Benedict's hands trembled as he untied the pink silk ribbon wrapped around the gift box. A small card slipped out and landed in front of him.

"Benedict, I wish you and Tracy a lifetime of love and happiness."

He froze, unable to believe his eyes. When did Tessa find out about his engagement to Tracy?

His heartbeat quickened as he recalled how strangely Tessa had been acting lately.

That night… the way she walked away without looking back…

He opened the box and found an old, dusty time capsule.

At first, he was confused. But once he opened it, it hit him. This was the time capsule he and Tessa had buried under the old tree years ago. Inside were torn-up pieces of a letter. His breath caught.

He tried to piece the letter back together, again and again, but it was no use. The damage was done.

Then he spotted another letter inside the box.

It was in Tessa's handwriting.

"Benedict, 

Benedict shot to his feet and ran toward the master bedroom. Standing at the door, a wave of panic surged through him.

Tessa's clothes were all gone from the closet. The framed photo on the nightstand had disappeared, too. 

A terrible realization hit him. He rushed to the vanity and yanked open the drawer.

Her passport and ID were gone.

He dropped to his knees in front of the vanity, murmuring to himself, "Tessa, how could you leave me? Where would you even go?"

From the day he met her, he knew Tessa was an orphan, raised by the director of the welfare home. Somewhere deep down, he always believed she wouldn't leave him.

He called her again, over and over.

Each time, the same message rang in his ears, reminding him she had blocked him.

He opened their WhatsApp chat and stared at her familiar profile picture, clinging to a shred of hope.

"Tessa, where did you go?"

A single tick.

Tessa pretended to be calm and said, "It's nothing. Alexis' having a birthday dinner. She invited me over."

Benedict didn't doubt her. "You need to apologize to Tracy about what happened at the party last time."

Sarcasm flashed across Tessa's eyes. She smiled. "You talked about me behind my back, and you're asking me to apologize?"

He grew annoyed. "Don't forget, the Green family is an important partner for our company. Her father asked me to take good care of her."

She retorted, "Who you want to please has nothing to do with me."

His brows furrowed. "Please, Tessa, you're being ridiculous!

"I've got an emergency meeting. I'm going to the office now. You'd better take some time to calm down and apologize to Tracy tonight."

He slammed the door behind him.

A moment later, Tracy walked out of the master bedroom in a revealing slip dress, swaying as she moved. "Tessa, why did you piss Benedict off as soon as you got back?

"I'm exhausted lately. Benedict said you're no fun in bed. By the way, I forgot to tell you—I'm pregnant with his child."

As she said that, she placed a hand on her stomach, pride flashing in her eyes.

A flicker of pain crossed Tessa's face as she thought of the child she lost that snowy night.

Tracy thought she'd hit a nerve and smugly continued, "You dated Benedict for eight years and never got pregnant. Are you infertile? Is that why the Jones family won't let you marry him?"

Tessa thought back to how Benedict began prioritizing work and gradually drifted away after they got married. In the beginning, they had a normal married life. But afterward, he began coming home late and barely touched her.

"Tessa, work's been hectic, but we can have a kid anytime.

"I'm going on a business trip soon. Take good care of yourself."

Three months ago, after a night of drinking, they slept together again.

She thought that meant things were back to normal.

She was wrong. He had been cheating on her all along. All those late nights and business trips were just lies.

She let out a cold laugh, grabbed a glass of water from nearby, and dumped it over Tracy's head. "Does your father know you're someone's side chick? You're not afraid I'll expose everything and disgrace both the Green and Jones families, are you?"

Tracy was drenched and screamed, "Tessa! Did you seriously just splash water on me?

"Let me tell you something. Our engagement party is in a week. You were just dating him, it's not like you were married!

"I'm the one who's meant to be Mrs. Jones!"

With that, Tracy stormed back into the bedroom.

Tessa stood frozen. They weren't even divorced yet, and Benedict was already rushing to get engaged to Tracy.

In one week… she'd be gone anyway.

She went up to the attic and found a box. "Benedict, since you're getting engaged, your ex-wife should at least give you a parting gift."

Half an hour later, she closed the box and even tied a pretty bow on top of it. "Benedict, I wish you and Tracy a lifetime of love and happiness."

...

Three days later, Tracy threw a birthday party at the villa.

Tessa stood off to the side, watching coldly as the crowd surrounded Benedict and Tracy. Just as she was about to slip away, Tracy walked over with a smile.

She leaned in and whispered, "If you and I fell into the water at the same time, who do you think Benedict would save? Today, I'm going to crush you completely."

The next second, she yanked Tessa into the pool with her.

Tessa struggled, unable to break free.

Just as she was about to lose consciousness, she saw Benedict jump into the water and swim straight toward Tracy, wrapping his arms around her.

Soaked and shivering, Tessa crawled out of the pool on her own.

Benedict held Tracy tenderly, worry written all over his face.

