Chapter 34We have been on the road for a couple of hours since I woke up. Finally, we stop at a gas station. I look around, maybe I could escape from my husband's hands, but I'm not sure since I only see two people: the man working at the station and another passing individual like us.I watch as Habbab reaches his arm towards the back seat and grabs a bag. He gets out of the car carrying the bag and approaches the man in charge of the station. I hear him ask him to service the car and that he will then go buy some snacks. He opens the passenger door and tells me to get out.Intrigued, I ask, “Where are we going?”“You're going to change, you're going to take off that horrible Bindalli,” he replies. He takes my hand and pulls me, and I start running behind him because of the speed and strength with which he moves.“You're hurting me,” I say angrily.“Everything is fine, sir?” asks the other man, who also seems to be taking advantage of the gas station service.“Everything is fine,” H
Chapter 35MelekMaybe I'm foolish, but I worry about Habbab's well-being. There's blood on his lower lip, and I'm still a bit dazed from what just happened.“That man tried to kidnap me,” I say aloud, unable to believe what I'm saying. “Why? What did he want?”“What did he say to you?” Habbab drives a bit faster, but he doesn't take his eyes off the road.“He asked about Esat, he asked if we were family.”“Damn it.” Habbab hits the steering wheel, and I can't help but be scared. He's still agitated from the fight, he looks at me with a concerned expression, and says:“Melek, I'm sorry. I don't want to hurt you. I just want to show you that I still love you. I'm sorry you had to witness that.”Tears filled my eyes as I struggled to process his words. Could I trust him again after everything that had happened?“I don't know what to do, Habbab. I'm scared, confused, and hurt. But I can't easily trust you again. I need time to understand all of this. You kidnapped me from my home, and no
After arriving in Kebleker, Habbab and I checked into a hotel under a fake name. I don't feel entirely comfortable with the idea of hiding and lying, but I decide to keep quiet. We go up to our room, and I'm pleasantly surprised to find it spacious and cozy.There are two separate rooms, so I won't have any problem spending the night here. I feel bad about the condition Habbab ended up in after the fight, so I make the decision to heal his wounds.Habbab sits on the couch in the main room while I walk to the bathroom, where I find a medicine cabinet stocked with supplies.“Do you need help with those wounds?” I ask, looking at the marks on his face and body.Habbab nods, and I approach him carefully. I take a damp towel and start cleaning the blood from his lower lip. Our eyes meet, and I feel a mix of conflicting emotions.“Damn it, Melek,” Habbab whispers, looking at me intensely. “I can't believe how reckless I was to drag you into all this. I regret leaving a day after our wedding
HabbabI managed to get us out of the city, bring us to the coast, but it still doesn't feel like a success.From my perspective, the weight of my past actions falls upon my shoulders with overwhelming force. I find myself submerged in a deep abyss of guilt and remorse, unable to escape the haunting memories that torment me.I close my eyes and can vividly see Melek's wounded face, her eyes filled with sadness and disappointment. It was me who hurt her, who marked her heart and soul with the shadow of betrayal. The image of her pain is like a dagger in my chest, constantly reminding me of the irreparable damage I have caused.I have always blamed Hazar Erdoğan for all my misfortunes. In my blindness and thirst for revenge, I allowed anger and the thirst for justice to cloud my judgment. I didn't consider the consequences of my actions or the love and trust Melek had placed in me.Leaving her standing on the day after our wedding, labeling her as impure, was one of the most painful dec
Chapter 36Esat ErdoğanThree days laterI'm furious, very furious. Habbab has taken away my fiancée, and despite my attempts to retrieve her, to find out where she is, nothing seems to work. I still haven't found Melek's whereabouts.Even with the resources of my grandfather, I haven't been able to find my cousin and her kidnapper. I have to bring her back home; our family supports this union, and I can see it in how my grandfather Çakir made his men and contacts in the government available to find my cousin. I don't need any more evidence; I have his support.And now I've decided that I'm going to make Habbab come out of hiding. That scoundrel will hand Melek over to me with his own hands.I stop outside the Arslan mansion, waiting for the shift change of the guards. It's midnight, and at any moment the afternoon shift will be replaced by the night shift, and I'll have the opportunity to enter the house.As I suspected, the guard change is happening in five minutes. I quietly get ou
Three days after Habbab and Melek's kissHabbabEverything was ready; in fifteen days, we would leave the country and start a new life. We would have a life together. I knew I could make Melek fall in love with me again. I did it once; I could do it a second time.I had a plan. I would ask her to give me a week, to get to know me better, to tell her everything I needed to say. A week for her to listen to me, and if she still rejected me after that, I would let her go. I would take her out of the country to protect her, but I wouldn't keep her.I had spent days planning every detail of our encounter. I knew it was time to surprise Melek and show her my determination to make amends for my mistakes and win back her heart. I had gotten tickets to leave the country together, but before we left, I wanted to show her that we could build a new story filled with love and happiness.Melek sat in the hotel room's lounge, lost in her thoughts. I approached her with a nervous smile and said, "Mele
After a dinner filled with awkward moments and tense silences, I managed to convince Melek to take a walk along the beach shore. The sound of the waves breaking against the coast created a serene atmosphere, but I could feel the distance between us, as if there was an abyss separating us.I tried to reach for Melek's hand, seeking that connection we used to have, but she quickly pulled her hand away. It was a painful reminder of what I had lost, of the trust I had broken. However, I didn't give up and decided to open my heart."Melek, I want you to know that I wasn't always like this. My life has been a constant struggle with my past and my grandmother's manipulations," I began to tell her, trying to convey my true self.She looked at me with curiosity and a hint of disbelief. "Habbab, go on. I want to hear what you have to say."I took a deep breath and continued, letting the words flow with sincerity. "At the age of eight, I became an orphan. My grandmother and my sister were all I
Chapter 37MelekWe enter the hotel after a night... Beautiful, that's all I'll say about it because I'm struggling not to let Habbab win my heart again. Every time I look at him, I can't help but think of all the harm he caused me, but I also can't help but think of how in love I still am with him. I'm a fool, although in my defense, we had two years of happiness together. Is it so bad to want that feeling back?There's something about him, something different. I'm starting to believe that our love is dissipating the hatred in his heart, that it's capable of healing the wound that revenge has left.Not to mention seeing him vulnerable, knowing how much he loved his mother and how they took her away. It's something that would move anyone. I still believe that all that hatred, all that pain, was because of his grandmother and her lies.We enter the elevator, and as we step out on our floor, I trip. His arms prevent me from falling to the ground. Habbab gently pulls me towards his chest