Chapter 21
“I’m… sorry.”
Charles closed his eyes as if the weight of the world pressed down on him.
A single tear slipped, slow and heavy, from the corner of his eye.
“Vivian… forgive me.”
But no answer came.
When he opened them again, she was already walking away-arm in arm with Northon Shea, heading into the
interrogation room.
Her small frame looked impossibly fragile beneath the harsh hallway lights, each step making his chest twist tighter.
Charles stepped out of the station, lit a cigarette with trembling fingers, and rapped on the car window.
Mr. Chambers rolled it down slightly. “Yes, Mr. Foster?”
Charles stared into the distance. His eyes looked calm, but there was a cold, dangerous gleam hidden in their depths.
“Go to the detention center. Grease a few palms-make sure Diana receives exactly the kind of “hospitality” she’s earned.”
“And get me the best criminal defense attorney in Ridgewood. There’s no evidence I destroyed anything for her. I want
that lawyer to do whatever it takes to keep me out of this.”
Mr. Chambers’ eyes widened slightly. He lowered his voice. “Sir… what are you planning?”
Charles spoke softly, but with unmistakable resolve.
“Vivian’s back. But she’s still mad at me. I need time-to prove I love her.”
–
When Vivian walked out of the police station after her questioning, she immediately saw Charles waiting on the steps
outside. Rain plastered his hair to his forehead, each drop sliding down like ice against his skin.
When their eyes met, he stood up like a guilty child caught in the act. Nervously, he said,
“Vivian.”
She glanced at him without emotion. “What now?”
“I came to take you home.”
His gaze dropped to her hand, still entwined with Northon Shea’s. Rage clawed its way up his chest, but he forced a smile,
fumbling for the words.
“I missed you… every day since you left.”
“I packed up all your things. They’re in storage. I kept every photo of you. Every one.”
“I bought a new house… it’s in your name. If you don’t want to go back to the old one, I’ll have Mr. Chambers move everything today.”
He rambled on and on, desperation thick in every word.
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But Vivian didn’t even blink.
Charles’s jaw tensed.
“You’re still mad at me.”
Vivian finally spared him a glance, her voice flat.
“I’m not petty enough to waste energy being angry at my ex-husband.”
“I’m just wondering… what exactly are you trying to achieve?”
“Shouldn’t you be busy running around for the woman you truly care about right now?”
“Isn’t she the one you claimed to love above all else?”
Every word she said sliced through his heart like a knife.
“Vivian… I loved the wrong person.”
His voice was low, but honest. His eyes were clear-like this was the first real confession he’d ever made.
“I didn’t realize how much you meant to me until you were gone. Vivian, I fell for you a long time ago-somewhere along those six years.”
“I realized it too late. But please… give me a chance to set things right. Let me love you-for real, this time.”
Vivian’s lips curled into a faint, quiet smile. She looked him dead in the eye.
“You’re in love with me?”
Charles whispered, “Yes.”
Vivian leaned closer into Northon’s arm.
“But I stopped loving you a long time ago.”
“I’ve been living well without you. Happier, even.”
“Charles Foster, your love isn’t the only love in the world that matters.”
“What I once longed for-now, I wouldn’t take even if it were handed to me.”
With that, she turned around and walked away, her steps sure and steady.
Behind her, Charles’s anguished voice cracked through the air.
“I don’t believe you!”
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