Chapter 7

Mia's POV 

My heart pounded in my chest as I realized who I had fallen on. Hans. His familiar scent and the warmth of his body made my stomach churn with embarrassment. I felt his steady hands on my shoulders, helping me back to my feet, but the awkwardness of it all was unbearable. I needed to get away, fast.

I scrambled to pick up my papers, my hands trembling as I tried to put some distance between us. "I'm so sorry, Hans," I whispered, my face burning with shame.

Hans, always calm, smiled gently. "It’s alright, Mia. It was an accident."

But before I could say anything else, the air around me turned cold. I felt it before I saw him. Carl. I froze, my heart sinking, knowing that this moment had just taken a terrible turn.

I slowly lifted my gaze and there he was—standing just a few feet away, staring at me and Hans. His face was hard, a mask of fury barely contained. My stomach twisted into tight knots.

“Carl…” I whispered, my voice weak, but it didn’t matter. The tension in the air was thick, and I could feel the weight of his anger crushing me.

Carl’s eyes flicked between me and Hans, his expression unreadable except for the deep rage brewing beneath. I knew that look. I had seen it before, but never like this. This was different—darker.

"What the hell is going on here?" His voice was low, but the venom in it sent chills down my spine.

I opened my mouth, but nothing came out. My mind was blank, panic swelling inside me. No, this isn’t happening. I needed to explain, but I couldn’t form the words. What could I even say?

“Carl, please—” I managed to whisper, my throat tightening, but he didn’t give me a chance to say more. In a split second, he was on Hans, his fist flying before I could react.

I gasped as Carl’s punch landed square on Hans’s jaw, the sound of the impact echoing in the hallway. My body froze, horror coursing through me. Hans staggered, holding his face, his expression stunned and confused.

“Carl! Stop!” I cried out, reaching for him, but he didn’t even look at me. His fury was blinding, and I was invisible to him at that moment.

“You stay away from her!” Carl spat, his voice sharp and filled with jealousy. “You hear me? Stay. Away.”

Hans blinked, still holding his jaw, his confusion evident. “What’s your problem, man? It was an accident!”

I stood there, shaking, feeling as though I was caught in some horrible nightmare. My heart raced, my mind spinning. This can’t be happening. I didn’t know what to do—what to say. I wanted to scream that it was all a misunderstanding, that nothing had happened, but the words wouldn’t come.

Before I could react, Carl’s hand gripped my wrist—hard. Pain shot through me as he dragged me away, out of the office, and toward the exit. My pulse thundered in my ears, and I could feel the stares of the few remaining staff who hadn’t left for the day. Humiliation washed over me, making my cheeks burn.

“Carl, wait—please!” I stumbled after him, trying to keep up, but his grip was unrelenting. He wasn’t listening to me. He was too angry to care.

By the time we reached the car, my breath was ragged, my chest tight with anxiety. Carl shoved me into the passenger seat, slamming the door behind me. The silence in the car was suffocating, thick with tension and unspoken words. I could feel the anger radiating off him, and it terrified me.

“Carl…” I began, my voice trembling, unsure of how to even start. “I swear, it was an accident. I didn’t see him until—”

“You didn’t see him?” His voice was ice-cold, and he refused to look at me, his eyes locked on the road as he sped out of the parking lot. “Is that the best you’ve got?”

“Do you think I’m an idiot, Mia?”

I flinched at the bitterness in his tone. “No, I—”

“You think I can’t see what’s going on? You’re my wife, and you’re all over him in front of everyone!” His voice rose, each word cutting deeper than the last.

Tears stung my eyes, blurring my vision. I shook my head, desperate to make him understand. “Carl, I wasn’t… I didn’t mean for it to happen. I wasn’t flirting—”

“Flirting?” he spat, his knuckles white as he gripped the steering wheel. “Don’t insult me, Mia. You’re mine. I own you, and I won’t have you embarrassing me like that.”

His words hit me like a punch to the gut. I own you. The weight of those words sank deep into my chest, making it hard to breathe. I felt small, powerless like I was nothing more than something he could claim.

“I’m sorry,” I whispered, my voice breaking. The words felt so weak, so pointless. What could I even say to make this right?

The rest of the drive was a blur of silence, tension hanging thick in the air. My heart was heavy with guilt and shame, the humiliation of it all gnawing at me. I kept thinking about the way the staff had looked at us, at me. And then Hans... how confused he had looked when Carl hit him. None of this was supposed to happen.

By the time we got home, I couldn’t take it anymore. As soon as Carl stopped the car, I jumped out, tears blinding me as I ran inside. I didn’t even look back to see if he followed. I just needed to be alone.

I rushed to my room, slammed the door shut behind me, and collapsed onto the floor, my back pressed against the cold wood. The sobs I had been holding in finally broke free. I buried my face in my hands, my body shaking with the force of my tears.

Why is this happening? I thought of my father—of how he always knew what to say to make things better, how he could calm me down with just a few words. I needed him now more than ever, but he wasn’t here. And the ache of that truth cut through me like a knife.

I crawled into bed, pulling the covers over my head as I let the tears take over. My pillow was soaked, but I didn’t care. I cried for everything—my father, this awful marriage, the fear that I would never escape this feeling of helplessness.

As exhaustion finally overtook me, I thought of Hans again, the guilt gnawing at me. I wasn’t sure what was worse—the fact that I couldn’t tell Carl the truth about that night or the fear that Hans might one day remember it himself.

Eventually, my eyes grew too heavy to keep open, and I slipped into a restless sleep, haunted by the anger in Carl’s eyes and the confused hurt on Hans’s face.

But the peace didn’t last long. 

A loud bang on my door jolted me awake. My heart jumped into my throat, panic instantly flooding my veins. I sat up, disoriented, trying to make sense of the sound.

Then it came again. A sharp,angry knock.

“Mia!”

The voice on the other side was sharp, commanding.