Chapter 10
For several days after that, Daniel couldn’t focus on anything. He kept telling himself that Valentina couldn’t have really left him.
She loved him so deeply. How could she just up and disappear like that?
She had to be furious and resorted to using this as a way to force him to grovel. But what gave her the right to be so unreasonable?
He’d already explained everything to her. Camille just needed a child, and once the baby was born, everything would go back to how it used to be.
He tugged irritably at his collar as he stood by the window. His eyes unconsciously swept over the base housing entrance, as if any moment he might see Valentina walking back with her
suitcase.
“Daniel, what are you looking at?”
Camille wrapped her arms around his waist from behind, pressing her cheek against his back, her voice soft and sweet. “Have you thought of any names for the baby yet?”
Daniel didn’t respond, just tensed his shoulders.
After a long moment, he let out a quiet sigh. A flash of something cold crossed Camille’s eyes, but it disappeared instantly as she smiled and moved around to face him.
“Daniel, I heard that Valentina ran away from home. You haven’t been able to find her for days now, right? If you ask me, there’s no need to worry about it.”
Camille laughed softly, looking up at his face. “She’s probably just trying to make you care
about her. Women like to throw tantrums, you know. They want you to chase after them and apologize.”
Daniel frowned slightly, sensing something wasn’t quite right. “But she actually went through with the divorce. How could that be fake?”
“So what?” Camille shrugged dismissively. “If she really wanted to leave you, she wouldn’t
have waited this long to do it.
“She’s testing you. She just wants to see if you’ll come running after her.”
She gave Daniel a teasing look. “Here I am helping you figure out your marriage problems. Aren’t you
you worried I might get jealous?”
Daniel was quiet for a moment, then realized Camille had a point. Valentina loved him too much to actually give up on their marriage. She had to be waiting for him to make the first
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move.
Well, this time he wasn’t going to.
“Let her stew.” Camille squeezed his hand gently. “When she realizes she’s taken this too far, she’ll come crawling back and beg for your forgiveness.”
Daniel snorted. “She’d better.”
But as the days dragged on, Valentina never returned. Daniel was getting restless. His men had combed through every train station and bus depot, even contacted Valentina’s family back home.
But everyone said the same thing, that they hadn’t seen her. It was like she’d vanished into thin air, leaving no trace behind.
“Where the hell could she have gone?” Daniel stood in their empty bedroom, staring at the few clothes left hanging in the closet, feeling more agitated than he’d ever been.
Seeing him like this, Camille felt a stab of annoyance, though her expression remained gentle. “Daniel, if she really wanted to come home, she would have by now. Since she’s being so stubborn, why keep waiting around for her?”
Daniel didn’t respond, just clenched his fists tighter. Camille saw her chance and moved closer, her voice taking on a persuasive tone. “What if… we got married?”
Daniel’s head snapped up.
“What?”
“If we get married, she’ll finally understand that throwing tantrums has consequences.” Camille smiled sweetly, though something calculating flickered in her eyes.
“Isn’t that what she wants? For you to regret this? She even divorced you to make her point. So let’s show her who’s really going to end up regretting their choices.”
Daniel stared at her for several seconds, then let out a bitter laugh. “Fine.”
He’d see just how long Valentina could hold out.
The wedding was rushed but made plenty of noise. Daniel made sure word got around as he wanted everyone to know he’d married Camille.
He bought her the most expensive jewelry and took her to every important social event. He even peeled shrimp for her at the base formal dinner in front of everyone.
“Captain Pierce sure does spoil his wife!” someone teased.
Daniel forced a smile, but his eyes kept drifting toward the entrance, as if expecting a familiar figure to walk through the door. But Valentina never showed up.
A month later, Camille’s pregnancy was still showing complications. Daniel would personally
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cook nourishing soup every day and bring it to the hospital.
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But on this particular day, as he approached her room carrying the thermal flask, he was about to push open the door when he heard Camille’s triumphant laughter from inside.
“Vic, I couldn’t have done this without you!” Camille’s voice was full of excitement- completely different from her usual tone.
“If you hadn’t worked at the hospital and helped me fake that pregnancy test, I never would have figured out how to get rid of Valentina for good!”
Daniel’s hand froze on the door handle.
Another woman’s voice responded with obvious pride. “Well, I did forge those test results so well that even the doctors couldn’t tell they were fake.
“But I have to say, you’ve got some nerve–faking a pregnancy?”
Camille scoffed. “What’s to worry about? Daniel does everything I want now. In a few weeks, I’ll have a convenient ‘miscarriage‘ and he’ll just feel even sorrier for me.”
“But…” Victoria Wells lowered her voice. “Didn’t you say Valentina lost her baby during that earthquake? If he finds out, won’t he feel bad for her…”
“So what if he does?” Camille’s laugh was cold.
“She deserved it! If she hadn’t been hogging Mrs. Pierce’s position, I would have been the lady of the house ages ago!
“Daniel saved me first during the earthquake. Her losing the baby was just bad luck on her part!”
Victoria hesitated. “And that business with jumping from the window the other day…”
Camille’s voice turned ice–cold. “I did that on purpose. I was hoping she’d die from the fall, and that would’ve solved everything! Too bad she was too stubborn to die.”
Daniel stood outside the door, feeling like all the blood in his body had turned to ice. He
slammed the door open.
Both women inside jumped in terror. Camille’s face went deathly pale.
“D–Daniel? When did you get here?”
Daniel stared at her with ice–cold fury. “When did I get here? Right when you mentioned the fake pregnancy test.”
Camille panicked and scrambled out of bed. “Daniel, let me explain!”
“Explain what?” Daniel stepped closer, his voice dangerously low.
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“How you lied to me? How you killed my child? Or maybe how you set up Valentina?”
Seeing the rage in his eyes, Camille stumbled backward, tears pouring down her face. “Daniel, please! I didn’t mean for any of this to happen. I just love you so much…
“Besides, you don’t love her anymore, do you? Everything between us has been real, hasn’t it?
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She looked pathetic as she pleaded with him. “I know I made mistakes. I swear I’ll never lie again. We can have our own family in the future.”
“Love?” Daniel laughed bitterly and suddenly hurled the thermal flask against the wall. Scalding soup splattered everywhere as Camille shrieked and dove for cover.
“Don’t you dare talk to me about love! Everything you’ve ever said has been a lie!”
His whole body shook with fury, his mind flooded with memories of Valentina’s devastatingly pale face. He charged at Camille without warning.
Chapter 11
