My Amnesiac Husband Left Me to Drown for His Secretary

He gave me one cold glance, then turned and pulled Vivian into his arms and murmured reassurances to her. "Mrs. Prescott? She's a stranger, nothing more, and she dares to claim she's my wife." "Don't let her fool you. I've seen plenty of people like her. They'll do anything for money. She'd even use the baby in her belly as a bargaining chip." "Don't worry. A con artist like her, you could throw her into the flood and she still wouldn't die." I scrambled for the edge of the rescue boat, desperately trying to grab hold, but he kicked me away with such force that I lost my grip. When he looked down at me, his eyes held nothing but contempt. "Leave her. Someone like her, you could throw her into the flood and she still wouldn't die." "This'll teach her a lesson. Maybe she'll think twice before trying to pull a stunt like this again." I closed my eyes, a bitter, self-mocking smile tugging at my lips. I used to think his illness was so severe that he couldn't help forgetting me. Only now did I understand. He just didn't care about me. If he could remember everything, yet I was the only person he ever forgot, then he could spend the rest of his life forgetting me for all I cared. The rescue boat sped off, and the raging current dragged me under. Adrian Prescott never once looked back. He never saw me slam my belly against a rock, and he never knew that blood was pouring between my legs. Another huge wave crashed over me. I shut my eyes in despair and stopped fighting as the water pulled me under. When I opened them again, I was already at the hospital. The nurse caring for me explained that a rescue worker had pulled me from the water. The bleeding wouldn't stop, and I was rushed straight into the ER. After running a battery of tests, the doctor turned to me with a grim expression. "You've lost so much blood. There's no guarantee we can save the baby." "Where's your family? Your condition is critical. We need to notify them right away and get someone here as soon as possible." Before I could answer, the emergency room door burst open. Adrian came rushing in with Vivian in his arms. He didn't spare me a single look. Instead, he hurried straight to the doctor, panic written all over his face. "My assistant injured her leg. She cares so much about her looks, she can't afford to have a scar. I need you to treat her right now!" I was lying there with blood pooling beneath me, but he didn't even spare me a glance. Vivian had barely scratched her leg, and he was acting like it was a crisis. The doctor brushed him aside, visibly irritated. "Can't you see there's a pregnant woman here before her? Her condition is critical. If we don't treat her first, we could lose the baby." Only then did Adrian turn to look at me. When he recognized me, he didn't bother to hide the loathing in his eyes. "It's you again? Pretending to be my wife wasn't enough for you? Now you're faking a medical emergency to fool the doctor, too?" "Fine. I'll let your lies slide this time. But Vivi gets treated first." I looked at the faint scratches on Vivian's leg, and my smile grew even more bitter. The doctor opened his mouth to protest, but I reached out and grabbed his arm. "I'm fine. Treat her first." The doctor sighed and turned to treating Vivian's wound. As he applied the antiseptic, she only winced slightly. Adrian immediately knelt beside her, cradling her injured leg and gently blowing on the scratches as if that alone could ease her pain. That tenderness in his eyes was all too familiar. When we first got together, he was the same. Even the tiniest scratch on my skin used to leave him frantic with worry, his eyes reddening at the sight of my blood. But I was no longer the woman who made his heart ache. That place belonged to someone else now. Vivian's eyes, when they met mine, glittered with triumph. As she passed by me, she leaned close to my ear, making sure Adrian couldn't hear her. "Elise, I'm so sorry. Mr. Prescott has had another episode. I'm the only one he remembers right now." "Don't worry. As soon as he comes to his senses, I'll make sure you're the first person I bring him to see." Her tone was taunting, but I didn't break down like I once would have. I only watched them calmly and walked away.

