My sister was the unattainable love of my husband. He was willing to be her secret lover. Even when I was drugged and locked in a room with him, he just tossed me into a cold bath and stood by, indifferent. People praised his deep devotion, while I lay feverish that night. Though I survived, I was left mentally impaired. Later, he wept and begged for my forgiveness, while his Uncle shielded me. “Griffin, I’m your Aunt, please show some respect!” I imitated his Uncle’s tone, stumbling over the words. By the time they frantically searched for me, I had already run away with their money. 0 Today marks the third anniversary of my marriage to Griffin, and it’s also the last day of the three-year agreement with my Father. The divorce papers waited silently on the nightstand. Once Griffin signed them, I could finally escape this place for good. “Isn’t today your wedding anniversary? Are you waiting for your sister to personally invite you over?” Father called just as I arrived at the Johnsons. Cora Johnson was leaning against Griffin, teasing him with something that made her cheeks blush. On my anniversary, my sister and husband were entangled like they were the real couple. A three-person marriage, how absurd. “Nora Johnson, come here!” Father shouted at me with a stern face. We went to the study, where a document lay on the table. “Three years and you can’t even have a child to secure Griffin. Raising you has been a waste!” “Sign this, and you’ll get one percent of the shares. Tomorrow, go for IVF, and make sure you…” “Father, I’m divorcing Griffin.” I couldn’t listen anymore and interrupted him. “Are you trying to kill me?!” Father hurled a table ornament at me in anger. I instinctively blocked it, leaving a noticeable bruise on my arm. “Father, you promised that if I took the blame for drugging Griffin and married him for five years, my debt would be repaid.” Father had schemed for me to marry Griffin, and shortly after, Griffin discovered Cora was his long-lost ideal love. I had taken her place to marry him. I tried to explain, but Father covered his tracks well. I had nothing but my untrustworthy word, and no one believed me. So I took the fall, becoming the malicious adopted daughter who would stop at nothing to rise. “If I hadn’t let you marry him, could you have snagged such a good man?!” “Father, I won’t be your tool anymore.” Our conversation ended badly. When I returned to the dining table, Griffin was still flirting with Cora. “Sister!” Cora saw me but didn’t move away from Griffin. “How did you get hurt?” Griffin noticed the bruise on my arm, sounding displeased. “I accidentally fell, it’s nothing.” I awkwardly twisted my wrist. “Sister, how could you be so careless?! Let me help you with some medicine after dinner.” Cora snuggled in Griffin’s arms, pretending to care. “No need, I can manage.” “Nora, how can you speak to your sister like that!” Father started scolding me again. “When will you be as sensible as your sister?! Apologize!” “Oh Dad, don’t be mad. Sister’s just afraid I’d hurt her with my clumsiness. If she doesn’t need my help, then forget it.” Cora spoke pitifully, making me seem ungrateful. I ignored their conversation. I knew that any rebuttal would only bring insults and slaps. It’s not the first time, but it will be the last. The maid bringing the food was a new girl, someone I hadn’t seen before. “Hey, Mary, does the ring fit well?” Cora suddenly spoke. I instinctively glanced at Mary’s hand—it was a gift I bought for Cora with the first money I earned from a part-time job. 0
I remember we were still students back then. I didn’t have much pocket money. After a breakup, Cora cried, saying that guy wouldn’t even buy her a ring. So, I gave her one. Back then, Cora said she’d wear it for life, even after getting married. “Sister, look, the ring fits Mary perfectly! Things should match people, right, sister?” “Yeah.” I drank a glass of water, swallowing the bitterness. Just sincerity—if it’s not wanted, then so be it. “Drinking water is boring, have some wine.” Father handed me a glass of wine. I had a stomach issue from childhood, so my stomach’s always been weak. But no one cared. It’s the last day, I told myself. I stood up, adjusting my expression. “This one, to Father, thank you for saving me from the kidnapper. I’ve repaid my life-saving and upbringing debt.” Griffin looked at me, seemingly hearing my background for the first time. “This one, to Cora, thank you for teaching me what sisterly bond means.” “This one, to Griffin, thank you, I’m free now.” Before I could drink the last glass, Griffin stopped me, frowning. “You don’t…” “You’re not worthy of my toast.” He always acted hypocritical, condescending, offering charity. I shook off his hand, grabbed his glass and mine, and drank them both in one go. “Now, we are no longer indebted.” But as I sat down, dizziness suddenly hit me. Cora pointed at the glass I drank last, looking innocent. A bad feeling surged in me. I looked sharply at Father, who avoided my questioning gaze. What was I hoping for? I should’ve