Second in Silence Chapter 07

Second in Silence Chapter 07

I had not even opened my mouth when Emily rushed over, clinging to Charles’s arm.

“You’re not talking to her,” she snapped.

Charles gently pried her off, looking annoyed. The love he once had for her was barely flickering.

“Emily, can you just not?” he said. “I just need to ask her something.”

“This is off-limits, that’s off-limits. What next? You’re going to keep me on a leash forever, not letting me talk to anyone?”

“Can’t you just grow up?”

Emily’s eyes welled up. “Before we got married, I was your everything. Now, you’re telling me to grow up. How much more fake can you get, Charles?”

She spat out his name like it was poison.

Charles’s face paled.

I just stood there, wanting to laugh.

Pretending to be someone else had come at a price: he had lost his identity forever.

I was done watching their drama and walked away.

Olivia had given me a few days off and even booked me a week-long getaway to Sunny Bay.

However, on the day I was set to leave, Emily blocked my path.

I stepped out of the car with a frown. “Emily, what are you freaking out about now?”

When Emily looked up, I was taken aback by the two angry red streaks on her face.

Without thinking, I asked, “Did Charles hit you?”

She shook her head, her voice filled with desperation. “There’s a coffee shop just around the corner. Can we talk? It’ll only take half an hour. I promise I won’t be a bother.”

She looked a mess, but I was not about to waste my time on her.

“Spit it out right here, or just drop it.”

Emily’s hands flew to her face as she burst into tears.

I was confused. “Look, if you’re just putting on a show for me, save it. I’m out of here if there’s nothing else.”

However, then she stopped crying.

“I wanted to apologize to you.

“I’m sorry.

“I know it’s way too late for apologies, but I mean it from the bottom of my heart.”

“I’m just now getting how tough things were for you back then.”

It was as if the pieces finally fell into place for me.

“Margaret hit you?”

Emily nodded and rolled up her sleeve to show the bruises on her arm.

“Charles’s mom is a piece of work, a real snake in the grass. I can’t take it anymore.”

I could not muster the shared outrage she might have been expecting.

Margaret, once she found out what had caused her son’s trouble, would never let Emily off the hook, as she was the co-conspirator.

If Emily had any brains, she would have realized she could not play the role of the Wallace family’s leading lady after I had left.

In the Wallace household, there was only room for one queen bee, and that was Margaret.

She pressed me urgently, saying, “Look, I’m on your side. I get the hurt you felt back then. I’m considering taking Margaret to court, and since Charles is gone, as his official wife, you’re entitled to your share. Are you really going to walk away from that?”

“I’d like to, but didn’t you know? I signed a prenup.”

Just thinking about it got me irritated. I wanted to kick myself for being so naive.

When Charles and I talked about marriage, his mom was the first to throw a fit.

Then, to show I was not just after the Wallace family fortune, I signed that prenup without batting an eye.

It meant I had zero ties to the Wallace wealth.

Emily just stood there, gaping at me like I had lost my mind.

Before I walked away, I told her, “Stop trying to test me. I’m done with the Wallace family, and there’s no way I’m holding onto any feelings for Charles.

“You’re the only one who will ever see a loser like him as a prize.”

Emily’s face turned red with rage when I hit a nerve.

“How is Charles a loser? It sounds like someone’s just bitter because they can’t have him!

“Just remember what you’re saying now, and don’t come crawling back. However, even if you do, it’s pointless. Charles only has eyes for me.

“You’re clueless, aren’t you? Charles has been into me for three years. I’m his one and only.”

I never noticed how clueless Emily was until then.

Her words stopped me in my tracks.

“Emily, have you ever heard the saying that the worst heartache comes from love that’s never returned? Is that you?”

The woman who was all fire and fury a moment ago suddenly looked like a frog caught by the throat, speechless.

She stood there, mouth hanging open, but no words came out.

I climbed into the car with a smile of satisfaction on my face, and drove away.