BOOK4 Chapter10
Jessica’s Epilogue
When I got the call from the police, I had just finished fixing a leak in the kitchen.
thought it was Ethan coming back, asking me to pick him up, but the officer said
he
was in critical condition.
It was my second time going to Maplewood. Detective Parker picked me up, and
on
the way, he told me that Ethan had regained his memory. He remembered his real
name and his fiancée, but his fiancée had passed away due to illness, and he was
in a
lot of pain.
Tears immediately welled up in my eyes. “So, does he want to join her?”
Detective Parker shook his head. “Sienna wouldn’t have allowed that. He promised.
her he’d live on.”
“This was an accident. He got hit by a car while saving a little girl.”
I wiped my tears, too choked up to speak. How is he?”
Detective Parker looked out the window, silent. It wasn’t until I saw the doctor
that I
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Eight Years Lost: A Love Unclaimed
54.54
BOOK Chapter10
understood why. The doctor said, “The patient has no will to live. His family
should
talk to him as much as possible.”
Seeing Ethan lying there, I was at a loss. All I could do was call his name. “Ethan,
our
restaurant is just starting to take off. We just got married. Please, wake up.”
But there was no response from the man on the bed. He was determined to leave
us,
and there was nothing we could do to stop him.
“Ethan, I’m sorry. I changed your life. I was too selfish. This is all my fault. I’m the
one
who should be gone, not you. Please, please stay.”
No matter what I said, there was no reaction from him.
Seeing him like this, I remembered the first time I met him. My father’s fishing
boat
had found him, barely alive, covered in wounds. My father, a kind man, believed
it
was fate and borrowed a lot of money to pay for Ethan’s treatment. It put our
already debt–ridden family even further in the hole. The debt collectors came
early,
taking everything of value, tearing down our small, shabby restaurant, and breaking
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my father’s legs.
When Ethan recovered, he was overwhelmed with guilt and was determined to
pay
off our debt. Together, we spent two years clearing it. Just as he was about to
leave,
my father fell ill. On his deathbed, he entrusted me and our small restaurant to
Ethan.
Ethan knew my father’s dying wish, so he quietly expanded our small restaurant. I
knew he was always searching for his family, and we even filed a report together.
But
the small town on the island was so underdeveloped that no information about
him
could be found. I also knew he wanted to leave the island to find his family, but he
was tied down by me and the restaurant.
After he agreed to marry me, he stopped searching for his family. He promised to
fulfill my father’s wish and take good care of me. I was relieved, but I was also
terrified of losing him. When Detective Parker and the others showed up, I
became
even more suspicious, especially when Sienna appeared.
It was almost instinctual–when I saw Sienna look at Ethan, I knew they might
have
had a past together..
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But so what?
I was the one standing by Ethan’s side now I was the one who was going to marry
him.
Besides, after five years together, I knew Ethan well enough.
He was the best man I’d ever met, someone who always kept his promises. Since
he
promised to be with me, I knew he wouldn’t back out.
But maybe it was guilt, or maybe I had an inkling that the person Ethan had been
searching for all these years was Sienna. I started deliberately getting close to her,
subtly telling her about my five years with Ethan.
I told her how good Ethan was to me, how much he loved me. I wanted her to
know
that Ethan would be happy with me, that he loved me now. And I believed that no
one in the world loved Ethan Harris more than I did.
Even without the accident, I had already guessed that she was the one Ethan had
been looking for.
But Ethan didn’t recognize her, and she didn’t reveal the truth. I thought she was
stepping aside for me. While I felt guilty, I was also relieved–relieved that I had
secured my happiness. But I never imagined that she was sick
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She wasn’t stepping aside for me; she just didn’t want to make things difficult for
Ethan. Even in death, she was thinking of him.
I looked at the man on the bed and confessed the truth that had been tormenting
me: “You were right to blame me. After we filed the report, there was a lead, but I
kept it from you. I couldn’t bear to lose you. I truly wanted to be with you.”
