At the college reunion, my husband, Liam, led me by the hand to a table of his old friends. “This is Clara,” he announced, a fond smile on his face. “My best ‘buddy’ from back in the day. You can just call her ‘Her Majesty,’ like I do.” So this was her. The infamous “one that got away,” the name that made all his old classmates exchange knowing glances. She was dressed simply, in a white button-down and jeans, looking almost as young as she must have in college. But her smile held a complicated edge. “Liam,” she said softly, her voice a low murmur. “It’s been a while. Brought another girlfriend for me to approve?” I met her gaze and smiled back, my own smile bright and unwavering. “I’m sorry,” I said, my voice clear and pleasant. “I’m Liam’s wife.” 1 The air in the private dining room went still. Clara shot Liam a look, her tone laced with amusement. “You got married?” “Yeah…” Liam mumbled, glancing at me before quickly looking away. He sat down and, without a word, pulled her half-eaten bowl of appetizers toward him and started finishing them off. The table erupted in laughter. “Haha, classic Liam! Only ever this whipped for Clara!” Clara’s gaze flickered to me, a silent, challenging smile playing on her lips. I sipped my champagne, feigning indifference, but a fire was already starting to burn in my gut. As the night wore on and the drinks flowed, someone shouted for them to do a cross-armed toast, a tradition usually reserved for newlyweds. “Come on, Liam,” Clara said, holding up her wine glass, her voice casual but carrying. “We do this at every reunion. Your wife won’t mind, will she?” “Her Majesty’s word is law,” Liam declared, already reaching for his glass. “She wouldn’t dare have an opinion.” His eagerness made Clara laugh, a bright, tinkling sound that grated on my nerves. The moment their arms began to intertwine, something inside me snapped. I shot to my feet. Under the stunned gazes of the entire table, I snatched the glass from Liam’s hand, clinked it against Clara’s, and downed the contents in one go. “I don’t care who you were to him in the past,” I said, my voice steady as I surveyed the room. “But he is my husband now. And that is not a toast you make with another woman.” I let my gaze linger on each of them. “Men and women both should have some sense of shame, some boundaries. If you have neither, then you’re just shameless.” The mood soured instantly. Clara’s smile froze on her face. Liam panicked, pulling me back down into my seat. “Why are you being so serious? It’s just a drinking game. They’re my old friends, they’re just joking around.” He lowered his voice. “Just be cool for a minute, okay? Don’t actually piss her off. She’s impossible when she’s mad.” Clara just blinked, a mocking little smile playing on her lips. I was about to explode. “Isn’t that a toast for a husband and wife? You call that a joke? Do you people not understand the concept of respect, or is the point of this reunion to see how many marriages you can break up?” I turned my glare on her. “And what kind of ‘majesty’ insists on doing that with a married man?” Clara’s composure finally cracked. She stared at me, the challenge in her eyes hardening into open hostility. “Wow, Liam. Your new wife is quite the firecracker. She’s got me shaking in my boots.” She paused, her voice dripping with condescension. “But honestly, she’s a bit of a prude, isn’t she? Doesn’t even understand party etiquette. So boring.” With that, she grabbed her purse and stood up. She gave Liam a look that clearly said, Fix this, and walked out. “Your Majesty, wait!” Liam scrambled after her, pure panic on his face. He shot me a furious glare before chasing her out of the room, leaving me alone with the silent, staring table. They all looked at me with a kind of pitying amusement, as if I were a clown who’d just flubbed her act. My hands clenched into fists. I grabbed a plate of leftover bones from the table and walked out, intending to feed the small dog I had tied up just outside the door. Liam had caught up with Clara in the hallway. The fawning, desperate man I saw was a world away from the calm, collected husband I knew. “Don’t be mad, please,” he was begging. “She’s just small-minded, she doesn’t know any better. Don’t stoop to her level, okay?” “Don’t go. How about… how about I make her serve you tea and apologize?” Clara’s expression softened. A small, triumphant smile broke through. Seeing me approach, a cunning glint appeared in her eyes. “You said it, not me,” she purred. “Fine. I’ll give you one more chance.” “Great! I’ll get her to apologize right now.” Liam breathed a sigh of relief and turned around. When