I was on my way home when I was dragged to the top of the building and held hostage by a criminal.

Yet, his only demand was to speak to my husband, a famous negotiator.

But my husband saw my plea for help as a trick to get his attention.

From the other end of the line, I heard his childhood sweetheart speaking.

It turned out he was celebrating her birthday.

But he forgot that today was my birthday too.

When he hung up, my life began its countdown as well.

Tears slid down my cheeks.

I thought to myself, "In our next life, I'll never fall for you again."

The moment I felt my consciousness fade, I was suddenly thrown back to 30 minutes earlier, back when the man abducted me.

This time, I tried using the negotiation skills my husband once taught me, slowly calming him down.

When I saw the murderous edge fade from his eyes, my heart finally eased.

Just as I thought I was getting through to the man, his phone rang.

The next second, his eyes blazed with anger.

I instantly knew that phone call had rendered my efforts useless.

The police didn't dare take any chances and immediately arranged for a negotiator.

That negotiator was none other than my husband, Jaxton Nichols.

I thought he would rush to the site right away, since he was off today.

But as time passed, the police still couldn't reach him.

The criminal grew more and more agitated.

Several times, I was nearly pushed off the ledge.

I could feel my blood go cold the moment one of my feet dangled in the air.

I began sweating profusely.

"P-Please... don't panic. Believe me, the negotiator you want must be on his way."

I tried talking to him again, doing everything I could to calm him down.

But it only agitated him.

"Could you let me try? Maybe I can reach Jaxton."

The man pondered for a moment before he finally handed me the phone.

With trembling fingers, I dialed Jaxton's number.

This time, the call went through.

I exhaled in relief, my voice thrilled. "Jax, I'm being held hostage. Please save me!"

Jaxton let out a cold grunt. "Estrella Schmidt! Stop with your stupid games. It's Kathy's birthday. I'm spending the day with her."

I could feel my heart drop.

I was about to speak when Kathryn Lamar's voice cut in over the line. "Jax, you promised me. Today's supposed to be just for us."

"Alright, Kathy. Today I'm all yours. Go wash up. Dinner's almost ready."

I felt all hope was lost when he hung up.

Kathryn was the princess whom he vowed to protect forever. Of course, he remembered her birthday.

With her around, why would he care about me?

But did Jaxton remember that it was my birthday too?

Tears streamed down my cheeks.

The man had run out of patience.

His cold voice echoed in my ear. "Remember this, you died because of your husband. His indifference killed you."

Then with a twisted grin, he let go, and I plunged downward.

Passing the seventh floor, I saw Jaxton and Kathryn in our dining room. My eyes met theirs.

He actually brought her into our home.

They were drinking from our matching mugs.

As I hit the ground, I recalled something he once said.

"I promised Kathy's parents that I would take care of her until she marries. It's a promise I must absolutely keep."

He said it was a promise he must keep at all costs. I chuckled at the thought of it.

He remembered the promise he made to Kathryn, but forgot our wedding vows.

He'd forgotten that he was a married man.

If he had even a shred of love for me, I wouldn't have suffered such a tragic ending.

Unfortunately, there were no what-ifs in life.

My soul drifted back to the seventh floor, back to the home Jaxton and I once shared.

Jaxton and Kathryn had already left.

A box by the door caught my attention.

I glanced inside to see it was filled with photos from our trips.

Some were torn in half. Someone had even stabbed several holes right through my face.

That was why we fought earlier. It was Kathryn who ripped them apart.

When I confronted Kathryn, Jaxton pulled her into his arms protectively.

"Estrella, must you really argue with a sick person?"

A sick person? I laughed at how absurd it was.

Would a sick person look so smug while we were arguing?

Would a sick person have the strength to tear up hundreds of photos?

Kathryn held up her hand, which was covered in drops of blood.

"Estrella, are you crazy? How dare you hurt Kathy?"

I was about to explain that she did that to herself, but Jaxton shoved me aside before I could speak.

My hand landed on the broken picture frame.

Blood instantly gushed out. I panicked at the sight.

Before I could say a word, he carried Kathryn out the door.

I knew he had forgotten about my bleeding disorder. One small cut could kill me.

Luckily, my best friend, Winona Castro, rushed me to the hospital.

I barely survived.

The whole time, Jaxton never called me.

The next day, I saw a post on Kathryn's Instagram.

She posted a picture with a caption. "Losing my parents was the biggest misfortune of my life. But having you by my side is enough."

The photo showed Jaxton cooking soup in the kitchen.

I casually left a comment. "Wow, a match made in heaven."

Then I turned off my phone.

Not even half an hour later, Jaxton stormed into my hospital room.

I had just fallen asleep when he gripped my wrist.

His grip was so tight that it left a red handprint on my wrist.

"Kathy fainted again because of you!. Are you happy now?"

Kathryn fainted?

Using all my strength, I pulled my wrist free.

"She's your responsibility, not mine. Her fainting has nothing to do with me. And tell her to stop making her posts visible only to me. I don't want to dirty my eyes."

Not once did he ask about my condition.

That was when my heart froze over for good.

After being discharged, I packed my things.

