Chapter 12

The devastating news made my scalp prickle, and my eyes widened in shock. It was as if every ounce of strength had drained out of me in an instant. I collapsed to the floor and clutching at my chest while gasping for air. Beside me, Sophia reached out, her eyes filled with tears as she gently grabbed my arm. "Samuel, please… calm down…" But how could I possibly calm down? I struggled to get up, to go see Kayla, but George held me back, wrapping his arms around me to keep me from moving. "Samuel, you have to stay strong. She went peacefully. Don't make Kay worry about you." Tears poured down my face, soaking my clothes. I curled up on the floor, my whole body shaking as I sobbed uncontrollably. It wasn't until later that I learned the truth… Kayla had already passed by the time I collapsed at the gym. George had tried calling me several times, but I hadn't answered. If only I hadn't wasted so much time fuming over that brooch Abigail had given Joshua… I wouldn't have missed my last chance to say goodbye to Kayla. It was all my fault. I'd let her down. I wept until the world around me blurred, until I was utterly spent, lying on the floor in a heap. Sophia and George stayed close, watching over me, afraid I might do something drastic in my grief. Eventually, I took a deep breath, raised my swollen, tear-streaked eyes, and waved them off. "Please… just go. I need to be alone." Sophia and George exchanged a worried glance, hesitating. "I'm not going to do anything stupid," I said, forcing my voice to sound steady, knowing what they feared. "Alright. Just… take care of yourself. I'm sure Kay would want that," Sophia replied softly. With that, they finally left the room. Lost in my grief, I didn't even notice when Abigail entered. She stood there, looking down at me with a cold, detached expression as if I were nothing more than a pathetic, abandoned dog. Without a word, she tossed a check onto my chest. "Don't say I'm heartless. That's two million. Consider it payment for the blood she donated to me," she said icily. Through my blurry vision, I looked down at the check, and something inside me snapped. In a fury, I tore it to shreds and hurled the pieces back at her. "Get out! I don't want your filthy money!" I screamed. Abigail froze, then pointed at me furiously and yelled, "Weren't you the one asking me for money? Now that I'm giving it to you, why are you throwing a tantrum?" I didn't respond. Just being in the same room as Abigail felt suffocating. Struggling to my feet, I stumbled toward the door, desperate to get out of the hospital room. But when I pushed it open, I came face to face with Joshua, standing there with his arms crossed, looking at me with a mixture of annoyance and impatience. "Samuel, could you stop acting out with Abigail already? She's been pouring money into a new project, and the second she got the final payment, she came straight here to give it to you. She's busy as hell, and yet she still took time to bring you money. What more could you possibly be upset about?" Joshua's words dripped with accusation as if I were the one being unreasonable. I took a deep breath, a bitter smile spreading across my face as I locked eyes with him. "No money, huh? So, that brooch she gave you… Did she steal it? "Joshua, you really are something. You've managed to make her splurge on you while my sister's life was on the line. Bravo." Joshua bit his lips, glancing uneasily over my shoulder at Abigail. She stepped out from behind me and positioned herself firmly at his side. Her face was hard as she snapped, "Joshua came to see you out of kindness. Can you stop jumping at every chance to humiliate him?" I was humiliating him? I laughed at that. All I'd done was speak a little harshly, and Abigail was already accusing me of "humiliating" her precious lover. Back when we first got together, the internet was flooded with insults against me, and she never once stood up for me. My face went cold as I took a step closer to Joshua. He flinched at the look in my eyes, pulling Abigail and ducking behind her. "What do you want?" Abigail stood firmly in front of me, showing no sign of backing down. Her determination to protect him was almost impressive enough to applaud. I fixed my gaze on her, my voice steady. "I want a divorce." Abigail's expression shifted, genuine shock flashing across her face as if she hadn't expected me to bring it up again. But then she let out a cold laugh, her tone firm. "Not a chance. When you left me the first time, I swore I'd never let you have an easy life. Samuel, I told you. I will never divorce you. Not unless you're dead." With that, she grabbed Joshua's hand and swept out of the room without a second glance. I watched her walk away, and my hatred reached a boiling point. That night, I woke up from nightmares over and over. I kept dreaming of Kayla, her body covered in blood, crying out for me. Or worse, dying in my arms. I cried until my throat was raw, nearly passing out from lack of air more than once. By the time I finally calmed down, it was already 9.30 p.m. Kayla's death was now an unchangeable fact. All I could do was try to accept it, stay strong, and make sure to handle her arrangements properly. Forcing myself to hold it together, I took a cab back home, planning to go through Kayla's belongings to have something to remember her by. But when I tried to unlock the door, the keypad kept flashing an error, telling me that the code was wrong. How strange. I was sure that it was set to mine and Abigail's wedding anniversary date. Why would it be coming up as incorrect now? "Who's there?" a man called from inside, sounding confused. The door opened, and I found myself face-to-face with Joshua, looking at me in surprise. "Samuel? What are you doing back here?" I frowned, glaring at him. "Why are you here?" Abigail had plenty of men around her, but she'd never allowed any of them to stay the night before. "Oh, my lease ended. Abigail offered to let me stay here for a while," he replied casually. He pointed at the keypad, smirking as he added, "And Abigail had me change the code, just to make sure no one would interrupt my rest." He was clearly trying to provoke me. But at that moment, my mind was focused solely on Kayla. I didn't care enough to argue with him. I pushed past him, stepping into the house to look for Kayla's things. But the framed photos of Kayla and me were missing from the TV stand. Her favorite stuffed animal was gone from the couch. I searched everywhere, but I couldn't find a single trace of Kayla. Red-eyed and furious, I turned to Joshua and demanded, "Where's Kayla's stuff? Where did you put it?" Joshua shrugged and spread his hands carelessly. "Oh, I threw it out." "You threw it out?" I got to my feet, anger boiling over as I pointed at him. "Who gave you the right to throw her things away?" Joshua narrowed his eyes, grinning. "I threw it out because I felt like it. Besides, keeping a dead person's stuff around in a place where people are living… it's bad luck, don't you think?" At those words, the fury in my chest exploded, impossible to hold back any longer.