The Wife He Lost

PART 2 — THE WOMAN WHO WALKED AWAY

Vincent Moretti had never been a man who chased anyone.

People came to him. They begged for his attention, his forgiveness, and sometimes their lives.

But that morning, he stood in a hospital corridor, watching his wife disappear.

“Vincent, please,” Sophia whispered weakly from the hospital bed. “Don’t leave me.”

He looked at her, then at the door.

“Call my driver.”

Sophia’s expression changed. “Where are you going?”

“To find my wife.”

He walked out before she could answer.

Meanwhile, Madison drove me to her apartment, where I planned to stay until I found somewhere permanent.

“You should block him,” she suggested.

I shook my head. “I don’t want to waste any more energy arguing with him.”

My phone kept vibrating.

Vincent called seventeen times.

Then came a message.

Vincent: Claire, come home. We need to discuss the baby.

I stared at it before replying.

Me: There is nothing to discuss. My lawyer will contact yours.

His response arrived immediately.

Vincent: You’re carrying my child. You cannot make this decision alone.

I felt my fingers tighten around the phone.

For five years, he had treated our marriage as something he could manage whenever convenient. Now he suddenly remembered that he was my husband.

I typed slowly.

Me: You remembered you’re a father only after seeing an ultrasound. I hope you remember how to be one.

Then I turned off my phone.

Two days later, Vincent appeared outside Madison’s apartment.

He looked exhausted. His expensive suit was wrinkled, and dark circles had appeared beneath his eyes.

“Claire.”

I opened the door but didn’t invite him inside.

“Why are you here?”

He looked at my face.

“You haven’t come home.”

“I don’t live there anymore.”

“Stop saying that.”

His voice was low, but I could hear the frustration beneath it.

Then his gaze dropped to my stomach.

“Can I touch the baby?”

I stepped backward.

“Not today.”

His expression tightened.

“I’m your husband.”

“Not for much longer.”

For several seconds, neither of us spoke.

Finally, he took a small velvet box from his pocket.

Inside was a diamond bracelet.

The same bracelet he had given Sophia.

“I bought another one,” he said. “It’s yours.”

I looked at it and almost laughed.

“You really think this is about jewelry?”

“Claire, I made a mistake.”

“No, Vincent. You made a choice.”

His face hardened.

“I never touched Sophia.”

“But you told her she was more important than me. You gave her something I had wanted, and you forgot the one thing that could have killed me.”

He lowered his eyes.

“I didn’t know you were pregnant.”

“You didn’t even know whether I was happy or miserable.”

That sentence seemed to hurt him more than anything else.

He reached for my hand.

“Come home. I’ll fix everything.”

I gently pulled away.

“I’ve already found a lawyer.”

Before he could respond, Madison appeared behind me.

“Mr. Moretti, she needs rest. You should leave.”

Vincent looked at her, then back at me.

“Claire, I’m not giving up on my family.”

I met his eyes.

“You should have thought about your family before you made me feel like I didn’t belong in it.”

I closed the door.

For the first time, Vincent Moretti stood outside a locked door without knowing how to open it.

And for the first time, I didn’t feel guilty.