Chapter 4
923words
I didn't look back.
One step, two steps, I walked out of the bedroom and down the stairs. In the empty mansion, there were only the sounds of my footsteps. The servants watched from a distance, fear in their eyes, no one daring to stop me.
I knew Vincent hadn't followed me. He was probably still frozen in place, staring at the ring I had cast aside like an old shoe.
He didn't understand.
When the heart dies, love and hate burn to ashes with it. What remains is only calmness.
I went to the study.
In the computer was the divorce agreement I had prepared long ago. During those countless nights when he abandoned me, the escape route I had left for myself.
The terms were simple. I only wanted what belonged to me, the money in my pre-marital trust fund. I disdained every penny of Vincent Lowell's.
The printer hummed.
I picked up the pen and signed my name on the last page.
Evelyn Windsor.
No longer Lowell.
The pen tip glided across the paper without a trace of trembling.
The study door suddenly pushed open.
Vincent stood at the doorway, his face deathly pale. He clutched the pink diamond ring tightly in his hand, his knuckles turning white. His gaze first fell on my face, then fixed on the document on the table.
"What are you doing?" His voice was hoarse, with a slight tremor.
"As you can see." I pushed the signed agreement toward him. "Sign it. Let's part on good terms."
"Part on good terms?" He seemed wounded by these words, stepped forward, grabbed the agreement as if to tear it up. "I won't allow it! Evelyn, I'm not getting divorced! It's my fault, I shouldn't have argued with you! We can..."
"There's no starting over." I calmly interrupted him. "I lost my child, and the moment you chose to doubt me, we had no future."
He held the agreement, his movement frozen. He looked at me, trying to find a glimmer of hope for reconciliation in my eyes.
But all he saw was a cold, barren desert.
"Is it because of Vivi?" He finally grasped the key point, his tone urgent. "Evelyn, I will investigate! I will definitely get to the bottom of this! If... it's really her..." he said these few words, his face turning several shades paler, "I will give you an explanation! But you can't just sentence me to death like this!"
"Explanation?" I laughed softly, the smile not reaching my eyes. "Vincent, you can't give me any explanation anymore."
My gaze fell on his tightly clenched hands.
"Sign it. Or, my lawyer will contact you."
After saying this, I no longer looked at him, turning to walk toward the closet.
I didn't take many things. A few casual clothes, drawing tools, and a velvet box containing the Pregnancy Test.
That was the only connection between me and the child. I placed it in the deepest part of my suitcase.
Throughout the entire process, Vincent stood at the doorway, motionless, those bloodshot gray eyes staring fixedly at my back.
I dragged my suitcase past him, walking toward the main door.
He suddenly grabbed my wrist, with surprising force.
"Don't go..." he begged hoarsely, his voice breaking. "Evelyn, please... don't leave me..."
This was the first time I had ever heard him use the word "please."
A month ago, perhaps it could have melted my heart.
Now, it just seemed absurd.
I pried his fingers off mine, one by one. His fingertips were cold, trembling with desperation.
"Goodbye, Vincent."
I pulled open the heavy oak door.
The autumn sunlight was blinding. The taxi I had called was waiting quietly.
The car drove away from Lowell Manor.
In the rearview mirror, that magnificent villa grew smaller and smaller. Vincent stood rigidly at the doorway until he completely disappeared from view.
……
For the next three days, Vincent went mad.
He used all his power to find me. My phone was bombarded with countless unknown numbers, and my message inbox was filled with his texts. From angry accusations to painful confessions, and finally to humble pleas.
[Evelyn, come back! Let's talk!]
[I was wrong, I was really wrong! Give me a chance!]
[Where are you? Tell me where you are? I'm going crazy!]
[Without you, this house is so empty it suffocates me...]
[I'm investigating Vivi's matter, I will definitely give you the truth!]
[Please, respond with just one word, even a single character...]
I looked at those words, feeling completely unmoved inside.
He only knows suffocation now? Then what about me when I was alone guarding that empty house?
I blocked his number and deleted all messages.
The lawyer formally submitted the divorce agreement. I told him not to accept any mediation and to complete the process as soon as possible.
Meanwhile, I activated my trust fund and began preparing to leave this country.
I sat by the floor-to-ceiling window of my new apartment, overlooking the city below. The sunset painted the sky red, yet it couldn't warm my heart.
I knew that Vincent's "Crematorium" was only just beginning.
He lost the wife he never cherished and the child he never looked forward to. He discovered for the first time that when someone uses all their strength to escape from him, his power and money are utterly helpless.
His pain was real.
But, it was too late.
This was the first layer of his boundless hell.
