Chapter 3

The next morning, Ethan began to purge. He went through his private wing of the Miller estate, room by room.

Photos of him and Isabella – childhood friends, then reluctant partners – went into a large trash bag. Gifts she' d given him over the years, mostly perfunctory, followed. Mementos from shared events, now tainted by his knowledge of the future, were next.

He was erasing her from his physical space, a symbolic act of severing the chains that bound him to a past he desperately needed to escape.

Isabella found him in his study, surrounded by bags. She watched him take down a framed photo of them at a charity gala, her expression unreadable.

"What are you doing?" she finally asked, her voice tight.

"Cleaning out," Ethan said, not looking at her. He dropped the photo into a bag.

"Is this another one ofyour games, Ethan? Trying to make me feel guilty?"

Before Ethan could respond, Daniel Chen appeared in the doorway. He looked pale, leaning slightly on the doorframe.

"Bella? What's going on?" Daniel asked, his voice soft. He then looked at Ethan. "Ethan, I... I wanted to apologize if my presence has caused any... tension. Bella told me you two have a complicated history."

His apology sounded sincere, but Ethan knew the Daniel from his first life. The sincerity was a mask.

Isabella rushed to Daniel' s side. "Danny, you shouldn't be up." She glared at Ethan. "See what you're doing? You're upsetting him."

Ethan said nothing. There was no point.

Isabella turned back to Ethan, her voice laced with contempt. "You know, Ethan, our families' agreement, this 'alliance'... it was always just business. A transaction. Nothing more."

Her words were meant to wound, and they did. A dull ache spread through his chest. Even knowing everything, hearing her devalue their entire shared history so callously... it hurt.

He had loved her. Truly. And to her, it was just a line item on a balance sheet.

He forced himself to meet her gaze, his own eyes cold. "I'm aware."

Daniel stepped forward, gently guiding Isabella back a step. "Bella, let me talk to Ethan for a moment. Alone."

Isabella hesitated, then nodded, giving Ethan one last suspicious look before leading Daniel toward a sofa. No, Daniel gestured for her to leave the room. She left, reluctantly.

Daniel approached Ethan, his expression carefully arranged into one of understanding. "Ethan, I know this is hard. Bella... she' s been through a lot. Her family, the pressure... you were a constant reminder of a time she wants to forget."

Ethan stayed silent, watching him.

Daniel continued, his voice low, conspiratorial. "She feels trapped by your history, by Miller Holdings' involvement. She told me how... overbearing your affection could be. How it made her feel suffocated. She just wants to heal, to move on. With me."

The manipulation was subtle, skillful. Daniel was painting Ethan as the villain, the source of Isabella' s trauma, the obstacle to her happiness. He was reframing their past to fit his and Isabella's desired narrative.

It was working. Ethan felt a wave of futility wash over him. What was the point of fighting this? They had already written the script.

He just wanted out.

"I understand," Ethan said, his voice hoarse. He turned away, picking up another item to discard.

As he bent down, Daniel, perhaps misinterpreting his movement as aggression or simply losing his balance due to his illness, stumbled forward. Daniel' s hand, reaching out to steady himself, knocked a heavy paperweight off the desk.

It struck Ethan' s hand. Pain shot up his arm. He cried out, instinctively pulling back.

Max, his loyal Golden Retriever, who had been lying quietly by the door, sprang up with a bark, sensing Ethan' s distress. Max moved towards Daniel, not aggressively, but defensively, a low growl rumbling in his chest.

Daniel, startled by Max' s sudden appearance and bark, flinched violently. He tripped over his own feet, his arms flailing. He crashed into a bookshelf, a sharp cry escaping him as his head struck the edge. He slid to the floor, groaning.

Chaos. It all happened in seconds.