Page 76 of My Husband’s New Fiancée

She looks at me without saying a word, but everything is there: concern, presence, that quiet strength of hers.

I give her a faint, grateful smile.

She barely nods, as if encouraging me, then slowly releases my hand.

I swallow hard.

“He slammed my head against the wall. Right before I collapsed onto the floor.” My voice sounds far away. “I caught sight of a third pair of shoes. There were three people in the room.”

The inspector nods sympathetically.

“Yes, I know. You told me during your statement. I just wanted you to know we now have evidence corroborating your testimony.”

Silence settles heavily over the room.

“I’m currently reviewing all the witness statements from back then,” he continues. “And if necessary, I’ll reinterview everyone. Someone must have seen something that night, even if they didn’t realize what they were witnessing.”

He pauses, and something in his expression softens.

“I promise you that this time, justice won’t fail you.”

His words affect me more than I want to admit.

“Thank you, Inspector.”

Mara and Stephen leave with him.

A heavy quiet settles over the room.

And then...

Everything catches up with me.

Alone in the vastness of the manor, my thoughts drift back to Dante.

To the icy look in his eyes when he told me he regretted every moment he’d spent with me.

And then, despite myself, other memories surface.

Our first date in Montmartre. The cool evening wind. My heart pounding uncontrollably. Our awkward laughter. And that first hesitant kiss on the steps of Sacré-Cœur.

Then our first night together in my tiny student bedroom on Christmas Eve.

He had been my first.

My only love.

I remember the birth of our company seven years earlier. The sleepless nights, the doubts, the excitement. Our hands intertwined over scribbled blueprints. Dreams far too ambitious...

And yet we built them together.

Aurenza.

Our project.

Our life.

Then our wedding.