I Buried Him for Five Years, Then He Came Back with Another Woman Chapter 03

I Buried Him for Five Years, Then He Came Back with Another Woman Chapter 03

The room where Adrian and I had once tried on our wedding clothes had been painted warm yellow.

A small wooden sign hung on the door.

Nursery.

Tessa stood inside, directing a housekeeper who was positioning a crib.

“Put it by the window.”

“Adrian wants the baby to wake up looking at the ocean.”

I stood in the doorway.

“This is my room.”

Tessa turned and gave me a gentle smile.

“You’re here, Maren.”

“Adrian said we would host the baby’s welcome party on this yacht.”

“I had your belongings packed carefully.”

I looked past her and saw a cardboard box beside the bed.

My photo albums, formal dresses, and the routes I had planned for Adrian had been thrown inside.

A housekeeper taped the box shut and started carrying it away.

I blocked her path.

“Put it down.”

The housekeeper looked at Tessa.

Tessa said softly,

“They’re only old things.”

“Keeping them here would make Adrian uncomfortable.”

I picked up the album on top.

Packing tape had torn its cover.

Inside was a card Adrian had written to me.

[Beneath the stars and sea, we’ll sail through life together.]

I pulled out the card.

“If he’s uncomfortable, he can tell me himself.”

Tessa came closer.

When she lifted her hand, a blue gemstone flashed under the light.

The heirloom sapphire.

Adrian had bought that engagement ring at auction five years ago.

I fixed my eyes on her hand.

“Take it off.”

Tessa immediately hid her hand behind her back.

“Adrian gave it to me.”

“That ring is mine.”

Her eyes filled with tears.

“You always do this.”

“You think everything should belong to you.”

“But Adrian chose me now.”

I held out my hand.

“Take it off.”

She stepped back.

“Stop pressuring me.”

“If you want the ring, let Adrian decide.”

Quick footsteps sounded behind me.

Adrian entered the cabin and immediately pulled Tessa behind him.

“What are you causing trouble over now?”

I raised the damaged album.

“You ordered people to dismantle my wedding yacht.”

“You threw out my belongings.”

“You turned my room into a nursery.”

“And you put my engagement ring on her finger.”

Adrian glanced at the box.

“Old junk is an eyesore.”

“I can give the ring to anyone I want.”

Tessa pressed against his arm.

“Please don’t fight, Adrian.”

He gave a cold laugh.

“She can’t stand seeing you carry this baby in peace.”

I returned the album to the box.

“Fine.”

“I paid for the Moonwake’s repairs.”

“Hale Group funded the entire interior renovation.”

“I’ll also collect five years of unpaid docking and port service fees from Caldwell Maritime.”

The cabin went silent.

Adrian stared at me.

“You wouldn’t dare.”

I took out my phone.

“Derek, order every crew member to stop work.”

“Effective today, audit every dollar Caldwell Maritime owes Hale Group.”

Derek hesitated on the other end.

“Ms. Hale, Mr. Caldwell is right there.”

“Stop the work.”

“Anyone who keeps tearing this yacht apart will be banned from every Hale dock in Port Sterling.”

Adrian’s face darkened.

He held out a hand to his assistant.

The assistant passed him a tablet.

Adrian opened a video and held it in front of me.

My younger brother, Wesley Hale, was strapped to a hospital bed.

White restraints bound his wrists.

Steel panels covered the windows.

Two security guards stood outside his room.

I tightened my grip on my phone.

“Adrian!”

His voice remained level.

“Your brother’s condition has become unstable.”

“The residential treatment center recommended locked inpatient care.”

“You can audit my company if you want.”

“But I’ll have them change the way they manage him.”

In the video, a guard bent down and pinned Wesley’s shoulder to the mattress.

Wesley shouted something, but the audio had been muted.

I lunged for the tablet.

Reid stepped through the doorway and locked his hand around my wrist.