I wiped away my tears. “Now I know I was wrong. It’s my fault you and Sienna were
separated by death. If it weren’t for me, you two would have been together by
now,
Stop
and Sienna wouldn’t have gotten sick. It’s all my fault. If you want to leave, I won’t
you.”
As soon as I finished speaking, Ethan’s fingers twitched. I thought he was waking
up,
but then the monitors started beeping, and a flat line appeared on the screen…
“Ethan!”
Ethan was gone. I buried him and Sienna together.
They were meant to be together. It was my fault they missed out on five years. It
Was
my fault they didn’t recognize each other.
I am a sinner. The only way I can atone is by reuniting them.
I’ll spend the rest of my days on the island, praying for them day and
As for me, I’ll spend.
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A once–in–a–century thunderstorm paralyzed the entire city’s traffic.
The movie theater closed. I had no umbrella and couldn’t get a cab. I could only limp towards the street in my heels.
My phone rang. It was Leo calling.
He asked me impatiently,
“Where are you? A married woman out this late and not home yet.”
My silence fueled his annoyance.
“Are you mute, Gigi?”
“I’m at the Panaxes Movie Theater.”
Hearing this, Leo finally remembered our date.
After a few seconds of silence, he said coldly,
“Send me your location. I’m coming over now.”
I didn’t plan to let him pick me up, but someone accidentally bumped into me.
I fell into the mud. My left ankle swelled up, and I couldn’t walk far.
One hour and twenty–three minutes after I sent my location.
In the storm, I curled up miserably and checked my messages with him one last time before my phone died.
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Leo didn’t come, and there was no message.
Eventually, a kind driver took me to a nearby hotel.
After checking into the hotel and charging my phone, I habitually opened Olivia’s
Moments.
She had posted a new update half an hour ago.
“Who cares about a power outage? A knight escorted this princess back to her
castle.”
The picture showed her father and Leo enjoying coffee together.
I blocked and deleted Olivia.
After thinking for a moment, I gave Leo the same treatment.
In six years of marriage, no matter how much we argued or gave each other the silent treatment, I never deleted Leo.
But this time, I was really tired.
The next day was Monday. I went to work from the hotel.
As soon as I got to my desk, my boss gave me a strange look.
“James just told me you were taking sick leave today.”
Leo was the VP of the company. He personally ordered my leave, so HR didn’t dare to question it.
I smiled and said I wasn’t sick.
During lunch, when I went to the break room to make coffee, Leo unexpectedly showed up.
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The man usually worked on the top floor. He had never bothered to come down to
see me.
Now, for the first time, he came down, but his expression was cold.
“Do you think staying out all night is fun? Gigi, you know my temper. If this happens again…”
I interrupted him and said dismissively,
“Don’t worry. There won’t be a next time.”
I was about to divorce him.
We would go our separate ways.
There wouldn’t be a next time.
As he looked at my calm profile, he seemed stunned.
He didn’t expect me not to ask where he went last night.
After I made the coffee, Leo took it. He frowned, took a sip, and found it so bad he dumped it all out.
“Meet me in the parking lot after work today. I’ll take you to dinner.”
I knew this was his way of making up for standing me up yesterday.
I also had something to tell him, so I agreed.
When I got back to my desk, I saw the coffee and snacks from my coworkers, with a sticky note saying, “Happy Birthday, Gigi.”
I turned away and secretly wiped my eyes several times.
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After finishing the treats, I worked until the end of the day and then went to the parking lot as Leo instructed.
Just as I saw him, the man started the engine and drove straight past me.
Leo didn’t even look at me as he drove by.
He just called and said he had an emergency meeting and told me to go to the restaurant and wait for him.
At the restaurant, I sat down and uncharacteristically called the waiter to order my favorite red wine steak.
Leo was always busy. After being with him, I unconsciously got used to waiting.
My chronic stomach problems were caused by waiting like this day after day.
