Three Years In Chains, A Lifetime Of Vengeance

Michael stood there with his shirt half fastened, the buttons uneven. His hand had been resting around Sofia's waist, but the moment he noticed me, he pulled it away.

Right beside him was Sofia. She had wrapped herself in my silk robe.

That cream-colored robe had always been my favorite. Now it clung to her body. Red marks showed faintly along the collar. Her damp hair fell over her shoulders, and the same heavy perfume from the entryway followed her.

Watching the way they stood close together twisted something sharp inside me.

The air seemed to freeze. Silence stretched tight between us.

My eyes stayed fixed on them.

Michael took a step forward. "Anna?" he said, but there was no happiness in his voice. His eyes studied me carefully. "How did you end up getting out early?"

I said nothing. Instead, my eyes shifted past him and landed on Sofia.

She laughed softly, and the mockery in her tone wasn't even hidden. "Well, look at you. Prison life must've agreed with you, Anna. You actually look better than I thought you would."

I pulled in a slow breath and swallowed the tightness in my throat. Then I stepped inside the house. Each step felt heavier than the last.

My voice came out rough when I finally spoke. "Where's Lily?"

For a brief moment, Michael and Sofia looked at each other. The understanding that passed between them hurt more than anything else.

Their eyes held the same cold malice.

Michael lowered his gaze and sighed, though the sadness looked forced. "Lily..." he said slowly. "Something happened. About two months ago she caught a cold, and it turned into acute pneumonia. We couldn't save her. We planned to tell you the next time we visited you in prison."

Lies.

Every word he spoke was part of a lie he had prepared.

Since the day I was sent to prison, Michael had never visited me once.

Before prison took me away, I brought Lily to the hospital for a complete checkup. The doctor told me she was healthy and rarely even caught a cold. Because she was allergic to penicillin, I kept the right medicine at home and reminded Michael again and again to store it carefully. If Lily ever became sick, he had to be careful and never give her the wrong medication.

Something else didn't make sense. If Lily had really died, why was I never informed? Even if I was still in prison, why didn't anyone allow me to see her one last time?

A quiet laugh slipped from my mouth. "Is that how it happened?" While speaking, I bent down beside the sofa and pretended I had just discovered something underneath.

Then I lifted my hand. The puzzle box rested in my palm. Its broken corner faced them clearly. "Why did Lily's puzzle box end up under the sofa?"

The color drained from both of their faces.

My eyes stayed locked on Michael while I spoke slowly. "She never brought this into the living room. Lily only used it in the bedroom when we worked on word puzzles together. Michael, tell me what really happened. Did you pull her out of the bedroom and hit her in the living room?"

Michael froze. He swallowed and turned his eyes away from mine.

Sofia reacted first. She stepped forward quickly and reached toward the box in my hand. Concern appeared on her face, but the expression felt forced. "Anna, you just came out of prison. Your emotions are all over the place right now. Please don't imagine things like this. Lily's death hurt us too. Let's slow down and talk calmly."

Before her fingers could reach me, I stepped back.

Just the thought of her touching me made my stomach turn. Her hand carried a cold feeling that made me feel sick.

Without warning, memories flooded my mind. That rainy night from three years ago appeared clearly again.

Michael had stumbled through the door that evening. The smell of alcohol surrounded him. His face looked pale and his whole body trembled. "Anna, I drove while drunk and hit someone. They're dead. If this goes to court, I'll be convicted of murder. I'll spend the rest of my life in prison."

At that moment he looked completely helpless. Seeing him like that made my chest ache. I even wished the mistake had been mine instead of his.

I told him to go turn himself in. Instead, he collapsed and grabbed my arm.

"You're the only one who can help me," he begged. "You're a nurse. You can say you were the one driving and that you failed to save the injured person. That would only count as negligence, and the sentence would be much shorter. I'll take care of Lily while you're gone. I'll wait for you to come back home."

I trusted him.

Ten years of love stood behind that trust. For his sake, I had even gone against my parents and followed him overseas so we could marry.

Back then I believed what we had built together could survive anything. I also believed he would keep the promise he made to raise Lily while I served my sentence.

When the trial began, my lawyer tried to stop me. His advice meant nothing to me. Inside that courtroom, I accepted the entire blame.

The judge questioned me during the hearing. "Why didn't you stop and report the accident to the police?" I answered that I panicked.

When the final decision came down, my eyes found Michael in the gallery. His eyes were swollen and red from crying. Through trembling lips, he silently murmured, "I'll wait for you."

In his arms, Lily reached toward me. "Mom!" she cried. That voice stayed with me through three years behind bars, and that moment remained the clearest memory.

Then there was the insurance.

Only a few days before the accident, Michael returned home carrying an insurance policy. He placed the document in front of me and urged me to sign it.

"If anything ever happens to you," he told me, "this will protect you financially."

At first I refused. Money was already tight, and I didn't want to add another payment to our lives. He reached out, held my face gently, and kissed me. "This is just a safety measure, baby," he said softly. "The premiums are nothing for me. Just sign it so I can stop worrying."

So once again, I trusted him.

Now that I think back on it, that document was never meant to protect me. It was a trap.

The beneficiaries listed on the policy were Michael and Lily. Now Lily was gone. That left only one person to receive the money.

The reason he wanted me dead was pretty obvious. It was the insurance payout waiting for him.