Chapter 9

A nurse immediately picked up the phone. “Hello, is this Mr. Connan Hawksley? This is Municipal Central Hospital, and your wife, Donna Giselle Hawksley, is in critical condition. She needs emergency surgery, so we need you to come here as soon as possible.”

Before the nurse could finish, a soft woman's voice answered.

It was Kathleen.

“Oh... you've got the wrong number, and there's no one here by that name,” she replied flatly before ending the call.

The nurse frowned and looked at the phone.

“He hung up...” she murmured quietly, then sighed as she looked at the doctor. “We couldn't reach her husband, so we'll have to proceed without him.”

...

When I woke again, everything was quiet. The ambulance sirens were gone, but the smell of disinfectant still lingered in the air. I slowly forced my heavy eyes open and saw an IV connected to the back of my hand while a heart monitor beeped softly beside me.

Each beep reminded me...

I was still alive.

“Miss Giselle” a familiar voice called gently. “You finally woke up, and you had us worried for a while.”

I slowly turned my head.

My lawyer was sitting beside the hospital bed. She looked exhausted, but when she saw my eyes open, she let out a relieved breath.

I tried to speak, but nothing came out except a weak cough.

She quickly poured me a little water. “Don't force yourself because your body has been through enough already. Just take your time, and we'll talk when you're feeling a little stronger.”

After a moment, she reached into his briefcase.

“I have something you need to see, and I think it's finally the end of everything you've suffered.”

She handed me a document.

My fingers trembled as I took it.

At the top...

I saw Connan's name.

Death Certificate.

I stared at it without blinking.

“It's done,” my lawyer said quietly. “His legal death certificate is now officially in effect, so as far as the law is concerned, Connan Hawksley is dead. That means you're no longer legally married, you're finally free, and everything registered under his legal identity will begin transferring to you.”

“The company shares, the estates, the bank accounts, the investments... everything will legally belong to you.”

Hot tears rolled down my face.

I slowly shook my head.

“No...” My voice was barely a whisper. “I don't want his money, and I don't want anything that belongs to him. I just want my freedom from both of them, and I never want to see their faces again.”

My lawyer looked at me for a long moment before nodding.

“I understand,” she said softly. “We'll make sure your freedom comes first, and everything else can be handled later if you ever change your mind.”

She leaned forward.

“Giselle, your condition is still critical, and if Connan or Kathleen finds you now, I honestly don't think you'll survive. That's why I have another option, and it may be the only way to truly protect you.”

I looked at him silently.

“We can fake your death,” she continued. “We'll declare that you died during emergency surgery, the hospital records will support it, and by the time Connan hears the news, you'll already be gone.”

My heart pounded.

A new life.

A chance to disappear. A chance to heal.

A chance to come back stronger.

I slowly nodded.

“Do it,” I whispered. “Let Giselle Hawksley die tonight.”

...

Later that night, the ambulance quietly drove through a private entrance before stopping beside a private airport. People carefully transferred my hospital bed onto a waiting jet because everything had already been arranged.

Before the cabin door closed, my lawyer looked up at me from the bottom of the stairs.

“Everything's ready, and no one will know where you've gone,” she said with a reassuring smile. “Take care of yourself, recover well, and when you're finally ready, we'll help you return on your own terms.”

I gave her a small nod.

The cabin door slowly closed, the plane began moving, and a few minutes later it lifted into the sky.

I lay there, staring through the small window as the clouds slowly parted and golden sunlight spilled across my face.

For the first time in a very long time...

It felt warm.

I closed my eyes.

“Connan... Kathleen...” My voice was barely a whisper. “You took everything from me. You stole my family, my future, my heart, and the life I thought we shared, so when I come back, I won't be the woman you destroyed anymore.”

“I'll make both of you pay for every tear, every scar, and every single day you stole from me. I swear it.”