known long ago that no one in this family loves me. “Sister can’t handle her liquor, Griffin, help her to her room.” Cora’s soft, coy voice floated. Griffin took the opportunity to kiss her, then reached to support me. “No need! I can walk myself!” I instinctively stepped back, my voice sharp. Griffin, angered by my reaction, dragged me upstairs. “Let go!” He threw me onto the bed. “Why pretend to be a chaste matron now? Rest assured, touching you disgusts me.” “Then just get out!” I clung to the bedsheets, the drug’s effect too fast. Griffin, frustrated, turned to leave, only to find the door locked. “I love you, but… I’m sorry Griffin… I’m sorry…” Cora’s crying faded away outside the door. Griffin’s face was filled with towering anger. “Nora, you’re really surprising me.” 0
The drug took effect quickly. No matter how I knocked, no one responded. I had to ask Griffin for help. At least they’d have some fear of him. “Griffin, please, I’m begging you! Help me, please…” Heat coursed through me, making me growl like a small beast. Leaning against the cold door kept me barely sane. “Nora, when you drugged me back then, did you think you’d end up like this?” Griffin sneered, watching me beg at his feet. “Nora, how can someone be so cheap?” “You schemed to marry me, and now you want to drug me.” “Do you feel no shame trying to climb into my bed like this?” “The drug—I drank it for you, you can’t do this!” I ignored his insults and accusations. My body’s unquenchable thirst made me want to bash my head in. “Griffin! You can get out, I know you can. I don’t care if you stay faithful to Cora, but please… I don’t want to die like this!” “Just get me to a hospital, just this once! I’m really… about to die…” I clutched Griffin’s hand, begging shamelessly. It felt like he touched my face, but he just threw me into the bathtub. It was just a fleeting illusion. The cold shower shocked me, but I lost all strength and couldn’t crawl out. “It hurts…” I whimpered instinctively. “Hurt? If you shed a few tears, I might believe you.” “Stay here and keep cooling off.” The icy water soaked me, while he watched from the door, arms crossed. I swallowed back the words I wanted to say. It was useless; he wouldn’t save me. “Griffin, I really regret it, regret ever being so foolish to like you.” “Your kind of love only scares me.” Seeing me stop struggling, Griffin left the bathroom. I heard him laughing with his friends on the phone. “Unmoved by temptation, Griffin, a modern-day Saint, our role model!” “Oh my, Griffin, your wife must be head over heels for you…” “But Griffin, won’t leaving Nora like that cause problems?” “What could happen? She drugged me last time, and I soaked in cold water too.” “Let her learn her lesson.” ………… The cold water and my body’s heat tormented my senses. Even biting my knuckles was futile. Griffin noticed I had stopped resisting and left the bathroom. I overheard him on the phone, laughing with his friends. “Griffin, you’re a paragon of restraint, truly admirable!” “Wow, Griffin, your wife must be absolutely enamored with you…” “But seriously, Griffin, just leaving Nora there, won’t she be okay?” “What could possibly happen to her? She tried to set me up last time, and I ended up soaking in cold water.” “Let her learn from her mistakes.” ………… The mix of cold water and feverish heat overwhelmed my senses, and biting my knuckles didn’t help. My mind was clouded, and the sensation of needles piercing my nerves was relentless. I felt myself sinking, suffocated by the sensation of drowning, unable to escape. But I couldn’t accept it. I was so close to being free. 0
The pain was unbearable… That was the only thought echoing in my mind. “Cold…” When I regained consciousness, I was wrapped in a blanket in a car, held by a man. I knew my body was burning with fever, yet I felt cold. “Nora, just hold on a bit longer, we’re almost there!” Hearing my words, he held me tighter and asked the driver to turn up the heat. Was I being rescued? The itch, like ants gnawing at my bones, made me squirm. If not for the man’s firm hold, I might have moved more. But it was unbearable. I instinctively tried to bite my hand, which was already raw and bloody. The expected pain didn’t come, but the metallic taste of blood filled my mouth. It took me a moment to realize I was biting the man’s hand. “Don’t worry, you’ll be okay, you’ll be okay.” I didn’t know him, but his worried expression seemed genuine. That night, I had a persistent fever in the hospital, and the man stayed by my side, talking to me incessantly. I could feel my life slipping away, vitality draining from me bit by bit. “Sir, could you tell me your name?” The man paused for a moment. “Ezra, my name is Ezra.” Before I completely blacked out, I thought that when I woke up, I must thank him for saving me. But I didn’t anticipate that this would be my last coherent thought. I seemed to have a dream. I was curled up on the ground crying, and the child version of me approached. Back then, she was innocent and kind, resilient and brave. “If you’re tired, just rest for a while.” She held me, and it felt like being back in my mother’s warm embrace, so I fell asleep peacefully. 0
