[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":10},["ShallowReactive",2],{"viewer-data-2603226F4B86-342":3},{"id":4,"number":5,"name":6,"content":7,"isLocked":8,"price":9,"hasRead":8},342,3,"Chapter 3: The Watch With the Invisible Scar","\u003Cp class=\"chapter-paragraph\">A cold shiver raced through me.\u003C/p>\u003Cp class=\"chapter-paragraph\">Bradley Lawrence had a photographic memory, yet he couldn't even remember my phone number.\u003C/p>\u003Cp class=\"chapter-paragraph\">\"It’s me,\" I said, pausing for a beat. \"I’m looking for Lacey Rose.\"\u003C/p>\u003Cp class=\"chapter-paragraph\">\"She’s in the shower.\"\u003C/p>\u003Cp class=\"chapter-paragraph\">He didn't even recognize my voice. His tone was as flat and indifferent as if he were shooing away a telemarketer. From the other end of the line, I heard the rush of water, followed by Lacey’s voice drifting over:\u003C/p>\u003Cp class=\"chapter-paragraph\">\"Honey, could you grab me a towel?\"\u003C/p>\u003Cp class=\"chapter-paragraph\">The phone was set down carelessly. I heard his footsteps fade away, then return.\u003C/p>\u003Cp class=\"chapter-paragraph\">\"Here.\"\u003C/p>\u003Cp class=\"chapter-paragraph\">\"Help me dry off, will you?\" she purred.\u003C/p>\u003Cp class=\"chapter-paragraph\">\"I need to get home early tonight.\"\u003C/p>\u003Cp class=\"chapter-paragraph\">\"What’s the matter? Can’t keep it up?\"\u003C/p>\u003Cp class=\"chapter-paragraph\">He let out a low, gravelly laugh. \"You really don't know what I'm capable of?\"\u003C/p>\u003Cp class=\"chapter-paragraph\">Lacey giggled, followed by a sudden gasp, as if she’d been pulled onto the bed. I wanted to hang up. But my fingers were shaking so violently that I couldn't hit the button.\u003C/p>\u003Cp class=\"chapter-paragraph\">Thirty minutes later, she updated her feed.\u003C/p>\u003Cp class=\"chapter-paragraph\">The video showed a pair of large, familiar hands kneading her calves, thumbs tracing circles, working their way up from her ankles. A Patek Philippe watch caught the light, gleaming on his wrist.\u003C/p>\u003Cp class=\"chapter-paragraph\">The comment section exploded. *Teach us, girl! How did you get such a high-quality man to wait on you hand and foot?*\u003C/p>\u003Cp class=\"chapter-paragraph\">She replied: *True love just happens naturally. When a man really loves you, he’ll give you everything.*\u003C/p>\u003Cp class=\"chapter-paragraph\">I tightened my grip on my phone. That Patek Philippe stared back at me from the screen. In the early days of his practice, when money was tight, he had stared at that watch for three years, unable to bring himself to buy it. I had secretly sold the house my mother had gifted me to fly abroad and surprise him with it.\u003C/p>\u003Cp class=\"chapter-paragraph\">The day I found out about the affair, I had smashed it against the floor.\u003C/p>\u003Cp class=\"chapter-paragraph\">Bradley had flown to Switzerland himself to find a specialist to restore it. He’d knelt at my feet, holding it out to me like a peace offering, swearing that a broken mirror could still be made whole.\u003C/p>\u003Cp class=\"chapter-paragraph\">But no matter how perfectly they polished it, that tiny, jagged crack on the watch face never really disappeared.\u003C/p>\u003Cp class=\"chapter-paragraph\">The comments continued to flood in, a sea of envy. Some praised them, while a few skeptical voices chirped up: *She won’t show her face. Isn't she just a mistress?*\u003C/p>\u003Cp class=\"chapter-paragraph\">Moments later, Lacey posted an audio clip.\u003C/p>\u003Cp class=\"chapter-paragraph\">I tapped it.\u003C/p>\u003Cp class=\"chapter-paragraph\">Bradley’s voice played clearly through the speaker, low and steady, enunciating every word:\u003C/p>\u003Cp class=\"chapter-paragraph\">\"She isn't a mistress. She is the woman I love most in this world.\"\u003C/p>\u003Cp class=\"chapter-paragraph\">I bit my lip until it bled, then closed the video.\u003C/p>\u003Cp class=\"chapter-paragraph\">I dialed his number.\u003C/p>\u003Cp class=\"chapter-paragraph\">\"Let’s get a divorce.\"\u003C/p>\u003Cp class=\"chapter-paragraph\">Bradley went silent for two seconds. \"What’s wrong? I’m coming home now.\"\u003C/p>\u003Cp class=\"chapter-paragraph\">\"Don’t bother. Just use the same template we talked about last time.\"\u003C/p>\u003Cp class=\"chapter-paragraph\">His voice dropped, cold and edged with irritation. In the background, I heard the distinct creak of a mattress spring under weight.\u003C/p>\u003Cp class=\"chapter-paragraph\">\"I really am busy with something important, Madeline. I’ll be back soon.\"\u003C/p>\u003Cp class=\"chapter-paragraph\">A woman’s honeyed, sticky voice murmured in the background.\u003C/p>\u003Cp class=\"chapter-paragraph\">I laughed until the tears spilled over. \"Go ahead and finish your business.\"\u003C/p>\u003Cp class=\"chapter-paragraph\">He seemed to be restraining something, his voice dropping into a warning growl: \"No matter how angry you are, you don't get to bring up divorce again. That was our pact.\"\u003C/p>\u003Cp class=\"chapter-paragraph\">On the other end, something must have happened, because Lacey let out a soft, stifled hum and then fell silent.\u003C/p>\u003Cp class=\"chapter-paragraph\">I hung up, my hands trembling as I dug out that old promise letter. The edges were frayed and curled. It was a document where he’d pledged a lifetime of devotion, promised we would grow old together, and swore he would never betray me. He said a signature wasn't sincere enough, so he’d bitten his own finger until it bled and pressed a crimson thumbprint onto the page.\u003C/p>\u003Cp class=\"chapter-paragraph\">I remembered how hard he’d bitten down that year. The blood had welled up, and just looking at it had made my own skin ache. He had smiled at me then, saying that only pain could make a memory last forever.\u003C/p>\u003Cp class=\"chapter-paragraph\">I opened my laptop, attached the divorce papers, and hit send.\u003C/p>\u003Cp class=\"chapter-paragraph\">The phone rang instantly. Bradley’s voice was laced with genuine fury.\u003C/p>\u003Cp class=\"chapter-paragraph\">\"Madeline Pierce! I’m giving you half the assets. Can you just stop acting out?\"\u003C/p>\u003Cp class=\"chapter-paragraph\">The tears hit the screen as I bit down on my lip to keep from sobbing.\u003C/p>\u003Cp class=\"chapter-paragraph\">\"I want the money,\" I whispered. \"And I want the divorce papers signed.\"\u003C/p>",false,0,1774272924512]