CHAPTER 2 — THE SECRET BEHIND MARCUS
Three days later, my mother woke up.
The first thing she said was my name.
The second thing she noticed was that I was different.
Not broken.
Different.
“You left him,” she whispered.
I looked away.
“How did you know?”
“Because you’re finally looking at me when you talk.”
My eyes filled with tears.
For three years, Marcus had convinced me I was weak.
That I needed him.
That nobody else would want me.
But my mother saw the truth before I did.
“He cheated,” I admitted.
Her expression changed.
Not anger.
Pain.
Because she knew how much I had sacrificed.
“He never deserved you.”
I sat beside her bed.
“I thought if I tried harder…”
“You could make someone love you?”
I nodded.
My mother reached for my hand.
“Olivia, love should never feel like a job you’re failing.”
Those words stayed with me.
But Marcus wasn’t finished.
A week after I left, he appeared outside my apartment.
“You’re making a mistake.”
I stared at him through the doorway.
“I already made one.”
His face hardened.
“You think Adrian Cross is going to save you?”
My heart stopped.
“How do you know about Adrian?”
A small smile crossed his face.
“There are things you don’t know about him.”
I said nothing.
Marcus stepped closer.
“He doesn’t help people because he’s kind.”
“Why are you warning me?”
“Because he always wants something.”
I almost believed him.
Almost.
Until Marcus added:
“He ruined people who stood in his way.”
The old fear returned.
The fear I had lived with for years.
But this time, I didn’t surrender.
“Interesting.”
Marcus frowned.
“What?”
“I spent three years believing everything you said.”
I opened the door wider.
“And now I finally realize you only tell the truth when it benefits you.”
His expression changed.
For the first time, Marcus looked afraid.
That night, Adrian showed me the truth.
He wasn’t just a successful businessman.
He was the man who had spent years exposing corrupt executives and powerful people who believed money made them untouchable.
Including Marcus.
“He stole from investors,” Adrian explained.
I looked at the documents.
“No…”
“He used your name.”
My hands trembled.
“What?”
“Marcus created shell companies under your identity.”
The room spun.
“He planned to blame everything on you.”
Suddenly, everything made sense.
The controlling behavior.
The isolation.
The constant reminder that I needed him.
Marcus wasn’t just cruel.
May you like
He was preparing an escape route.
And I was supposed to take the fall.