Griffin couldn’t understand how things ended up this way. He didn’t know why soaking in cold water left Nora so pale. He didn’t know why a stranger kicked open the door and took Nora away. “What right do you have to take her? Nora is my wife!” Griffin felt an inexplicable rage. “You still remember she’s your wife?” The man’s eyes were red, glaring fiercely. “But soon, she won’t be.” Numerous bodyguards stopped him, and Griffin could only watch as they took Nora away. How could she not be? Nora loved him so much she used deceitful means to be with him. How could she leave him? Despite his thoughts, he still felt uneasy, as if something was slipping out of his control. Until he got home and saw the divorce papers. Nora only asked for a divorce, no assets. Griffin felt like he never truly knew Nora. Besides love, he gave everything to Nora. What was she dissatisfied with?! Wait—love? Griffin recalled the man who took her away, as if he grasped something. “Investigate, find out everything about Nora! See who she’s been in contact with, especially men!” He thought of Nora’s image as a dutiful wife and loving mother over the years, as if she would never get angry. Because she didn’t love, so she didn’t care? Griffin felt an unprecedented anger. How dare Nora betray him! Griffin never considered Nora’s condition after going to the hospital. Instead, he obsessively investigated, as if catching Nora’s fault would solve everything. So, a month later, a document was delivered to him. “Boss, this is all the information we could gather about your wife. Also, there’s one thing you should be prepared for.” The speaker was Griffin’s trusted aide, who knew almost everything about him. Griffin didn’t know why he was nervous, as if opening this file would change something. “Where.” He pretended to be calm. “Your wife’s data was erased, but we discovered something by asking around locally.” “Boss, the kidnapping case you and your Uncle went through sixteen years ago, your wife experienced it too.” “In other words, the one who saved you back then might not have been Cora Johnson, but your wife.” “And three years ago, the day you were drugged, your wife’s whereabouts were concealed, but it’s certain she wasn’t in this city.” Griffin couldn’t hear anything more after seeing the kidnapping information. It was her! It was Nora! Griffin almost wanted to rush out to find her immediately. But when he stood up, his eyes caught the divorce papers nearby. A tidal wave of guilt and regret overwhelmed Griffin, suffocating him. “What should I… what should I do to bring her back…” Griffin murmured. 0
I slept in a daze for a long time. When I woke up again, I was alone in the hospital room. I stared blankly at the ceiling, not knowing why, I started to sob. My chest felt like it was blocked by a stubborn stone, only crying could relieve it. “Nora?! What’s wrong, are you in pain?” The person who came in, I recognized as Ezra. I remembered he saved me. Hearing Ezra’s voice, I don’t know why, but I cried even harder. At first, I tried to control my voice, but when Ezra patted my shoulder, I burst into tears. “It hurts so much, here, it really hurts.” I cried and pointed to my heart, feeling it wasn’t enough, I clenched my fist and pounded it. Ezra’s eyes also reddened, and he held me tight, continuously comforting me: “It won’t hurt anymore, I won’t let Nora hurt anymore.” So I cried until I almost couldn’t breathe, like I was pouring out all the grievances from these years. ………… “In simple terms, the patient’s mind has temporarily regressed to a child’s state, and her memory is confused. We can’t say when she’ll recover, we can only promise to do our best.” The doctor who examined me said. “What’s important is, even with her mind regressed, Nora is too quiet and understanding, not like a normal child.” The doctor looked at me, cautiously hiding behind Ezra, and forced a smile full of pity. “You don’t have to smile.” I muttered. The doctor froze for a moment, then walked over to me: “Nora, does it still hurt?” I instinctively shrank back behind Ezra and shook my head. Seeing he couldn’t talk to me, the doctor sighed. “The patient should stay away from environments that caused her harm. It’ll be up to you to take care of her, sir.” Ezra was about to agree when I quickly said, “I don’t need it, I can take care of myself!” I glanced at Ezra, and when our eyes met, I quickly looked down, adding, “… I won’t be a burden.” “Nora, look up.” I felt Ezra turn to face me, placing his hands on my shoulders. He bent down slightly, speaking earnestly: “Nora is not a burden. I’m happy to take care of you.” “So you can ask me to do anything, as long as you want.” He was the first person I saw when I opened my eyes. In my strange and long memory, he was also the first to say I wasn’t a burden. Tears just fell from my eyes. Ezra held me again. “Sorry, I came too late.”
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