this out."

I stepped back from the window and walked back to the dining table. I sat down and picked up my coffee cup, my hands perfectly steady.

I was glad. In a strange, twisted way, I was glad. Glad we never had a child. It made my escape cleaner, simpler. It meant there was nothing left to tie me to this man.

Damon came back inside, his face a carefully constructed mask of apology.

"Sorry about that," he said, forcing a casual tone. "Just a small crisis. Listen, something's come up. I have to fly to the Singapore office for a couple of days."

Another lie. He was going to take care of Kandy.

"I'll bring you back something nice," he promised.

I just nodded. "Okay."

He seemed relieved by my lack of questions. He gave me a quick kiss on the forehead, grabbed his briefcase, and left.

I watched his car pull out of the driveway. I watched until it disappeared down the street.

This is the last time, I thought. The last time I will ever see you leave this house.