Chapter 10
Emmett sat frozen in the car, his heart feeling as if it had been ripped from his chest. The world outside seemed distant, as though his soul had been drained.
Above, an airplane cut through the sky, leaving long, silvery streaks in its wake. But no matter how he searched the horizon, Athena had left him with nothing, nothing but silence.
Far away, in the town of Brunnstad, Finland, Athena held the tiny hand of two- year–old Eira as they strolled toward the pottery studio. The little girl, now
confident on her feet, joyfully played in a mound of clay, handing Athena a small lump with an innocent smile.
“Mommy… clay…”
Athena smiled softly, kissing Eira’s cheek.
“Eira, I’m not your mommy.”
The little girl furrowed her brows but
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ignored the words, continuing to call her mommy. Athena‘ s heart swelled with a quiet laugh as she gently stroked her head.
Eira had come into Athena‘ s life shortly after her arrival in Finland. The girl‘ s parents had tragically drowned in a lake after a heated argument, leaving her alone. in the world. Athena, moved by the sight of Eira‘ s vulnerability and reminded of her own lost child, had made the decision to adopt her the very next day.
After finishing their pottery, Athena and Eira strolled home, hand in hand.
As they walked, Athena glanced at her phone. A message from a friend in the United States caught her eye.
“Emmett, the eldest son of the Davidson family, once again drunk and passed out on the street! Chairman Davidson scolds his grandson in public!”
Even after six months, seeing Emmett‘ s name still made Athena pause, her heart
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tightening for just a moment.
The message continued with a voice note: “Listen, Emmett was calling your name when he was drunk, wasn‘ t he?”
“No, you misheard,” Athena replied, not even bothering to open the video. Her words were cool, detached.
Sensing Athena‘ s reluctance to revisit the topic, her friend fell silent, sending no more messages.
Athena frowned, her thoughts drifting for a moment before she made a quiet decision. With a swipe, she deleted the contact from her list.
Two months ago, Athena had been forced to reactivate her WhatsApp account to tie up loose ends in the United States. During that time, her friend occasionally sent updates about Emmett, offering Athena a glimpse into his unraveling life, even from thousands of miles away.
Six months prior, when the wedding was
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called off, Emmett had refused to accept defeat. While sending people to search high and low for Athena, he’d also locked hundreds of guests in the venue,
stubbornly declaring that the wedding would go on, come hell or high water.
But despite his frantic efforts, bodyguards scoured every corner of the coastal city, coming up empty–handed.
It was as though Athena had simply evaporated, leaving no trace of herself behind.
Gritting his teeth, Emmett had set out on a personal search.
The villa they had once shared stood in eerie silence, its empty walls whispering of a past now long gone. There was no trace. of Athena, no hint that anyone had ever lived there.
A wave of cold realization gripped Emmett, nearly bringing him to his knees.
Just then, the doorbell rang.
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“Athena, is that you? Have you come back
to me?” Emmett‘ s voice cracked with desperate hope. “I knew you wouldn’t leave me… I knew it.”
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