Relief.
Compassion.
Anger.
“I need to see her,” Alex said in a hoarse voice.
“Talk to her.”
“It’s possible. I’ll arrange a meeting.”
They left the office in silence.
Alex stood in the street, not looking at his wife.
“Sophia first.”
His voice was toneless and colorless.
“Not now. I have to apologize to you later. I need to talk to my mother first. Hear everything from her first hand, and then we’ll talk.”
Sophia did not answer.
She turned and walked away, feeling his eyes on her back.
She was empty inside.
The victory brought no joy.
There was no escape from justice.
Just exhaustion.
That evening Lucy called.
“I heard the detective confirmed it. It’s her.”
“Not.”
“Sophia, you can be happy. Justice has been served.”
“I think so.”
“What’s wrong with you? You sound so gloomy.”
Sophia sighed.
“Lucy, my mother-in-law tried to kill me. It took my husband weeks to decide who to believe. Even now, when everything has been proven, I’m not sure he’ll forgive me for destroying his family. What’s left to celebrate?”
Lucy was silent.
“Do you think your marriage…”
“I don’t know.” “
Honestly, I don’t know.
“Do you want to save this marriage?”
The question hung in the air.
Sophia thought about it.
She really wanted this.
Three years of love.
Three years of living together.
Alex wasn’t a bad husband—weak, indecisive, too dependent on his mother—but he wasn’t bad either.
He loved her in his own way, as best he could.
“I don’t know,” she replied honestly.
“I used to love you. But now too much has happened.”
“Maybe you should talk without emotion. Maybe when he’s ready.”
Alex was ready the next day.
He arrived in the afternoon with flowers and a guilty look.
Sophia opened the door and let him in without a word.
“I saw Mom,” he said, sitting on the couch.
“We talked for two hours, and she really got through it. She told me everything, without apology, without blaming anyone.
Sophia sat in the armchair opposite him.
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