Once their figures had disappeared from sight, I turned to the doctor. "I don't have any family to call. If there's no way to save the baby, then I don't want to keep it. Please schedule the procedure as soon as possible." I didn't want the baby anymore. And I no longer wanted a husband who couldn't even recognize me. The blood continued to pour from me until the pain left me barely able to think. I gritted my teeth and forced myself to sit up and sign the consent forms. Before they wheeled me into the operating room, the nurse gave me a look of deep sympathy. "You don't even have anyone here with you. That must be so hard." "Unlike Miss Shaw earlier. She barely had a scratch, but her husband was so worried that he insisted on having her thoroughly examined from head to toe." I managed a bitter little smile. I'd grown all too familiar with that look of pity. The night before my wedding, the police took me in for questioning. It wasn't until the following afternoon that I was finally released. I made my way to the hotel, only to learn that the wedding was already over. Since I couldn't be there, Adrian had allowed Vivian to put on my wedding dress and take my place at the altar. It was supposed to be my wedding, yet the two of them had ended up playing the starring roles. Even wedding photos showed them with their fingers intertwined and their bodies pressed close together. When his friends saw the state I was in, they always tried to comfort me with sympathy. "It's no big deal that you missed the wedding. We got plenty of pictures anyway. We can just photoshop your face over Vivi's. Then it'll look like you were there the whole time." When my appendicitis flared up and I was left lying in the snow, the paramedics looked at me with that same pity when the ambulance finally arrived. "You're lucky someone found you and called 911 in time. Do you have any idea how close you were to dying?" Eight years together. I'd put up with one injustice after another and endured more than my share of pitying looks. At least it would all be over soon. This time, it was my turn to forget him. It was well past midnight by the time the procedure was over. My lower belly felt like it was being ripped open, every movement sending a fresh stab of pain through me. Between the blood loss and the procedure, I was so weak by the time I got home that I could barely keep my eyes open. But when I opened the door, I found Vivian sitting on my sofa, wearing my pajamas. Her feet were resting on Adrian's knees, and he was carefully changing her bandages, completely absorbed in what he was doing. They looked so perfectly at ease together that anyone would have taken them for a couple who'd been together for years. When she saw me come in, Vivian's expression flickered with panic. She instinctively moved to stand, but Adrian held her down. "Don't get up. Your leg's hurt this badly. Do you want to end up with a scar just because you won't sit still and let it heal?" His face was full of concern as he spoke to her. But when he finally looked up at me, all that concern vanished, replaced by accusation. "Elise, where have you been? Do you have any idea how worried I was about you?" I let out a cold, mocking laugh. "Worried about me? Is that why you brought your assistant home, put her on the sofa I picked out, dressed her in my pajamas, and sat here tending to her legs?" Vivian looked at me, flustered and at a loss, and Adrian's expression darkened. He frowned in annoyance, fixing me with a cold stare. "Elise, Vivi got hurt this badly because she came up the mountain with us. What's wrong with me showing her a little concern? Why do you have to make it sound so disgusting?" "You're the one who vanished halfway up the mountain without a word or even a phone call." "And I was so worried about you. Honestly, you're the one with a filthy mind if you think we’re having an affair." I was the one who'd been thrown away. I was the one who'd nearly drowned. And somehow, he still had the nerve to accuse me of being rude and humiliating them. Just because he had amnesia, he acted as though none of my suffering mattered, as though all the pain I'd endured was invisible. Eight years. I'd broken down so many times that I could count. And every single time, I'd somehow find the strength to pick up the pieces and put myself back together.

