Chapter 47

"It's not right to leave her body at the police station, so I arranged for her to be cremated. Don't worry; I found a beautiful resting place for her. She will be at peace." I pursed my lips, biting down hard as tears streamed down my face, leaving me feeling hollow. "Why? Why didn't you let me see her one last time?" Sophia looked at me with a complex expression but remained silent. I gasped for breath, my hands gripping the blanket tightly. "I have no family left now." "That's not true; you still have me." She reached out and firmly grasped my hand, her voice softer than I had ever heard. I looked up at her, forcing a smile. "Sophia, I regret everything. If I hadn't been so obsessed with finding you, marrying you, and protecting you, maybe my mom wouldn't have died." If I had forgotten that it was Sophia who saved me, I wouldn't have felt the need to protect her so fiercely. My body wouldn't have suffered like this, and Mom wouldn't have clung to the delusion that having a we