My Fiancé Took Her to the World Cup — and Left Me to Babysit Their Cat Chapter 04

My Fiancé Took Her to the World Cup — and Left Me to Babysit Their Cat Chapter 04

On the eighth of the month, Alex flew back.

When they walked out of the airport, Serena looked gloomy.

The driver picked them up in a private car, and the two of them sat in the back seat.

Alex lowered his head and texted Elena.

[I’m on my way home. I miss you.]

His last message to her had been ten days ago.

He had said he would come back on the ninth, right on time, to sign the marriage license with her.

She hadn’t replied.

During the ten days overseas, he and Serena had been enjoying themselves so much that he never thought to contact Elena.

He was certain that after ten days, Elena should have calmed down.

Serena glanced at the message Alex sent.

Unease and loss filled her heart.

Every day overseas, she had posted more than a dozen photos of herself with Alex.

Every photo was angled to make them look intimate, like a couple.

She had deliberately made sure Elena would see them all.

Every day, she waited for Elena to break down and cancel the marriage license appointment with Alex.

But Elena stayed quiet.

No reaction at all.

Eight years ago, when Alex had wanted to marry Elena, Serena had said they were too young and that marriage would take away his freedom.

She persuaded Alex not to marry Elena yet.

Four years ago, Alex wanted to marry Elena again.

Serena asked him to stay unmarried for a few more years, to keep her company as a single man.

She begged him for a long time before he agreed to delay the marriage plans again.

This time, she had no reason left.

On the night before they came back, Alex had told her clearly that Elena was thirty now.

He couldn’t make Elena wait anymore.

And whatever existed between him and Serena could only stay exactly as it was.

If she couldn’t accept that, then in the end, they couldn’t even be friends.

She watched Alex look forward to signing the marriage license tomorrow.

Her chest felt heavy, as if seawater had risen into her throat.

She turned toward the window and rolled it halfway down.

Wind rushed in from outside.

Even though her emotions were written all over her face, Alex didn’t notice at all.

He only stared down at his phone.

Halfway home, he said to her, “I’ll convince Elena to let you be a bridesmaid at the wedding.”

He even joked, “A bridesmaid is half a bride anyway.”

Serena pressed her lips together, a bitter smile rising at the corners of her mouth.

When they returned to The Oakwood Apartment, Westbrook, a nauseating stench drifted from under their door the moment they stepped out of the elevator.

“What is that smell?”

Serena covered her nose in disgust and fanned the air.

Alex frowned and covered his nose too.

An uneasy feeling suddenly rose in his chest.

He thought of a girl at his company six months ago who had fought with her boyfriend after finding out he had cheated.

In a moment of despair, she had taken her own life.

Her body had been left in her apartment for days before the neighbors smelled it and called the police.

Alex’s heart leaped into his throat.

He rushed toward the door, his legs so weak he nearly collapsed to his knees.

His face had already gone pale.

Serena also wondered whether someone had died.

If someone really had died, she hoped it was Elena.

Only if Elena died would there be no third person between her and Alex.

Only then would Alex belong to her completely.

Alex’s thumb shook nonstop on the fingerprint lock.

The more panicked he became, the harder the lock was to open.

Finally, after three tries, the door opened.

Alex rushed inside.

“Ellie! Ellie! Ellie…”

The living room was a wreck.

The sofa had been shredded by the cat, and the foam inside had been torn out.

Decorations from the shelves were scattered all over the floor.

It looked like the place had been ransacked.

Alex’s nerves stretched to the limit as he rushed from the living room into the bedroom.

Every corner, every room, was in chaos.

But Elena was nowhere to be seen.

At last, he rushed into the bathroom and saw the white cat lying on the floor, motionless.

Maggots had already begun crawling over its body.