But this time, I couldn't bring myself to swallow the hurt and let it go. I drew a deep breath, schooled my features into calmness, then lifted my eyes to him and smiled coldly. "I disappeared because when the rescue boat came, you pushed me away and left me to drown in that flood!" "Adrian, since you're so sure I'm such a terrible person, let's get divorced." The words had barely left my mouth when Vivian sprang to her feet, looking flustered as tears instantly welled in her eyes. "Elise, this is all my fault. I shouldn't have worn your clothes, and I definitely shouldn't have stayed here at all." "I'll leave right now. I'll take the clothes off and put them back. Please, just don't give Mr. Prescott a hard time. He didn't abandon you on purpose; he was just having an episode and couldn’t recognize you." Her eyes brimmed with tears as she bit her lip, picked up the dirty clothes scattered across the floor, and limped toward the changing room. Adrian grabbed her before she could get away and drew her behind him. The look he gave me was full of the kind of disgust you'd reserve for a monster. "There's a limit to how unreasonable you can be. You're seriously asking for a divorce just because I had an episode and didn't recognize you?" "So I left you behind. You're fine, aren't you? Why do you have to keep making such a big deal out of it?" "Elise, can't you be a little more understanding? Do you have to blow everything out of proportion?" Every word felt like another accusation. I had lost my child. My bare arms and legs were covered in deep gashes from the rocks. In his eyes, the pain I'd suffered barely mattered. Vivian's few faint scratches, which were already beginning to heal, were somehow the real emergency. Even though I'd long given up expecting anything from him, the pain still ripped through me so violently that I trembled from head to toe. I lowered my eyes to my now-flat belly. A bitter smile curved my lips, and when I spoke again, my voice shook despite my efforts to steady it. "Adrian, I'm not fine." "Do you know that our child is already—" Before I could finish, Vivian pushed past him, hurried over, and fell to her knees in front of me. She held up her phone, tears streaming down her face. "Elise, I know you blame me for wearing your clothes, for sitting on your sofa without asking, but you can't put my picture online and accuse me of being a shameless mistress." "Yes, maybe I don't know my place, but I meant no harm, and I’ve never tried to take anything from you." "I wore your pajamas because my own clothes were soaked in the flood, and I stayed because I couldn't walk properly with my injured leg. Why would you say I was deliberately wrecking your family?" "Now everyone's attacking me online. I can't go on living like this. I'd be better off dead." I glanced down at her phone. What was on it was indeed a post under my name. But the image attached to it was plainly just a selfie of Vivian. The whole thing was so obviously fake it was almost laughable. Vivian was crying through a transparent act, and yet somehow Adrian's eyes were already reddening with panic at the sight of her tears. I didn't even get the chance to defend myself before his hand cracked across my face. The corner of my eye split open, and blood blurred my vision. But I didn't cry. I only smiled calmly. He didn't believe me. There was no point explaining myself to a man who had already decided I was guilty. Eight years of loving him had been wiped out in a single moment. Whatever hope I had left died right there. Adrian didn't seem to notice the change in me at all. His expression grew even colder. "Elise, how long are you going to keep this up?" "Just because I show concern for my own assistant, you spread lies to destroy her reputation? Since when did you become this vicious?" "I'm taking Vivi home first. You'd better have an apology ready for her by the time I get back!" He scooped her into his arms and strode out of the house without a backward glance.

Watching them walk away, I felt my heart breaking all over again. Not just the apology statement. I would have the divorce papers ready too. From now on, we would be strangers to each other. Adrian didn't come home that night. I didn't care. Once the divorce papers were printed, I finally let myself fall into a deep sleep. When I woke the next morning, the warm aroma of soup filled the house. Seeing me come downstairs, Adrian appeared in front of me holding a bowl of soup. Eight years ago, he was just starting out. No money, no standing, crammed into a basement room barely a hundred square feet. But back then, his whole heart and every ounce of his attention belonged to me. My stomach was bad, so every morning he got up early to make me soup. Life was hard, but somehow, that simple bowl of soup had always tasted sweet in my memory. My eyes stung as I picked up the spoon. Before I could even bring it to my lips, Adrian spoke in a casual tone, as if he were bringing up something trivial. "I already had someone take down yesterday's post, but plenty of people still saw it. They even dug up Vivi's personal information, and now people are flooding her messages with insults." "She's