I was ready to leave. I even had the divorce papers written and all, but that was until the abduction happened.

Just thinking about it still made my heart ache.

The sound of the door opening snapped me out of my thoughts.

I turned and saw Jaxton supporting Kathryn into the room.

He carefully helped her into her room.

That was right. He had even given Kathryn a room in our home.

I followed them inside.

She pulled him onto her bed and pointed at the white wall.

"Jax, I've already made an appointment at the studio. Tomorrow, let's take pictures. I want them hung in the best spot in the apartment."

He gently caressed her cheek. "Okay, anything you want. As long as it makes you happy."

It hurt me to watch, like a knife slicing through my heart.

I looked around the room.

It was my home, yet I was never allowed into her room.

It was because Kathryn didn't like having other people in her room.

Even the decoration had been chosen according to her tastes.

Every outfit was the style she liked.

Even the bedsheets and duvet were picked out by the two of them.

And I, the so-called lady of the house, was just a background prop.

"Jax, I want to hang my photos in your room."

Jaxton paused for a moment.

That tiny pause reignited a spark of hope in me.

Surely he wouldn't want another woman's photos hanging in our bedroom.

Kathryn bit her lip pitifully, and tears welled up in her eyes.

Clinging to his arm, she whimpered, "Jax, do you not like me anymore? I know I'm a burden to you. If I really bother you, just send me back to the hospital. I can take care of myself."

Jaxton chuckled and bopped her nose gently. "Of course, Princess, anything you want."

The small flame of hope in me was extinguished instantly.

Kathryn threw herself into his arms, arms hooked around his neck.

"What if Estrella gets upset?"

Disgust flashed in Jaxton's eyes. "Ignore her. I have the final say. What she says doesn't matter."

Kathryn smiled brightly and seductively. "Jax, you're the best!"

After coaxing Kathryn to sleep, he finally left her room.

Maybe my love for him was so deep that my soul unconsciously followed him.

Jaxton returned to our bedroom.

He saw the divorce papers I left on the nightstand and the wedding ring I hadn't taken off all these years.

His expression shifted slightly.

Jaxton unblocked my number and sent a voice message.

"That's enough now. Time to come home. This won't end well for you if you keep this up.

"Just apologize to Kathy, and I'll forget what happened."

I sighed quietly.

Suddenly, my phone fell.

The screen had long since cracked.

To my surprise, Jaxton picked up the ring I left behind.

Maybe because I didn't respond, he called me again. But my phone was off.

He called again, unwilling to believe it. But it didn't change the fact that it was still off.

He furrowed his brows.

He then tried calling Winona. Before he hit the call button, Kathryn walked into the room.

She was dressed in lingerie. She threw herself into his arms.

"Jax, I-I'm scared."

Jaxton quickly put his phone down, grabbed a shirt, and draped it over her.

"Don't worry. I'm here. There's nothing to be scared of."

Watching how naturally he held her, a bitter smile tugged at my lips.

I'd always been terrified of thunder. The recent storms were torture for me.

I called him several times, asking him to come home. But Jaxton refused, saying he had to take care of Kathryn.

He even scolded me for being dramatic.

So I was being dramatic for fearing thunder, but she wasn't being dramatic for fearing the dark?

He was such a hypocrite.

Kathryn looked up at him, gazing up at him shyly.

"Jax, Ella didn't come home yesterday. Maybe she's with someone? I even saw her walking with a handsome man the other day. What if she..." She trailed off. Her words were enough to plant the seed of doubt.

I was furious and wanted to punch her.

Even now, she was dragging my name through the mud.

"She's not like that."

His words surprised me.

Kathryn immediately looked displeased.

"But where else would a married woman be all night? You should be careful. When a wife doesn't care about her husband, something's definitely going on."

His brows knitted tightly.

He gently pushed her aside. He picked up his phone and called Winona.

Winona answered the phone quickly. I could hear the sarcasm dripping from her voice.

"Well, if it isn't the great negotiator himself. Shouldn't you be with your princess? What do you want from me at this hour?"

I nearly burst out laughing. That was my best friend for you.

Jaxton's face twisted with anger.

"Let Estrella take the call."

Winona scoffed, "You don't even know where your wife is. Jaxton, you're a piece of trash."

She hung up before he could respond.

All night, Jaxton kept reaching out to my friends.

But unfortunately, the few friends I had had no idea where I was.

I could only shake my head in disappointment.

If he had even checked our neighborhood group chat, he would have seen everyone talking about me being held hostage and being thrown off the building.

But sadly, there were no what-ifs in life.

He barely slept that night. The next morning, he went to the station after preparing breakfast for Kathryn.

His colleague from previous joint cases, Zachary Ashford, was sorting through the photos of my fall.

Because Jaxton didn't want to upset Kathryn, he never told anyone that I was his wife.

"Something happened at your apartment building yesterday. A woman fell. It was awful," Zachary said.

Jaxton had just texted Kathryn. "Wake up, breakfast's ready."

"What floor did she fall from?" he asked casually.

He didn't look up from his phone, staring at his chat with Kathryn.

"We're not sure what floor she lived on, but she was wearing a silver bracelet that matched her white dress. We identified her as Estrel—"