CHAPTER 7 – The Husband Who Chose Another Family
Margaret couldn't breathe.
The old nurse quietly placed another envelope into her trembling hands.
"I promised Daniel I would only give you this if you ever found the truth."
Inside was a handwritten letter.
Margaret immediately recognized the handwriting.
Daniel's.
"My dearest Margaret,"
"If you're reading this, everything has already fallen apart."
"You deserve to hate me."
"But before you do... you must know I never wanted to disappear."
Tears blurred Margaret's vision.
The letter continued.
"After the boating incident, Richard took me to this facility. I had severe brain injuries and couldn't remember my own name for years."
"When my memories slowly returned... I learned you had already held my funeral."
"Richard told me you had remarried."
"He showed me fake documents proving you had sold our home and moved away."
"I believed him."
Margaret's hands shook violently.
Richard had lied to both of them.
He had stolen twenty-seven years.
The nurse nodded.
"He controlled every visitor, every phone call, every piece of mail. Daniel lived like a prisoner."
"But the woman in the photograph..." Margaret whispered.
The nurse sighed.
"Her name was Emily."
"She was one of our physical therapists."
"She helped Daniel walk again."
"They eventually fell in love... believing you had built a new life."
Margaret closed her eyes.
She wanted to be angry.
She wanted to scream.
Instead...
She only felt empty.
Then the nurse revealed one final secret.
"Daniel never signed the marriage certificate."
Margaret looked up.
"What?"
"He refused."
"He told Emily..."
"As long as Margaret is alive, she's still my wife."
At that exact moment...
A black SUV screeched into the abandoned parking lot.
Four armed men jumped out.
One of them shouted,
May you like
"Find the old woman! She has the evidence!"
Richard had found them.
