33. Ethan

thirty-three

One And A Half Years Ago

Tuesday, July 27, 2022: The Night Of The Incident

It was the night of the playdate with Sophie. We had arrived from the date in matching Superman T-shirts.

After settling her in her playroom, all I wanted to do was rest for a while. But as I walked to my room, I saw her.

She looked different. I instantly knew something was unusually off.

Her steps wavered slightly, and her eyes were bloodshot. I slowed down my steps, eyeing her carefully.

“Are you ok—”

“Don’t ask me that,” she interrupted, stopping just on the landing.

Fuck. Not this again. Not now.

I breathed calmly. “Olivia, please, not tonight.”

“You say that every time, like I’m the problem,” she let out a dry laugh.

“It’s Olivia this, Olivia that. Not baby or honey.”

More like bitterness. It was beyond me how she wanted pet names yet acted the stark opposite of the names.

“I’ll work on calling you those.” I forced a smile.

She took a faltering step forward, narrowing her eyes into slits.

“Again,” she hiccupped. “This is you acting like you’re doing me a favor. Acting like I’m forcing you to do shit.”

“Did you drink?” She didn”t have a habit of drinking, but when she did, she overdid it.

“Does that change anything?” She scoffed.

“Actually, I—I did drink because I couldn’t stop thinking.”

I watched her carefully, dreading where this conversation was heading.

She’d recently requested a Porsche, which I got for her.

She’d been talking about getting a new, bigger store. I already reimbursed her account.

I did everything I should.

“I’ve done everything you asked of me, Olivia. Please head to bed.”

She snarled. “Why? You have another important meeting tomorrow?”

I clenched my fist, and the anger threatened to overwhelm me. Maybe any other night, I’d have been able to hold myself, but I was tired that night.

“Olivia, go to bed,” I enunciated.

She scoffed. “You think you do shit. But you’re nothing but a ghost haunting this mansion, obsessed with figures and the vain idea of success.”

“Yes! Yes, I think I do shit, and it’s valid. Everything Olivia, every fucking thing I do is to give us a good life… to maintain this life that we— me, you and our daughter have.”

She brought her hand to her hair to yank it.

“I hate it when you say that. Everything you do is for yourself. For your stupid ego, success, and reputation. Don’t you dare pin this on us, you selfish bastard.”

My nostrils flared. “Don’t you dare call me selfish. I work fucking hard for us.. us, Olivia!”

She fisted the railings. “And where has that brought us? For once, Ethan! Open your eyes to see that what you call success is damaging our union.”

No. The only person doing damage was her.

“If you stopped comparing and undermining my efforts, you’ll see that I’m doing incredibly well in juggling my work and personal life. You’ll see that I actually care about this union and, most importantly, how it affects Sophie!”

“I should have fucking ended this a long time ago. For over a year now, my mental health has been nothing but depreciating. Yet I endured to give you this life. You should be grateful!” I sneered.

I was losing it and didn’t bother restraining myself.

“This life?” She laughed. ”This gilded cage? Is this what you think makes me happy? This cold, empty football field and more cars than family photos?”

My brows furrowed in anger. “Don’t.”

“You still don’t get it. You never do,” she shook her head. “I feel lonely in this house. The man I married, the one who used to steal random kisses and cuddle me till dawn, is gone. Now all I get are brushed-off dinners and a cold side of the bed every fucking night.”

“You chose to move from our bedroom, and that’s on you!” I growled, moving an inch closer to her.

“Of course I did. I fucking did because it was hard staying where it felt like I wasn’t wanted!” She continued with renewed anger.

“...We haven”t had a real vacation in years,” she took a step backward, swaying lightly as she fisted the railing.

“Remember that little Italian vineyard we talked about buying?” She glared at me. “Of course you don’t. Our thing has once again vanished under the weight of another billion-dollar deal.”

The spite in her voice angered me. All I could see was red and a fucking ingrate.

“You cannot keep setting me up intentionally and blaming me. I gave you everything you’ve requested. What stops you from reminding me when you see I’ve forgotten? Be fucking reasonable, Olivia! I’m a busy man, and there’s only so much I can remember. There will be time for vacations and leisure, but later.”

“Later.” She repeated the words with a bitter echo. “How many fucking ‘laters’ do we get, Ethan? Our— my youth isn”t an infinite resource you can just keep putting on hold!”

“This is nothing about age, Olivia,” I warned, moving until we were barely a few inches apart. She fucking had a way of twisting everything.

“Then tell me what the fuc—”

My heart stopped, and I quickly lunged to grab her hands, but just as my fingertip brushed her chest, she fell.

I watched with striking fear as she fell freely down the stairs.

Fuck.