he saw me, he rushed over and pulled me in front of Clara, his voice almost pleading. “Can you just stop it? Say something nice to her. I’m going to get some wine, and then you’re going to apologize properly.” I couldn’t believe what I was hearing. As he went back into the room, a wave of laughter followed him. Clara looked me up and down, then spoke in a low, conspiratorial tone. “Back in college, Liam would do anything I said. He confessed his love to me several times, but I never said yes.” “Every girlfriend he’s ever had looked a little like me. He had to bring them all to me for my approval. He wouldn’t continue dating them unless I gave him the nod.” My head snapped up. And for the first time, I saw it—the startling resemblance in the shape of our eyes, the curve of our mouths. Her voice dropped even lower, a venomous whisper in my ear. “This time, he married you without my permission. And I’m not very happy about it.” “Do you want to bet? All I have to do is frown, and he’ll divorce you in a heartbeat.” Before I could process her words, she lifted her foot and brought it down, hard, on my little dog. Rage, white-hot and blinding, consumed me. “Clara, what are you doing? Get off him!” She pressed down with all her weight. I couldn’t budge her. The dog yelped in pain, a series of high-pitched, desperate cries, but no one from the party came out. Then, provoked beyond endurance, the dog twisted and bit her on the ankle. It wasn’t deep, just enough to break the skin. “Ow! Ah, that hurts!” she shrieked, snatching her foot back. Her cry was the signal. The door flew open and everyone poured out into the hallway. Liam was the first one out. He saw the tiny teeth marks on Clara’s ankle, and a look of such violence crossed his face it made my blood run cold. He disappeared back into the room and emerged a second later with a fruit knife. “You bit her? I’ll kill you, you stupid animal!” he roared, lunging at the dog. The dog was chained and couldn’t escape. Liam stabbed it again and again. It collapsed, trembling, its whimpers echoing down the corridor. I lost my mind. I threw myself at him, shoving him away. I gathered the bleeding, dying animal into my arms, my voice a raw, shredded scream. “Liam, what gives you the right? That dog was the last thing my father ever gave me!” “It was Clara! She started it! It wasn’t his fault, check the security cameras if you don’t believe me…” Suddenly, Clara stumbled and fell into Liam’s arms, her voice a terrified cry. “Liam, thank god you’re here! I was so scared!” Seeing her distress, Liam’s panic returned. He dropped the knife and wrapped his arms around her, holding her so tightly it looked like he was trying to merge their bodies into one. “It’s okay, Your Majesty. I’m here. I’ve got you.” The classmates gathered around, their expressions unsurprised. One of them shot me a contemptuous look. “Everyone knows Clara is terrified of dogs. Why would she ever go near yours?” “You’ve got some nerve, lady,” another one chimed in. “Messing with the one person Liam actually cares about.” He swept Clara up into his arms, his face a dark, thunderous mask as he pushed past me. “Anna,” he growled, his voice low and dangerous. “You’ve gone too far.” I froze. It was the first time he had ever looked at me with anything but affection. 2 The dog twitched in my arms, a small, pained spasm that jolted me back to reality. I scrambled to my feet and followed them. While Liam went to get the car, Clara dropped her frightened act. She looked me over, her expression smug. “See? Now you believe me. Even married to you, I’m still the one he can’t live without.” “Do you know why he listens to everything I say?” I didn’t answer. My breathing had become slow and shallow. Clara let out a small, derisive laugh, her gaze drifting toward the parking garage. “We were neighbors, back in the day. He had an abusive, alcoholic father and a mother who was a doormat. My mom and I were the only ones who ever looked out for him.” “One time in college, he had a raging fever. All his roommates had gone home for the weekend. I snuck into his dorm to take care of him. The dorm mother was doing rounds, so I had to hide on his balcony for half the night.” “It was the middle of winter, Anna. It was freezing. When it was safe, Liam pulled me inside and just held me, his eyes all red. He swore he would listen to me forever, that he’d worship me like a queen.” “He told me he loved me. I turned him down. Later, when he found out I was dating someone else, he tried to kill himself. I guess you were the one who picked up the pieces.” Liam’s car pulled up to the curb. Her voice remained light, but