Chapter 6

If I had merely been shedding silent tears before, then now—spurred on by Cameron’s words—I completely broke down.

I sobbed so hard it felt like the world was collapsing around me. I no longer cared about appearances, nor about the strength and resilience I usually showed in front of Cameron.

At that moment, I was like a stray dog with nothing left. The kind of despair that could end civilizations seemed to be pouring out of me—and it made Cameron deeply uncomfortable.

“Linda, can you stop crying? Will crying bring your husband back? What are you planning to do next?”

Cameron’s voice wasn’t angry at my grief, but rather at my helplessness. It was a side of me that felt completely foreign to him, and somehow, that irritated him more than anything.

I was momentarily stunned. Then, without a word, I grabbed a tissue, wiped my face, and walked straight out of Cameron’s office.

“Where are you going?”

“None of your damn business,” I croaked, my voice hoarse from crying.

I marched off in high heels toward Mary’s husband’s room.

The place was already chaos. Mary’s furious yelling, the mistress’s wailing, and Manny Delgado’s pitiful attempts to beg for forgiveness.

As soon as I entered, I saw two naked bodies squatting on the balcony, shivering and clinging to each other. Mary was gripping the mistress’s hair, slapping her relentlessly while screaming accusations.

For some reason, the scene struck me as absurdly funny. I didn’t even know why I had come.

Mary had caught Manny cheating countless times. This wasn’t new. This melodrama was practically a routine performance now, and Manny had grown numb to it. Even while squatting naked, there wasn’t a trace of guilt on his face.

Because he knew Mary would never leave. Not with the kids, not with the house, not with the history.

She’d raise hell, throw a fit, and then go home to play with Manny again—just like always.

The realization hit me like a ton of bricks.

Would I, Linda Evans, end up like this too?

I’d always been carefree and bold, never in a rush to have kids. But now, it seemed that without the anchor of children, my marriage with Jim was already falling apart.

Was it really going to end like this? So easy?

I was someone who couldn’t tolerate even a grain of sand in my eye, let alone betrayal. My feelings had always been black and white—no grey areas. The more I thought about it, the more I felt that Mary’s wild revenge wasn’t enough. Not even close. I wanted to repay the pain I felt tenfold.

Why should I be the only one suffering from the wreckage of our so-called perfect marriage?

Why did Jim Jackson get to walk away unscathed after shattering my trust?

I’m not the Virgin Mary. I’m not a saint. If you have the audacity to cheat, then you better be smart enough not to get caught. But now that the truth was out?

Don’t blame me for showing no mercy.

They say the deeper the love, the fiercer the hate. Right now, I wanted to chop Jim into pieces, boil him in a pot, and feed him to the damn dogs.

I took a long breath and turned to leave, ignoring Mary’s drama entirely.

The sunlight outside was blinding, burning my skin with cruel clarity.

Across the street stood the NYU Langone Hospital.

I let a slow, bitter smile stretch across my lips, then took out my phone and dialed Claire’s number.

“Linda? You get up so early today,” she said, her voice sounding as calm and innocent as ever—without a hint of guilt.

Early?

If I hadn’t gotten up early, would I have seen the disgusting scene between you and Jim?

The fire inside me flared again, but I forced myself to sound casual. “Claire, I have something to talk to you about. Come meet me. I’ll be waiting at the café across from your hospital.”

I didn’t give her a chance to refuse. I hung up and walked into the coffee shop.

Just as I sat down, my phone rang again.

Jim’s name flashed on the screen.

I stared at it and let out a bitter, ironic smile.

Feeling guilty now, Jim?

All I did was ask Claire out for a chat—why so nervous?

If I still believed there was nothing between them, I might as well call myself the village idiot.