Her body rolled dangerously down the stairs, twisting until it came to a stop.

No. No.

I dashed to the end of the stairs, bile rising in my throat at what I saw.

Her neck twisted at an odd angle, her eyes lifeless and blood flowing from her head.

She was gone.

Horror filled my bones as I knelt to bring her body to my chest.

No. No. No.

“Olivia, wake up. Olivia, you can’t—”

A small, sharp gasp interrupted me. I turned to see Sophie with wide eyes and tears streaming down her face.

Fuck.

***

Present Moment

Every day after that, I regretted indulging in the argument.

As Sophie’s condition continued to seem permanent, I blamed myself for not avoiding it like most nights.

Above all, I blamed myself for how I handled the aftermath of her death. The things I did… but it was all for Sophie…. and my reputation.

Maybe Olivia was right. I was a selfish bastard.

Philip was still working on finding Judy.

All attempts at tracing her were futile. It was like something wasn’t right.

She absconded from work, her number didn”t go through, she wasn”t at her house, and she didn”t have any relatives.

It made me wonder if it was indeed a coincidence or a much-awaited opportunity for Judy.

Did she have this in mind before now? Who the fuck was she? And what the hell did she want?

Philip was skilled— but Judy Hayes was calculative. Proactive.

It was like a dead end, for now.

I hated being trapped, and it angered me even more that Evie had to be involved in this.

It was Evie’s day off. It meant I could get some time to think straight. To think about my status with James without including her.

It had been several days without James. This was indeed starting to look like a reality. A reality I didn’t like.

I still tried to contact him, but it all went to voicemail. It was draining, hoping, only to have your hopes shattered the very next minute.

I wished he’d pick up and at least give me an update on his new contract.

Grabbing my phone, I dialed his number again. Like always, it went to voicemail. When it ended, I tried it again.

I wish I’d be lucky…just this once.

It rang for a while, and to my greatest surprise, he picked up.

“James,” I breathed.

“What do you want?” He bit harshly.

What did I want? For us to be friends again.

“I just… want to iron things out with you.”

“Listen to yourself, Ethan. What’s there to iron after you go behind my back to mess around with my daughter?”

I winced. His anger hasn”t subsided. I didn”t expect it to.

“James, look, I made a grave mistake, and I deeply regret it, but… I can’t lose you as a friend.”

“I thought of you as a brother,” he scoffed. I winced at the title.

He continued. “What type of brother would play his own like that?”

I fisted my palm, allowing the silence to stretch.

“Right. None. Any brother that does that doesn”t deserve to be called one. You don”t deserve to be called a brother, friend, or anything remotely close.”

It was hard to swallow his words. Releasing a deep breath, I asked.

“Is there… any chance that things will return to normal between us?”

“I believe you know the answer to that already, Ethan. Good night.”

The call ended. My hands fisted my hair as I restrained myself from sweeping the contents of this fucking table to the wall.

I stared at the phone with contempt as if it was the cause of my troubles. Maybe it was.

As I stared at the phone, the blank screen turned bright, and a notification popped up.

My heart halved in my chest when I read the content of the message.

I know what you did with the CCTV footage on the night of Tuesday, July 27, 2022. You have five days to confess to the world. You have five days to deliver to me a recorded video of yourself confessing the truth.

My head spun as the world shook. Fear tightened my chest as I read the message over again.

The night of Tuesday, July 27, 2022. What happened… She knew… Who the fuck was this, Judy?

That was enough for me to stop work, and close for the day.

I clenched my fist as everything rushed through me at once. Anger followed by sadness were the two emotions I felt strongly.

The walk to my car was a blur. Fuck, the drive to the mansion was a blur.

There was someone beside me that knew the aftermath of the incident.

This was getting worse, and at this rate, Evie would only be collateral damage.

We had to find her and fast. I pushed past themansion doors, unable to respond to the chef’s greeting.

Fuck. I’d anticipated that karma would strike, but I didn”t expect it to be this.

The ordeal of that night was one to remain unsaid.

I ascended the stairs and almost froze when I saw her.

I’d caused much harm, and there would still be more to be caused if I didn”t act fast.

“Welcome home,” she greeted.

I couldn”t reply. Not with the guilt and sadness sinking my chest.

“You... look exhausted.” Concern was written over her face, but I didn’t deserve it—a selfish bastard like me didn”t deserve it.

“Move aside,” I gritted, shutting my eyes briefly. She was going to be collateral damage… I just couldn”t let that happen.

She looked taken aback.

“Let me remind you, Miss Norman, you”re here for Sophie, not me. So I suggest you focus on your work for the remaining time you”ll be here.”

My voice came out painfully hard as I held her gaze. “Now, move aside.”