every word was a poisoned dart. “We have a shared history, a shared pain. We’re on the same wavelength. That one night is worth more than a lifetime of your efforts.” “Tell me,” she finished, her voice dripping with scorn, “what do you possibly have that can compete with that?” I stood there, stunned, my mind reeling. I met Liam at the hospital. My father had flown back to the country for surgery, and I was there every day. Liam was in the next bed. He’d been admitted for depression after a suicide attempt. He wouldn’t talk to anyone, except me. I was drawn to his intelligence, his quiet charisma. I thought I was special. I gave up my studies abroad to stay by his side. My father, seeing how much I cared for him, not only approved of our marriage but sponsored his continued education, sending him to the best medical programs in the world. He even served as a test subject for a new drug Liam was developing, helping him secure his reputation. That drug eventually killed him. The accumulated toxins in his system were too much. He passed away six months ago. Liam, grateful for my father’s patronage, had never once raised his voice to me. Until today. Whenever I missed my father, no matter how busy he was, he would drive me to the cemetery. The screech of tires pulled me back to the present. I met Clara’s triumphant gaze and let out a cold laugh. “Why are you telling me all this? Are you trying to show off? Or does stringing him along just give you a thrill?” “Anna!” Liam’s voice was sharp, a clear rebuke. I didn’t bother explaining. I just got into the car, holding my dog. Clara, however, stood by the door, her eyes welling with tears. “Liam, where did you find this woman? I was only telling her our history so she wouldn’t feel insecure. And she just attacks me, as if I’ve done something terrible to her.” She sniffled. “It’s okay, you should take her dog to the vet first. I don’t dare get in the car with her. I can’t handle her.” The sight of her tears made Liam’s face harden. He turned to me, his eyes like ice. “Anna, where the hell are your manners?” “What did you say to her? I wouldn’t even dream of speaking to her like that. What gives you the right to make her cry?” “Get out. I’m taking her to the hospital first.” I had reached my limit. I jammed the key into the ignition. “Liam, get a grip. I am your wife. And this is my car.” “My dog is dying! I’m going to the vet!” Liam ran a hand through his hair in frustration, then yanked me out of the driver’s seat. “You’re being completely irrational! A dog bite can be serious, people can die!” “It’s just a dog! Take it to any vet you can find. If it dies, I’ll buy you a new one. Now stop making a scene!” With that, he jumped in the car and sped off. As they drove away, Clara stuck her head out the window, a cold smile on her face, and gave me a victorious thumbs-up. A chill, deep and absolute, settled in my bones. On his deathbed, my father had made Liam promise to take care of me for the rest of his life. And now, for this woman, he had turned on me, abandoned me. My phone rang. An urgent call from the hospital. I rushed over. We had come back to the country because Liam’s mother was gravely ill. I had dropped a multi-billion dollar deal to be here with him. Now, she was in critical condition, and the doctors couldn’t reach him. “Mrs. Vance,” the doctor said, his face grim, “your mother-in-law’s condition is dire. She could have a fatal brain hemorrhage at any moment. She needs surgery immediately, but she’s refusing treatment.” Liam’s mother, once a timid woman, had become difficult and cantankerous in her old age. I had been caring for her since we arrived, cleaning up after her, enduring her constant complaints. Even if she didn’t appreciate it, I had put in the time. But she was always finding fault, always muttering under her breath. Sometimes she would deliberately soil her bed and then complain. I ran into her room. The mess was overwhelming. “Mom, your condition has worsened. I’m scheduling your surgery now. Please, just cooperate with the nurses and take your medicine.” She suddenly grabbed her soiled diaper and threw it in my face. “Don’t you yell at me! You’re not as good as Clara.” She always said that when she was in a mood. I had always assumed it was the illness talking. But now, I heard the name clearly. And I understood. Both mother and son were infected with the same poison: Clara. But she was his mother. I had to do something. As I was about to contact my medical team, my assistant called. “Ma’am, you need to come to the resort. Right now. There’s a problem.”
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