Chapter 12
+15 BONUS
He trembled as he got to his feet, staggering toward the coffin. His hands gripped the edges, his breath uneven, as his eyes
desperately searched for any difference–any proof that the person inside wasn’t Violet.
But no matter how many times his gaze swept over the figure, the truth remained unchanged. It was her. The woman he had
spent the last five years with, lying there motionless.
How could this be?
Just yesterday, they had spoken on a video call. She had looked fine. There had been no sign, not the slightest hint, that she was
contemplating something so final.
No.
Impossible.
She was only angry at him for not being by her side these past few days. That had to be it. She was throwing a tantrum, punishing
him in the only way she knew how.
He reached out, fingers trembling, and touched her cheek. It was ice–cold. But even then, he refused to believe it. He forced a
weak smile, as if that alone could rewrite reality.
“Violet, why are you so cold?” His voice cracked. “Let me warm you up, okay? Once you’re warm, you’ll wake up. You’ll open your
eyes and look at me. Today is our wedding day. You wouldn’t leave me alone, would you?”
By the time he finished speaking, his voice had started to shake.
A staff member stepped forward, gently supporting him. “Mr. Warhol, please accept our condolences. Miss Hudson has passed
away.”
The words ignited something in him. He shoved the man away, his eyes bloodshot. “No! She’s not dead! She’s just sleeping!”
How could she be dead? He was supposed to marry her. Just a few more hours, and she would have been his bride.
The staff remained silent for a moment before handing him a phone. Violet’s phone.
“Mr. Warhol, Miss Hudson took her own life yesterday at six in the evening,” the staff member said. “She left a final message for
you on her phone.”
Six in the evening.
He felt something in his chest tighten, a sharp, unbearable constriction.
That was the exact time their video call had ended.
The exact moment he had turned around and lost himself in another woman’s embrace.
