Chapter 3

A cold dread crept through me.

When Vincent spun all this nonsense, he never once stopped to remember that I'd been to college.

And I found myself curious, too, about what exactly I was in his mind right now.

"If our house was never registered, then how was the mortgage even processed?"

His expression shifted a fraction. I pretended not to notice and unlocked my phone.

"It says right here, plain as day. It was my signature on the mortgage paperwork."

"If you didn't arrange this, then I'll call the police right now."

"Wait. Don't call the police."

Vincent snatched the phone from my hand, looking at me like I'd wronged him somehow.

"When we got married, we agreed. You handle things inside the house, I worry about things outside it."

"Whether the house is mortgaged or not has nothing to do with you. As long as you're never short on money, isn't that enough?"

"Vincent, is this about being short on money?"

I could hardly believe him.

"The house is registered in my name, and yet I have no idea when you even..."

"Enough, stop talking!"

He turned impatient, tossing the phone back at me.

"I arranged the mortgage. Are you satisfied now?"

I looked at him, and something complicated moved through me. He hadn't always been like this.

Back before the two of us married, my parents were still alive.

The way they put it, Vincent was a good kid in every way, he was just a little too hungry for quick success.

But back then...

When it rained, I never had to worry about not having an umbrella.

When it was time to eat, I never had to worry about not having money.

When my little brother got picked on, I never had to worry that no one would stand up for us.

Vincent always showed up right when I needed him most, right on cue.

"I'll love you with my whole heart for this life, and if there's a next one, I'll love you for that one too."

Hearing him say that at our wedding, I cried out of sheer happiness.

But now, Vincent had not only started lying, he'd started running out of patience.

【This is nothing yet. What he does out there, have you ever asked him?】

【People change. Wake up already. Keep going like this and he'll sell you out and have you counting the money for him.】

【If you ask me, you've already played right into his hands. File for divorce, now. But before you do, hire a lawyer to handle the property split!】

The floating comments kept urging me on. I wiped away the tears that had slipped out without my noticing.

"Today I heard someone say your business out there is doing really well. Is that true?"

Panic flickered in his eyes, then he immediately arranged his face into that look of concern for my own good.

"Where on earth are you getting this garbage? I work at the factory during the day and drive a cab at night. You know that perfectly well."

"The GPS tracker in the cab, there's an app on your phone that shows it the whole time, right? You can't exactly fake that."

I let out a soft laugh and pointed at the red mark on his shirt.

"Then explain this to me. Why would driving a cab leave a woman's lipstick on you?"

Vincent pinched his collar up to look, then burst out laughing.

"So that's what all this temper today was about. Turns out you're jealous."

"Isabel, oh, Isabel. What kind of man I am, after more than ten years, you still don't know?"

It was precisely because I knew him so well that I could tell, clear as anything, he was lying.