The Mafia's Backup Bride - Chapter 6: Chapter 6

After Zachary left, Blake sat alone in the empty house, the silence pressing in on him like a weight.
Every breath was agony, a slow suffocation of regret. The jewelry he'd crafted from scraps—his last tangible connection to me—was supposed to be a comfort. Instead, when his fingers brushed against it, he recoiled as if burned.
The diary lay open, its pages fluttering in the breeze like ghostly fingers turning them. And then—there I was. A flicker of memory, standing in the study, my face twisted in despair as I stared at that same book.
He'd written in it to remind himself—Don't forget. Don't let go. But now, the words mocked him.
"Caroline," he whispered, voice breaking. "Why couldn't I see it? All these years… I was already in love with you."
Tears spilled over, unchecked. He dragged his hands through his hair, gripping hard enough to hurt. Regret was a knife in his chest. If he could go back, he'd strangle the man he'd been—the one who thought love was just another game to play.
His men reached the airport too late. The plane was already in the air, carrying me away.
I watched through the window as the city shrank to a speck, then vanished behind the clouds. Goodbye, Blake. This time, it's forever.
By now, he'd know. I'd left everything behind—except the dream I'd whispered to him a hundred times. A little house by the sea. A flower shop. He'd never listened.
Now, he didn't have to.
Zachary handed him the phone they'd found at the terminal.
"This is all there was."
Blake took it, the cracked screen and snapped SIM card like physical wounds. He powered it on.
And there they were—my messages, one after another.
[Blake, where are you? It hurts so much.]
[Why can't I stand up? Are you back? It hurts so much.]
[Can you bring me a strawberry cake? It hurts. Maybe something sweet will help.]
[Blake, I really love you so much. I can't bear all this pain with even a little less love.]
His face was stone. But the tears—they wouldn't stop.
Every scar, every wound—his doing. His enemies. His schemes. Even the attacks he'd orchestrated himself, all to keep Megan safe while using me as a shield.
And he'd been proud of it. Proud of how easily he'd fooled me, the naive girl who loved too hard.
"Find her," he rasped. "I don't care where she is. I need to see her."
Zachary scoffed, voice rough. "What's the point? You want to drag her back into this hell? So she can keep being Megan's human shield?"
Blake shook his head. "Megan's getting married. She means nothing to me. Caroline is my wife. She always will be."
"Too late for that," Zachary snapped. "I checked the divorce papers. You signed them. She hasn't been yours for a long time." His throat worked. "Even if she forgives you—even if she comes back—how do you live with yourself after everything?"
Blake had no answer.