For three years, I lived as Damian Blackwood's contract wife, while Selene controlled nearly every part of my life.
When my mother became critically ill, Selene deliberately hid the warning and blocked the help she desperately needed. Damian ignored my pleas, convinced I was only fighting for attention—and my mother never made it home.
That day, I put on the same white T-shirt and old jeans I had worn when I entered the marriage, tore up the contract, and walked away.
Damian expected me to come crawling back. Instead, I joined a border anti-smuggling team and reclaimed the strength and dignity I had lost. As the truth came to light, everything Selene had done was finally exposed.
Only then did Damian understand that he had been the one to drive me away. He asked what he could do to make it right.
There was nothing left I wanted from him. He stayed behind with his regret, while I chose freedom.
