Chapter 24
Samuel’s breathing on the other end of the line grew labored, and his tone was tinged with anguish.
But Catherine ignored it all.
“In our relationship, you were always asking me why,” she said. “But when I shoved the answers right in your face, you still couldn’t see them. You just didn’t care.
That was why he had blatantly disregarded her feelings and chosen to cheat on her, allowing Natalie to humiliate her. He had let her suffer through hardship she could’ve avoided.
“So now you know why we’re divorced, right? Since we’ve gone our separate ways, we shouldn’t keep in contact anymore.”
Catherine was just about to hang up when his desperate pleas came through.
“No, Cathy!” he cried. “You can’t do this. Let’s meet at least once, okay?”
Samuel had rarely ever looked so desperate, she recalled. And the few times he had, it was only to persuade her not to go through with the divorce.
“No. Unless it’s your funeral, I won’t ever want to see you again.”
The line went dead.
Watching the call disconnect, Samuel felt as if he’d been stabbed. A piercing pain shot through him, nearly suffocating him and numbing him. He couldn’t move.
He tried to take a step forward, but in the next instant, he blacked out. He collapsed to the ground.
“Samuel!”
“Mr. Lynch!”
“Someone, please help!”
After that phone call, Samuel suddenly fell seriously ill. His body wasted away quickly, and no matter how many supplements or medications he took, nothing worked.
Everyone thought he had some terminal illness, but only Samuel knew it was heartbreak wearing him down.
Before Catherine laid it all out before him, he had been clinging to the hope that there might be a chance for them. But now, it was just wishful thinking.
Staring at an old photo of the two of them on his phone, he finally broke down and cried.
“Cathy, I’m sorry…”
A long time later, there was a knock at the door. The butler stepped in and looked at him.
“Mr. Lynch, the car is ready. We can leave at any time.”
Once Samuel gave permission; the butler quickly moved to help him up and out the door.
Even though Catherine had made it clear on the phone that everything in the past was over, his guilt wouldn’t let him walk away just like that. He still wanted to do something to make up for it.
And the first thing he wanted to do was visit Alice’s grave and sincerely apologize.
If not for his selfishness, she might’ve been able to rest in peace.
On the way to the cemetery, Samuel leaned back in his seat with his eyes closed, mentally drafting what he would say when he saw her.
But just then, a blinding white light suddenly flashed toward their car.
With the screech of brakes and a violent crash, the impact from the back seat hurled Samuel forward. His head slammed hard against the roof and the front seat. Shards of glass flew toward him, cutting his skin.
Blood began to seep from his wounds.
The Maybach was sent flying by the force of the old van’s impact, then crashed violently back to the ground.
Covered in blood, Samuel was teetering on the edge of death. Yet at that moment, he didn’t feel any pain.
A twinge of regret pricked at him as he realized he hadn’t had the chance to bid Catherine farewell.
His life began flashing before his eyes. He saw her at 22, in a red dress, confessing her love. Then at 23, in a wedding gown, saying she was willing to marry him.
He saw her again at 25, dressed in black, signing the divorce papers.
And in the end, as if the gods finally took pity on him, Samuel was given one last chance–he woke up on the day he first met Natalie.
