Chapter 268

The hospital room was too bright, too sterile.

Ethan lay in the bed, his dark lashes casting shadows on his pale cheeks. The machines beeped steadily, a cruel mockery of the chaos inside me.

Vanessa sat beside him, her delicate fingers wrapped around his. She looked up at me, her blue eyes wide with fake concern.

"You should rest, Evelyn," she said softly. "You look exhausted."

I clenched my fists, my nails biting into my palms.

How dare she?

How dare she sit there, playing the devoted lover, when she was the reason for all of this?

I forced a smile. "I'm fine."

But I wasn't.

Because I finally understood—this wasn't just about Ethan.

This was war.

And I wouldn't lose.

No wonder Ethan wanted to divorce Vanessa.

His pride would never allow such deception.

Ethan's voice was ice. "Evelyn, I'll ask you one final time. Three years ago—did you pay those criminals to kidnap Vanessa? Or was it all her own doing, some twisted plan she concocted herself?"

The moment he brought up the past, Evelyn's blood ran cold.

A jagged pain tore through her chest.

That night had haunted her every waking moment.

Those three years in prison had been hell. Some days, the despair was so suffocating, she had considered swallowing the sharp edge of her dinner tray just to make it stop.

Her youth had been stolen from her.

The moldy bread, the bruises from cellmates, the jagged scar on her ankle—they were permanent reminders of a life she could never reclaim.

Evelyn didn't answer. Instead, she met his gaze. "What exactly did Vanessa tell you that night?"

For years, Evelyn had carried this gnawing suspicion in her heart.

After the car accident, Ethan had turned cold, withdrawing from her completely.

The distance between them grew, but she never imagined it would lead to this—him wanting her behind bars.

It was as if, overnight, his gaze had darkened with disgust whenever he looked at her.

She was certain Vanessa had whispered poison in his ear.

Ethan's eyes narrowed dangerously. "Vanessa told me you slept with their leader to control those men."

"So that's it." The realization hit Evelyn like a physical blow.

Back then, they had just been engaged. A man like Ethan, proud and possessive, would never tolerate such a betrayal.

In his eyes, she had orchestrated Vanessa's kidnapping and then betrayed him in the worst way.

The thought must have destroyed him.

"And you believed her?" Evelyn's voice was barely above a whisper.

Ethan's jaw tightened as he gave a slow, heavy nod.

Vanessa had been hysterical, nearly violated by those men. How could he not believe her?

The tension between us was palpable, thick enough to cut with a knife.

Ethan's grip on my shoulders tightened, his fingers digging into my skin. "You never slept with those men, did you? The kidnapping—it was all Vanessa's doing. She set you up. She sent you to prison."

A bitter laugh escaped my lips. "What does it matter now? The truth won't change anything."

His jaw clenched, his dark eyes burning with fury. The realization was crashing over him like a tidal wave, unraveling every lie he had believed for years.

How had he been so blind?

Vanessa had played him like a fool.

"I'll make this right," he growled, his voice rough with emotion.

"Right?" I scoffed, shaking my head. "Three years of my life—gone. The humiliation, the pain—do you really think an apology can erase that?" I met his gaze, my own sharp and unyielding. "And tell me, Ethan, what exactly is your role in all this? Why should I believe you now?"

His expression twisted, torn between guilt and frustration.

But I had already turned away.

Some wounds ran too deep to heal.

Ethan froze at Evelyn’s words.

The moonlight cast long shadows across the quiet garden, painting his silhouette against the stone pathway.

Evelyn met his gaze steadily, her voice calm yet final. "I'm married now, Ethan. There's no going back. You need to accept that."

Without another word, she turned to leave, her heels clicking softly against the cobblestones.

A desperate urgency surged through him.

Before she could take another step, Ethan moved swiftly, blocking her path. His breath came unevenly, his chest rising and falling with unspoken emotions.

Standing against the dim glow of the garden lights, he seemed to dissolve into the night—his shadow stretching long and lonely across the ground.

The silence between them was deafening.