Chapter 3

That night, Damien was incredibly tender. He was so tentative that Tamara was a little dazed, wondering if they had returned to the days when they were deeply in love. Despite that, she knew they had passed the point of returning to how things had been. The next day, Damien prepared Tamara's favorite breakfast before going to work. "Honey, wait for me. I'll be coming home right after work, and I'll buy you a cake from your favorite cake store. Okay?" When Tamara didn't answer, Damien took it as an agreement. Judging from his inner voice, Tamara reckoned he was in pretty good spirits today. At noon, Tamara saw that Carol had updated her social media account. Carol had posted a picture of a delicate hairpin—the exact one Damien had custom-made for Tamara years ago—with the caption, "An apology gift from someone. I love it." As Tamara stared at the picture, her fingers tightened around her phone unwittingly. The light from the screen bounced off her pale face, adding an extra touch of melancholy. Damien had specially searched for a traditional craftsman to make that hairpin just to put a smile on her face. Now, another woman was using it to show off. Tamara closed her eyes and took a deep breath, trying to calm herself. When she opened them again, her eyes were filled with determination. Rising to her feet, she paced to the study. From the desk drawer, she found a divorce agreement that had been prepared a long time ago. Damien's signature from the past was even on it. In the early days of their marriage, he had jokingly said, "If I make a mistake one day, this will be my punishment, Tammy." At that time, both of them had thought it was a joke. Alas, the prophecy had come true. Just as she was about to sign the agreement, her phone started ringing. She checked it and saw a text from an unknown number. "Next to the lake on the west side of the city. The truth behind your mother's car accident." Tamara read the words and felt her chest tighten. "Wasn't that car crash an accident?" she muttered. Setting everything else aside, she shoved the signed divorce agreement into the drawer, randomly grabbed a coat, and hurried to the location mentioned in the text. When she arrived at the lake, there were only passersby, and she didn't notice anyone suspicious. Just as she was about to send a text to question the situation, someone suddenly shoved her hard. Stumbling, she fell into the water, and the piercing cold water of the lake soaked her clothes. She struggled for help but heard Damien's inner voice instead. "Why are Tammy and Carol in the water? What should I do?" What was Damien doing here? Why had Carol fallen into the water as well? While Tamara was confused, she heard a loud splash as someone jumped into the water. She realized it was Damien and wanted to call for help. However, as she opened her mouth, the murky lake water gushed in. She didn't want her life to end now. Would Damien save her? Maybe he would. After all, he loved her so much. There was anticipation in her heart, but Damien's inner voice wiped out the last of her hopes. "Carol can't swim, and her foot is injured. I'll save her first. Tammy is a swimmer, so it won't be a problem for her to remain in the water a little longer." Damien swam decisively to the other side of the lake toward Carol, and Tamara gave up all hope. She stopped struggling, sinking under the water. At the critical moment, a fit and strong man jumped in and swam toward her, pulling her out from the depths. She was saved. At the same time, Damien was ashore with Carol in his arms. In his embrace, Carol was pale, and her lips were blue. She kept muttering about how scared she was, her body trembling uncontrollably. Damien glanced at Tamara. Once he was sure she was fine, he carried Carol away. "Damien Rayleigh, is this the love you claim to have for me?" Tamara chuckled self-deprecatingly. Then, her vision blacked out, and a man's voice echoed in her ears. "Miss, hold on! Don't give up!" When Tamara opened her eyes again, she was already hospitalized. The person seated at her bedside wasn't Damien but Carol, who had fallen into the water with her. "Oh, you're finally awake, Ms. Schmidt," Carol said, sniggering. "Your body is unexpectedly weak. Only so little time has passed, yet you've already reached your limit." Tamara sensed something amiss. "What do you mean?" "You should already know about your illness. But you probably don't know that you contracted it because your beloved Damien has been poisoning you. That's how you got this chronic illness," Carol explained breezily. Tamara was so shocked that she remained speechless for several moments before speaking again. "I don't believe Damien would want me dead. What exactly did you tell him?" She couldn't believe it. Damien loved her deeply. How could he kill her with his own hands? "That's the truth. It doesn't matter if you don't believe it, Ms. Schmidt. Don't you have any idea about today's incident? Men are fickle, and your husband doesn't love you anymore," Carol stated and left her ward, leaving Tamara to stare at the ceiling blankly. That wasn't true. Damien's inner voice had said otherwise. Tamara couldn't believe it, but she had to admit that his actions suggested a change of heart despite his inner voice claiming that he loved her. After resting in bed for a while, Tamara got up to use the bathroom and unintentionally saw Damien passing by outside the door. In a daze, she followed him and saw him entering the ward next door, where she overheard his conversation with Carol. "Mr. Rayleigh, the doctor said earlier that Ms. Schmidt is doing well. In another four months, you can have the blood exchange transfusion." "That's great! Then my blood will flow in Tammy's body, and we'll be one from then on." Tamara froze. It turned out Carol wasn't lying—her illness was the result of Damien's poisoning. Damien had lost his mind! Tamara stumbled, fleeing back to her own ward. Soon, Damien appeared beside her bed, wearing a solemn expression as though he was here to question her. "Tamara, you've gone completely lawless. Out of jealousy, you purposely pushed Carol into the lake. Why didn't I realize you were such a vicious woman?" As expected, he was there to accuse her. Tamara said nothing, waiting to hear his inner voice. Sure enough, even though Damien looked mad, his inner voice said, "Tammy, tell me you're jealous. Hurry, say it, and I'll apologize to you immediately. Be good, Tammy. Don't look at me so indifferently, okay?" Tamara's disappointment in this two-faced man grew. What gave him the right to build his love on her misery? Why did he test her love for him repeatedly? She was truly exhausted. "I'm not jealous of her. What's between you two has nothing to do with me anymore." Her icy tone stunned Damien. The next second, a frustrated expression crept over his face, and his inner voice screamed hysterically. "That better be true! Don't let me catch you pulling some petty trick!" he hissed through gritted teeth before storming off in a huff.