"Max, I've told you not to tease Ellie."

Amidst the tension, Melany appeared.

"Shouldn't you be inside? It's freezing out here. What are you doing outside?" Max's demeanor softened immediately as he draped his coat over her shoulders.

So, Max was aware of the cold.

"I just wanted to see you," Melany pouted and then linked her arm with mine.

"Ellie, come inside quickly. Max was just upset, and I'll talk to him later."

After being outside for so long, the sudden warmth was both comforting and irritating, making me want to lie down. Yet, Melany held onto me tightly, her smile sweet and seemingly innocent.

"Ellie, are you in such a rush to leave because you don't want to see me?"

"It's all my fault, but can we work things out? If it bothers you that much, I can let you have Max. After all, you're the one the Reyes family recognizes as his wife—a woman from a wealthy family, cultured and refined. Unlike me, who has to work so hard for what girls like you can get with just a snap of your fingers..."

"What nonsense are you talking about? I've told you, you're the only one I love!" Max interjected, urgently defending himself before turning to glare at me with resentment, saying through clenched teeth, "Why are you still standing here? Do you want to upset her even more?"

Melany finally let go of me. I was free, and I turned to leave. Behind me, Max's voice, tender to the extreme, echoed:

"This pendant is meant for the daughter-in-law of the Reyes family. I've always kept it for you..."

I stopped in my tracks.

Seeing the pendant, tears escaped me, flowing uncontrollably.

I had always known about that pendant.

On our wedding day, Anaya Reyes held my hand, her smile gentle and warm.

"Our family has a pendant especially for the daughter-in-law. It should have been given by me. But Max, impatient as ever, asked for it early. So, I’ll leave him to give it to you."

Since that day, I had always hoped for the moment when Max would hand me that pendant.

Yet now, Max said,

He had always kept it for Melany.

Melany blended into our lives effortlessly. In public, she wore a smile that conveyed empathy and warmth. Behind closed doors, however, she often subjected me to her biting sarcasm.

"Elisabeth, you're quite the refined lady, surely more worldly than I am. Tell me, have you ever heard of someone shamelessly clinging to another?" she mocked, having learned from Maximiliano about my special connection with Snowball.

And then my nightmares began.

Melany unleashed her cruelty on Snowball, tormenting him relentlessly. She would dunk him into hot water, pulling him out just before his cries reached their peak. And then she'd do it again, repeating this twisted ritual until Snowball's voice could no longer be heard.

When I finally discovered her, my skin bearing the same scalded marks as his, she was holding a pair of scissors. Before my very eyes, she clipped off the tip of Snowball's ear.

Both Snowball and I cried out in agony, the blade leaving trails of blood in its wake. When Maximiliano returned and saw the aftermath, Melany feigned innocence, pointing to a minor scratch on her arm.

"I'm sorry, Max. Snowball scratched me first. I only defended myself..." she whimpered.

Maximiliano's concern was immediate. "How could you be so reckless?" he gently reprimanded.

"It's just a cat, after all. No need to apologize for disciplining him."

Melany knew exactly how far to push things. Clipping an ear tip was painful, but the wound was small enough to escape serious notice. With just a slight redirection of Maximiliano's attention, my own injuries went unseen.

Melany nestled into Maximiliano's embrace, a satisfied smirk playing on her lips.