Chapter 4

Suddenly, a commotion erupted at the entrance of the banquet, drawing everyone’s attention.

“Where’s Lisa? I haven’t been able to reach her for days. What did you do to her?”

The voice belonged to Melissa Zacarias, my only friend and the only person who cared about me since I went missing.

She stormed up to Benjamin, her tone frantic. “Where is she? What did you do to Lisa?”

Benjamin, still fuming, snapped, “I dumped her in the middle of the wilderness. This is what she gets for betraying me!”

“You’ve got to be kidding! You know that could kill her, right? How could you?”

“I left supplies for her. She’s not going to die. Besides, she deserves to be punished!”

Benjamin scowled and called for security. “Get this crazy woman out of here. She’s just like Lisa.”

I watched helplessly as Melissa was dragged away, and the worst part? No one said a word, and the banquet just continued as if nothing had happened.

By the end of the night, Benjamin was praised as a kind-hearted man, and Emma was now standing proudly by his side. Meanwhile, I—Benjamin’s wife—had been forgotten by everyone.

I drifted like a ghost behind Benjamin, following him to his company and then back to our house. There, I watched as he sat down, all smiles, eating the food Emma had made for him.

It hurt to see that smile. I wanted to escape, but I couldn’t. I had no choice but to watch them together, their happiness like a blade cutting me to pieces over and over again.

It was the fifth day after I had been abandoned in the wilderness when Benjamin finally remembered me. He called the security team, ordering them to go and bring me back.

However, within a few hours, they called him back, their voices filled with panic. “Mr. Shane, we’ve searched everywhere but still can’t find her. There was a huge storm a couple of days ago, and even the dogs can’t pick up her scent.”

Panic flashed briefly in Benjamin’s eyes, but he quickly brushed it off with a cold smirk. “Don’t bother looking. She’s probably hiding, trying to make me worry. If she wants to stay there, let her be.”

“Mr. Shane, something’s really off about this. Maybe we should–”

“What are you so afraid of? Lisa’s not in any danger. Didn’t you inspect that forest? There’s some wildlife, sure, but nothing that would attack a person. She’s just playing games.”

The security team couldn’t argue with him, so they reluctantly gave up the search.

Benjamin hung up and immediately called his lawyer.

“Mr. Andrews, draft the divorce papers for me. Yes, I want a clean break with Lisa. She’s been unfaithful and a liar. I want her out of my life with nothing in her name.”

When he hung up, he finally seemed satisfied, as though getting rid of me was all he needed to feel free. On his desk was a photo of him and Emma, smiling together.

He had never looked at me with that kind of tenderness, and now, I was nothing more than discarded trash to him.

I burned with rage. I wanted to rip their perfect little world apart, to destroy them both, but I couldn’t. I was nothing but a wandering spirit, powerless to do anything.

After finishing his work, Benjamin left early to go home, all because Emma called and said she missed him. He dropped everything for her, just like that.

By the seventh day of my exile in the forest, Benjamin finally told security to bring me back again. However, there was still no trace of me.

For the first time, I saw a flicker of concern in his eyes. He personally went to the site with a team to search for me.

The security staff was terrified. “Mr. Shane, we’ve searched every area we hadn’t checked before, but there’s no sign of her.”

Benjamin immediately decided to lead the search himself. It didn’t take long before they found the cave I had been staying in.