Lina sat on the couch, her hands shaking as she held her water glass. The guilt and fear she had been carrying weighed heavily on her chest. Every time she thought about Damian in the hospital, she felt her stomach burn.
Her father, Mr. Davenport, watched her carefully. He could see the fear in her eyes, the way her eyes darted nervously. “Lina,” he said softly, “you need to tell me what’s really going on.”
Lina looked up at him, her lips trembling. “I don’t know how to face him, Father,” she admitted. “He already hates me. Now he knows I tried to harm him. How can I even begin to fix this?”
Mr. Davenport frowned, leaning forward in his chair. “There’s no fixing this, Lina,” he said firmly. “You’ve made a mistake-a big one. But we can’t dwell on that now. We need to think about what to do next.”
Lina nodded slowly, her fingers gripping the glass. “I don’t want to go back to him,” she said, her voice cracking. “I can’t, Father. I just can’t.”
Her father sighed deeply, rubbing his temples. “Damian isn’t the type of man who lets things go easily,” he said. “Leaving him won’t be simple. You’re his wife, Lina, and that means something to his family.”
“I don’t care what it means to his family!” Lina said, her voice rising. Tears welled up in her eyes as she set the glass down on the table. “I can’t stay in that house, Father. Damian will never forgive me. He’ll make my life miserable, more than he already has. I’d rather leave now than suffer any longer.”
Her father studied her for a long moment, his expression unreadable. “You’re serious about this,” he said finally.
Lina nodded, her tears spilling over. “Yes,” she whispered. “I’ve never been more serious about anything in my life. I don’t want this marriage. I never wanted it, Father. You’re the one who pushed me into it.”
Mr. Davenport flinched at her words, guilt flashing in his eyes. “I thought I was doing what was best for you,” he said quietly.
“Best for me?” Lina repeated bitterly. “You forced me to marry a man who doesn’t love me, who doesn’t even respect me. How is that what’s best for me?”
Her father sighed, running a hand through his hair. “I thought Damian would learn to care for you,” he admitted. “I thought, over time, things would get better.”
“Well, they didn’t,” Lina said, her voice firm despite her tears. “And now I’m trapped in a marriage that’s killing me inside. Please, Father, help me end this. I can’t do it alone.”
Mr. Davenport leaned back in his chair, his brow furrowed in thought. “If you want out of this marriage, we’ll need to handle it carefully,” he said. “Damian’s family is powerful, and they won’t take kindly to you leaving.”
“I don’t care what his family thinks,” Lina said fiercely. “I just want my freedom. I want to start over.”
Her father nodded slowly. “Then we need to speak to Mr. Wolfe,” he said. “He’s the only one who can make this happen.”
Lina’s eyes widened, and her stomach twisted with anxiety. “Mr. Wolfe?” she repeated. “You mean Damian’s father?”
“Yes,” Mr. Davenport said. “He’s the one who arranged this marriage in the first place. If we want it to end, we’ll need his approval.”
Lina bit her lip, her hands twisting in her lap. “Do you think he’ll agree?” she asked nervously.
Her father hesitated, his expression thoughtful. “I don’t know,” he admitted. “But we don’t have a choice. If we go behind his back, it’ll only make things worse.”
Lina nodded slowly, her heart racing. “Okay,” she said. “But what do we tell him? How do we explain this?”
“We’ll tell him the truth,” Mr. Davenport said firmly.
Lina’s eyes widened in panic. “The truth?” she repeated. “You mean about the drugs? About what I tried to do to Damian?”
“No,” her father said quickly, shaking his head. “We’ll leave that part out. We’ll tell him the marriage isn’t working. That you and Damian are incompatible. He doesn’t need to know everything.”
Lina let out a shaky breath, her hands trembling. “What if Damian tells him?” she asked quietly.
Her father frowned. “Damian might,” he admitted. “But that’s a risk we’ll have to take. For now, we focus on convincing Mr. Wolfe that ending this marriage is the best option for everyone.”
Lina nodded, though her anxiety didn’t lessen. “When will we talk to him?” she asked.
“I’ll call him tomorrow,” her father said. “We’ll set up a meeting and discuss it in person.”
Lina swallowed hard, her stomach twisting. “Okay,” she said softly.
Her father reached across the table and took her hand, his grip firm and reassuring. “We’ll get through this, Lina,” he said. “I promise.”
Lina nodded again, though doubt still lingered in her mind. She couldn’t help but wonder what Damian would say-or do-when he found out.