Chapter 283
“You cheated during your marriage! And in all those years, there wasn’t a minute when she wasn’t hurt by you. Even after divorcing, you made her design your engagement rings. You kept finding ways to hurt her.”
I closed my eyes.
“You drained everything from her, took her life, and now you’re here crying – what good does that do?”
Astrid stood, delivering her final blow. “Blake Parker, if you really regret it, just die and join her!”
She left me alone with the weight of everything I’d destroyed.
That night, I finally left the cemetery.
Audrey’s POV
Morning sunlight filtered through my eyelids and made me squint. I instinctively moved my finger.
Why am I still conscious?
The last thing I remembered was holding my jewelry design and Snow, smiling as everything faded away.
“Look! Look!” A child’s voice cut through my confusion. “She moved!”
I tried opening my eyes, but couldn’t.
Tiny footsteps pattered across the floor. “Come quickly! She is waking up!”
Several sets of footsteps hurried into the room. Someone checked the machines connected to my body.
“Doctor, how is she?” a woman asked.
“Very good,” a man replied. “Her body has finally stopped rejecting the treatment. She should wake up today.”
“That’s wonderful!” the woman exclaimed.
“Emma, she is about to wake up. Are you happy?”
“Happy!”
I searched my memory but couldn’t place these voices. They weren’t Astrid, James, or anyone I knew.
“Adrian, I’ll take Emma to préschool. I’m counting on you here,” the woman said.
“Alright,” a man replied.
The door closed, leaving silence.
“Don’t overthink it,” the man – Adrian – finally said. “You didn’t die. We brought you to Australia.”
–
Australia? How?
“Now try to open your eyes,” he instructed. “You should be able to now.”
1/2
I forced my eyes open. The brightness stung at first, then shapes started coming into focus.
White walls. Beeping machines. Sunlight through half-drawn blinds.
The man was sprawled in a recliner next to my bed. Blue eyes, expensive clothes, bored expression. Handsome in that rich-guy way, but with something cold in his stare that made me want to look away.
He straightened when he saw me watching him. “Finally awake, huh?”
My throat felt like sandpaper. I tried to speak but only managed a croak.
“Water?” He didn’t wait for an answer, just poured from a pitcher and held it to my lips. “Drink.”
I took a few sips, wincing at the effort. “Who are you?”
“Adrian Knox.” He set the glass down with a clink. “My team brought you here from New York seven months ago.”
“Seven months? The words didn’t make sense at first.
“Yeah. You’ve been out this whole time.” His tone was matter-of-fact, like we were discussing the weather. “Dr. Clarke wasn’t sure you’d wake up. Said if you stayed under for a year, you were probably gone for good.”
I latched onto the familiar name. “Dr. Clarke?”
Adrian nodded once. “He did the medical part. I handled everything else.”
My head was spinning. I tried to sit up but couldn’t. “Why would you do that? I don’t even know you.”
Something shifted in his expression. He leaned forward, elbows on his knees.
“Because you have a twin sister. Identical. Same face, same DNA.”
I stared at him, trying to process what he was saying.
“Your parents dumped her at the hospital when they found out she had a heart defect. An Australian couple adopted her.”
He spoke flatly, like reading a file. “Four years ago, her heart gave out. They couldn’t revive her fast enough. Brain death.”
“Her parents and husband – that would be me Clarke.”
couldn’t accept it. We looked everywhere for help. Seven months ago, we found Dr.
He paused. “And then we found you.”
