Chapter 7 - The Wife Before Me
I stood outside the office building for several minutes.
The city continued moving around me.
Cars passed.
People walked by.
Phones rang.
But everything felt distant.
Because my entire reality had shifted.
Julian had a secret.
A secret big enough that someone who barely knew me risked coming forward just to warn me.
I looked down at the photograph in my hand.
The woman beside Julian was smiling.
A beautiful smile.
A trusting smile.
The same kind of smile I had worn on my wedding day.
My fingers tightened around the picture.
“Who was she?”
That question followed me all the way home.
When I arrived, my father immediately noticed something was wrong.
“Elena?”
I didn’t answer.
I placed the photograph on the table.
My parents looked at it.
My mother covered her mouth.
“Is that…”
“Yes.”
“Julian.”
My father picked up the picture.
“When was this taken?”
“I don’t know.”
“But I’m going to find out.”
That night, I couldn’t sleep.
Not because I missed Julian.
Because I was trying to understand how close I came to losing myself.
I opened my laptop.
I searched everything.
Julian Whitmore.
Marriage.
Divorce.
Relationships.
Nothing appeared.
Almost nothing.
And that was the problem.
Someone had erased something.
The next morning, I called my attorney.
“Find everything.”
“Everything about Julian.”
“His past.”
“His relationships.”
“His family.”
My attorney paused.
“Are you sure?”
“Yes.”
“Because once we start digging…”
“I know.”
“There is no going back.”
I looked at the wedding ring sitting inside my drawer.
“No.”
“There isn’t.”
Three days later…
My attorney arrived with a file.
A thick file.
Too thick.
I knew immediately.
Something was wrong.
“Elena.”
His expression was serious.
“You were right.”
I opened the file.
The first page contained information about Julian’s past.
Five years earlier…
Julian had been engaged.
Not married.
Engaged.
To a woman named Claire Morrison.
I turned the page.
The engagement ended suddenly.
No explanation.
No public statement.
No scandal.
Just silence.
“Why did nobody know?”
My attorney looked at me.
“Because the Whitmore family paid to keep it quiet.”
My stomach tightened.
“Paid?”
“Yes.”
“Records disappeared.”
“Articles were removed.”
“People stopped talking.”
I looked at the file.
“Why?”
He hesitated.
“Because Claire accused Julian of something.”
“What?”
He opened another document.
A police report.
My heart started beating faster.
But before I could read it…
My phone rang.
Julian.
I stared at the screen.
Then answered.
“Hello?”
His voice was calm.
Too calm.
“Elena.”
“What do you want?”
“I know you’re investigating me.”
I froze.
“How?”
A pause.
Then he laughed quietly.
“You still don’t understand my family.”
My hand tightened around the phone.
“What are you saying?”
“I’m saying…”
“You should stop digging.”
“Why?”
“Because you might find something you don’t like.”
I looked at the file.
Then smiled.
“Julian.”
“Yes?”
“I already did.”
Silence.
Then his voice changed.
“You have no idea what you’re dealing with.”
I looked out the window.
“No.”
“I finally do.”
And before hanging up…
Julian said something that made my blood run cold.
May you like
“Ask Claire what happened the night she disappeared.”
The call ended.