young and sensitive. She cried all night and still doesn't dare leave the house." "There's only one way to put these rumors to rest. I had no choice but to use the company account to issue an official statement announcing that Vivi is the real Mrs. Prescott." "She's young. If her reputation is ruined, she won't be able to handle it. You've always been sensible. A little unfair treatment shouldn't be a big deal. Once everything settles down, I'll find a way to make it up to you." His tone was so calm, as if he were saying a little unfair treatment shouldn't be a big deal. My hand stopped halfway to my mouth. I found it absurd, somehow. "Her reputation can't be ruined, but mine doesn't matter?" The smile faded from Adrian's lips. He frowned slightly and tapped his fingers impatiently against the table. "Elise, can't you be a little more reasonable?" "She was the one who stood in for you at the wedding, and she's the one in all the wedding photos anyway. What's the problem with me calling her Mrs. Prescott in public?" "You’re the one who's actually living this life with me. What difference does the title Mrs. Prescott make? Can you stop being so petty about it?" I swallowed the accusation on my lips and nodded with a smile. "Fine. I agree." We'd be divorced soon enough. Who wore the title of Mrs. Prescott after that was none of my concern. I had just started to stand up when the hospital called. My mother was suffering from severe heart failure and had spent the past few years in the ICU. The aide who looked after her told me she'd seen the viral post branding me a mistress. The shock and anger had been too much for her, and she'd collapsed. By the time I reached the hospital, she had already been rushed into the ER. The doctor said the shock had made her condition even worse and that she needed emergency surgery. The surgery would cost two hundred thousand dollars. It wasn't an astronomical amount, but it was enough to save the only family I had left. With a trembling hand, I signed the consent form. When I made my way to the payment counter, I was told my account had been frozen. I called the bank and learned that Adrian had reported my card lost and had it suspended, claiming he was concerned about fraudulent charges. I called Adrian immediately, but he didn't answer. Then I tried again, only to discover he'd blocked my number. I rushed back to the villa. The moment I opened the door, I found two people tangled up on the sofa. When he saw me in the doorway, Adrian pulled the half-dressed Vivian into his arms to shield her. There was nothing but disgust in his eyes when he looked at me. Not a trace of remorse. "It’s you! You filthy liar! Did you follow me here? First you pretended to be my wife, and now you have the nerve to show up at my door?" I didn't have the strength to argue with him anymore. I rushed up to him, tears streaming down my face, and grabbed his sleeve, desperately begging him for help.

"Adrian, my mother is in critical condition. She needs two hundred thousand dollars for surgery, right now." "I'm begging you. Just unfreeze my accounts, please. If this drags on any longer, she'll die!" His expression didn't change. He simply kicked me away. "Still trying to scam money out of me?! Fine! I'm calling the police right now." He ignored my desperate pleas and reached for his phone to call the police. I struggled to get to my feet and escape, but he brought his foot down hard on my lower abdomen. The pain was so excruciating that I couldn't even cry out. When the officers arrived and led me out, there wasn't a trace of pity on Adrian's face. He simply turned away, pulled Vivian into his arms, and murmured something to her in a gentle, soothing voice. By the time the police were done questioning me, I rushed straight to the hospital. But the doctor met me with a look of deep regret. The surgery hadn't come in time. My mother had died in agony. A coppery taste flooded my mouth. I forced the hatred down and dialed my lawyer's number. Whatever love I'd once had for Adrian was gone. There was nothing left between us now but a debt written in blood. ... When Adrian woke up the following morning, his head was splitting. He'd barely stepped out of his room when Vivian hurried up to him. Before she could say a thing, he pushed her aside. "Why are you in my house?" His phone rang before she could answer. Adrian answered, already looking irritated. "Elise, what are you making a fuss about now? We agreed I'd take you to your prenatal checkup today and visit your mother afterward. Why didn't you wait for me? Why did you go without me?" But an unfamiliar voice came through the receiver. "Mr. Prescott, your wife had an induced-labor procedure three days ago. We're calling to remind her that she's scheduled for a follow-up appointment today." Adrian froze in place, as if he'd been struck by lightning. The next second, his eyes landed on the document envelope sitting in the entryway. He hung up and opened it with shaking hands. The moment he saw what was inside, all color drained from his face. There were two documents in the manila envelope. One was the divorce agreement. The other was my mother's death certificate.