I told myself I knew the truth.
Now, back in my penthouse, as I stood alone, I couldn’t stop wondering how convincing it must have looked—how easily anyone could draw the wrong conclusion from what she’d seen.
Even me.
My thoughts spiralled between anger and panic and something dangerously close to doubt.
Still, one thing anchored me.
I wasn’t ready to let this end like this.
I was going to get Nyah back.
I was going to prove my innocence.
I just needed a plan.
And no matter how impossible it felt in that moment, I wasn’t going to give up on us.
40
NYAH
My eyes were puffy the next day as I dropped Lucas off at school. I could feel the tightness behind them, the dull ache that came from crying too much and sleeping too little, but I still bent down and kissed his forehead like everything was normal. I was glad that the summer camp was going to start again in two weeks. The thought of him being somewhere safe, monitored, and surrounded by routine gave me something solid to hold on to.
Work kept me engaged. Neither Elle nor Donna had called. They were busy with their own lives, and I was thankful for that, because I did not have the emotional capacity to explain myself or answer questions I did not even understand yet.
The pain did not go away, but it did lessen, dulling into something that sat heavy in my chest instead of crushing me outright.
Caleb sent over flowers every day, large, thoughtful arrangements that felt like apologies he was too afraid to say out loud. I never sent them back, but I never acknowledged them either. He messaged and called me at work and on my cell phone, but I never answered. Every time my phone lit up with his name, my heart reacted, and I hated myself for that. I told Amy to tell him that I was unavailable if he called or came by. I was grateful that a conference at the hoteldemanded my attention and kept me busy. It kept me distracted from the pain, from the betrayal, from the images that invaded my thoughts when I was alone.
During the week, Lucas asked to use my phone to talk to Caleb. “When am I going to see you? You don’t come around anymore. Is everything okay?”
I left his room before he could say anything else. I did not trust myself to stay, because the sound of confusion in his voice hurt.
Later that night, I took down all the pictures of Caleb and me in the apartment, even the one from New Year’s, which I had framed because I had believed in it so completely. I grabbed a box and threw in all the things he had left at my apartment. It felt like a definitive end, a line I drew even though my hands shook as I drew it. It brought a fresh round of tears to my eyes.
The smell of his aftershave clung stubbornly to his clothes and pulled memories to the surface, memories of warmth, laughter, and safety. Then the image of Caroline and him in bed flashed before my eyes, vivid and merciless. My chest constricted. I closed the box and shoved it into my closet, as if hiding it would make the memories disappear with it.
At noon on Friday,while I was in a meeting, my cell phone rang. I did not recognize the number, so I ignored it.
It rang again.
I excused myself and answered. “Hello?”
“I thought you wouldn’t pick up, and I would have to leave a message,Jiya.”
My entire body froze when I heard the sickening tone of Jeremy’s voice. “How did you get this number?” I asked, already scanning the room as adrenaline surged through me.
“Don’t worry about how I got this number. Should I call you Nyah or Jiya?”
I stiffened.
“Well, anyway, you’ll always be Jiya to me, and right now, I’m staring at your little boy… Lucas, is it?” He snickered. “Beautiful little fella?—”
“Stay away from him, Jeremy. Don’t you dare touch him.” I ran to my office and grabbed my bag and keys, my movements frantic and uncoordinated. I calculated that it would take me at least ten minutes to reach the school at this time of day.
“Well, how long would it take you to reach him? Ten… maybe even fifteen minutes? I have a head start, don’t you think?”