Tracy looked pale and weak. "Tessa, I know you don't like me, but you didn't have to do this to me. Did I do something wrong to upset you?"

Benedict's face turned stormy. He stood up and walked toward Tessa.

She flinched. "Tracy, you—"

Before she could finish, a violent shove knocked her to the ground.

Benedict yelled, "Tessa, how can you be so vicious?"

She stared at him in disbelief. "Do you not believe me?"

His voice was cold. "Get out."

This was the man she'd loved for eight years.

This was also the same man who had hit her for Tracy and asked her to get out of their home.

Three years ago, he had blindfolded her and brought her to the front door of the villa. "Tessa, this is my gift to you. This is going to be our home."

Now, it wasn't hers anymore.

She let out a bitter laugh and stood up. "Fine. If that's what you want. Benedict, you'd better not regret this."

As she turned to leave, something in Benedict's heart wavered. Could she be telling the truth?

But when he looked at Tracy's tearful face, the doubt vanished. Tracy was sweet and innocent. She couldn't possibly frame anyone.

And with all the drama Tessa had stirred up lately, she needed to be taught a lesson.

Tessa stopped in her tracks, only to realize she had wandered back to her old campus. She suddenly remembered the time capsule Benedict had buried here after graduation.

Back then, she'd begged to see what was inside, but he'd coaxed her. "Tessa, let's open it when we're 80."

She dug it up and read the note on top.

"Hello, 80-year-old Benedict. I'm your 20-year-old self.

"You're probably reading this with Tessa, maybe surrounded by your children and grandchildren.

"I'm so glad you've loved her all these years. They say love fades fast, but Benedict will always love Tessa."

Tears soaked the letter before she realized she was crying. "Benedict, you've already changed. There's no going back for us."

Her phone rang. She answered.

"Benedict, you love me most, don't you?"

"I do. I love you the most."

"You only love me, right?"

"I only love you. Tessa is nothing but family."

Tessa listened to the voice on the other end and tore the letter into pieces. The dull ache in her chest turned sharp, stabbing at her over and over until she could hardly breathe. "Benedict, I'll never forgive you."

The day Benedict and Tracy got engaged, Tessa got into Edison's car.

He had sharp yet gentle features. He was calm and refined, with an effortless elegance. His shirt and pants were crisp and neat.

"Happy divorce?"

Tessa forced a smile and looked at her phone, where Tracy had just sent a photo of her and Benedict.

"Don't we look perfect together?"

Then came photo after photo.

"Look at this shining ring. Benedict picked it out himself.

"And this wedding dress is custom-made by a famous designer.

"Tessa, I feel so bad for you. You dated him for eight years and still ended up tossed aside like used shoes. Who'd want you now?"

Tessa blocked her and closed her eyes. From now on, none of them mattered anymore.

At the hotel, Benedict suddenly felt a wave of anxiety. Four days had passed since Tessa left, and she hadn't come back once. He finally opened his contacts, ready to give her a way back in.

He called several times but kept getting hung up on. He gritted his teeth and kept trying.

"The number you are trying to reach is currently on another call..."

Then a text from Tessa came in. "There's a gift for you in the attic."

Benedict frowned and replied, "Why aren't you answering? Do you know what you did wrong?"

His eyes widened when he saw that there was only one tick behind the message.

Had Tessa blocked him?

He jumped to his feet and rushed out.

Joanne grabbed his arm. "Benedict, where are you going?"

He answered, "Tessa blocked me. I need to find her."

Joanne's expression turned cold. "Today's your engagement party with Tracy. You're not going anywhere!"

Benedict froze, and then he noticed the giant screen behind them. "Engagement Ceremony of Benedict and Tracy".

"Mom, what are you saying? Isn't this just a normal party? And Tessa and I haven't even divorced yet."

One look at Joanne's face, and panic surged in his chest. His mind blanked. He shook her off and ran out the door.

He burst into the villa with a racing heart.

The attic had been cleared out, and everything was gone. All that remained was a pink satin gift box with a bow on top.

His hands trembled as he reached for it.


Benedict's hands trembled as he untied the pink silk ribbon wrapped around the gift box. A small card slipped out and landed in front of him.

"Benedict, I wish you and Tracy a lifetime of love and happiness."

He froze, unable to believe his eyes. When did Tessa find out about his engagement to Tracy?

His heartbeat quickened as he recalled how strangely Tessa had been acting lately.

That night… the way she walked away without looking back…

He opened the box and found an old, dusty time capsule.

At first, he was confused. But once he opened it, it hit him. This was the time capsule he and Tessa had buried under the old tree years ago. Inside were torn-up pieces of a letter. His breath caught.

He tried to piece the letter back together, again and again, but it was no use. The damage was done.

Then he spotted another letter inside the box.

It was in Tessa's handwriting.

"Benedict, we were in love for eight years. When did you start to rot?

"I remember there was a time when you u

Chapter 6