The Girl Who Was His Replacement for Nine Years Finally Left Him Chapter 06

The Girl Who Was His Replacement for Nine Years Finally Left Him Chapter 06

The ocean liner slowly pulled away from the harbor.

The salty sea wind rushed against my face, carrying away the last trace of Ironport.

I gripped the cold metal railing and stared at the city growing smaller and blurrier in the distance.

That city held the mansion where Matteo and I had lived together, the imposing Moretti family

estate, the freezing waters beyond the abandoned docks, and the broken pieces of my youth.

From now on, none of it had anything to do with me.

The marks left by the slaps still burned against my cheek.

Yet when I touched my face, I didn’t feel wronged anymore.

Pain had a limit.

Once it became unbearable, you simply went numb.

My heart had already died.

A few bruises on my skin meant nothing in comparison.

I turned and went back to my cabin, dragging my suitcase over to the bed.

It was small, something I had bought on impulse at a supermarket near the hotel.

Cheap material. Soft and flimsy.

Inside were all the possessions I had left after nine years of marriage.

A few casual clothes, washed so many times they had faded.

A vintage silver brooch my mother had left behind.

Half a box of stomach medicine I hadn’t finished.

That was all.

The Moretti family mansion was enormous.

Its walk–in closets could hold hundreds of couture gowns, and its jewelry cases were filled with pieces worth fortunes.

But none of them had ever belonged to me.

I had only been a guest living under someone else’s roof.

And not even a welcome one.

Now that my stay was over, it was only natural for me to leave.

I sat on the edge of the bed and took out the silver brooch, gently tracing the worn pattern with.my

fingertips.

It was the only keepsake my mother had left me.

When I married into the Moretti family, I had been afraid Matteo would think I wasn’t good enough for him. I had also been afraid the Valenti family would criticize me for not knowing how to follow

their rules.

So I had secretly tucked the brooch into the bottom of my suitcase.

For nine years, I had only dared to take it out late at night when no one was around/

I would look at it for a moment, then quickly hide it again, as if I were concealing some shameful

secret.

I didn’t have to anymore.

I pinned the brooch to the collar of my coat and studied my reflection in the small mirror on the

cabin wall.

The woman staring back at me was pale, with exhaustion settled beneath her eyes.

But there was finally a spark of life in her gaze.

It wasn’t the same dead–eyed resignation I had carried before.

“From now on, I’m not Blair Valenti anymore.”

I looked at my reflection and spoke each word slowly.

My voice was soft, but it carried a determination I had never felt before.

“My name is Renee Blair.”

Blair was the surname my mother had given me.

Renee meant rebirth.

For the rest of my life, I would live for myself.

I would live with my head held high and my conscience clear.

I would never again have to watch someone else’s expression before deciding how to live.

I would build a new life of my own.

The ocean liner sailed for seven days and seven nights.

I rarely left my cabin.

Most of the time, I sat in the little chair by the window and stared blankly at the endless ocean.

At sunrise, the water glittered like scattered gold, bright enough to make my eyes ache

At sunset, the sky burned red across the horizon, painting even the waves a soft orange.

I sat there and went through the past nine years in my head like flipping through the pages of an old

book.

From the rush of falling in love when we first met, to the bliss of our newlywed days, to the arguments, cold wars, and hurt that came later.

The pain that had carved itself into my bones.

The tears I had cried night after night.

The humiliating lengths I had gone to just to please him.

By the time I reached the final page, all I felt was emptiness.

I didn’t hate him anymore.

I didn’t love him either.

Hating someone took too much energy.

Loving someone could drain the life out of you.

Whatever strength I had left, I wanted to spend it building a life worth living.

On the evening of the seventh day, the ocean liner finally reached the shore.