Elise POV:

The screenshots were saved. My face, still streaked with tears, hardened. There was no more room for shock, just a cold, relentless clarity. I didn't cry anymore. I couldn't. It felt like my tear ducts had simply run dry, or maybe my heart had frozen over.

I heard the familiar jingle of keys in the lock. Elias.

He walked in, looking exactly as he always did-perfectly tailored suit, a charming smile, not a single hair out of place. No tell-tale signs of a night spent in another woman' s bed, no lingering scent of cheap perfume. He was a master of performance, I realized now. A true artist of deception.

He held up a small bag. "Hey, love. I brought your favorite pad thai. And I picked up those new architectural magazines you wanted." He always knew how to twist the knife, even unknowingly.

He saw my face. "Elise? What's wrong? You look pale." His brow furrowed with what looked like genuine concern. Or perhaps it was just another part of the act.

He moved towards me, his hand reaching out. I recoiled, stepping back before I even thought about it. His hand hung in the air, then dropped awkwardly. A flicker of something crossed his face-embarrassment? Disappointment? Or was it just annoyance that I was messing up his perfect script?

"Is there something you're not telling me, Elias?" I asked, my voice flat, devoid of any emotion I might have once felt for him.

He blinked, feigning confusion. "What are you talking about, sweetie?" He pulled out his phone. "Did I miss something? My phone was on silent during my 'late night meeting' with investors." He gave me a practiced, apologetic smile.

Just then, my phone buzzed. A notification from PeachyKeen. I didn't need to look. I knew.

PeachyKeen: Just finished deleting all the embarrassing messages from last night. Daddy's so worried his 'boring fiancée' will find out! LOL.

The post was accompanied by a photo of Elias's back, his shirt slightly rumpled, sitting on a bed. My stomach felt hollow, so empty that I didn't even have the energy to feel sick anymore.

I pulled my lips into a semblance of a smile. It felt brittle, ready to crack. I looked at Elias, still meticulously pretending to check his phone, his face a mask of false innocence.

"Oh, it's nothing important," I said, my voice dripping with sarcasm I knew he wouldn't catch. "Just another one of those silly internet rumors."

He visibly relaxed. A sigh of relief escaped his lips, almost imperceptible. He pulled me into his arms, holding me tight. His chin rested on the top of my head, his voice soft, gentle. "You're such a silly goose, my little confused darling. Don't let those online trolls get to you."

His embrace was still warm, his scent familiar. But all I felt was a cold, piercing chill.

"You know I'd never hide anything from you, Elise," he whispered, his voice thick with a fake tenderness that made my skin crawl. "You're my everything. My queen." He pressed a kiss to my hair. "I feel so guilty sometimes, working so much. But it's all for us, for our future. Our engagement party is next month. I want to show everyone that you are the only one for me. My one and only."

I didn't say anything. I just stood there, letting him hold me, letting him weave his web of lies, a spider admiring its unwitting prey.

I thought of the early days, when he was just a struggling startup founder, and I was a junior architect. We had built this life together, brick by brick, dream by dream. There were times when he worked three jobs just to pay our rent, his eyes burning with ambition. "I'll make sure you never have to want for anything, Elise," he'd promised, his hand in mine. "You won't have to work this hard forever. I'll take care of you. Just you."

I had loved that boy. I had believed in him with every fiber of my being. What if I hadn't found out? How long would he have let me live in this gilded cage of lies, a pathetic fool? I probably would have just kept believing him, kept thinking he was the struggling hero making sacrifices for our shared future.

The doorbell rang, a sharp, insistent sound.

Elias frowned slightly, pulling away from me. "Who could that be?" he muttered, already walking towards the door. He opened it, his body blocking my view.

A sweet, lilting voice carried into the living room. "Daddy! You forgot your coffee!"

It was Krystal. The same sickeningly sweet voice from her Instagram stories. Elias froze for a fraction of a second, then quickly mumbled, "Thanks! You shouldn't have," and shut the door with a hurried click.

He walked back, holding two coffees, both in branded cups from the fancy artisanal cafe Krystal frequented. "Just a delivery, baby," he said, forcing a casual tone. "My assistant sent them over, said I looked tired." It was a plausible lie, a perfectly constructed facade. He was good, so good.

I looked up, meeting his eyes. Mine were steady, unwavering. "Is there truly nothing you're withholding from me, Elias?" I asked again, my voice still as calm as a frozen lake.

Elise POV:

Elias froze, the two coffee cups in his hand still. His smile faltered for a microsecond, then snapped back into place, brighter, faker. He gently placed one cup in my hand. "Honestly, Elise, you worry too much." He reached out, ruffling my hair, a gesture that had once been endearing, now felt repulsive. "Must be all those crazy stories on the internet getting to you. You know how easily people make things up." His voice was soft, laced with a playful, indulgent tone that made my stomach clench. "There's nothing to hide from you, ever."

His phone buzzed in his pocket. He glanced down, and I saw the name flash: "Krystal." He quickly pressed a button, silencing it, then shoved it back into his pocket. "Why don't you eat, love? I'll be right back. Just need to take care of a quick work call." His words came out a little too fast, a little too strained. He turned and practically fled into his study, the door clicking shut behind him.

I looked down at the coffee in my hand. The cup was cold, condensation beading on the sides and dripping onto my fingers. It was a caramel macchiato. My heart twisted. I was allergic to caramel. Elias had known that since our second date, seven years ago. He never forgot. Not once.

But now, he had more important things on his mind. More important people.

A few minutes later, the study door opened. Elias emerged, a familiar look of apology etched on his face. It was the same expression he wore every time he had to leave me for a "late-night investor meeting" or an "urgent project."

"Baby, I'm so sorry," he began, already spinning the narrative. "A real emergency came up at the firm. I have to go down there. Some documents need my immediate signature for the merger tomorrow."

I cut him off, my voice even. "Is it something at the company, Elias?"

He blinked, momentarily startled, then nodded quickly, seizing the lifeline I' d unknowingly offered. "Yes, exactly! A huge project, big deal. You know how important this is for us, for our future."

I looked into his eyes, searching for any flicker of truth, any hint of the man I thought I knew. There was nothing but a carefully constructed facade. "Can't you… not go?" I asked, a last, desperate test.

His fake smile tightened. "Elise, don't be silly. Don't make things difficult. This isn't a game." His voice hardened slightly. "I'm doing all this for us, for our life together. You know how important it is for me to prove myself to my mother, to show her that I can build my own empire, even with you by my side."

Hermina Rivera. His formidable mother. She was old money, a business magnate who had never approved of me, a middle-class architect. She saw me as an unsuitable match, constantly reminding Elias that I didn't come from "their world." But Elias had always fought for me. Seven years ago, when he first started his tech startup, his mother had cut him off, "exiled" him from the family fortune, demanding he prove himself worthy in five years. If he succeeded and still chose me, she would finally accept me.

He had worked tirelessly, relentlessly, for five years, building his company from the ground up, all to prove his love for me, to show his mother I was worth it. And I had worked just as hard, pushing myself in my own career, terrified of being a burden, of giving Hermina any reason to say "I told you so." She'd offered me money countless times to leave him, but I'd always refused. I believed in our love. I believed he loved me. I believed true love could overcome anything.

Now, that belief was crumbling, brick by painful brick.

His phone buzzed again, vibrating against his leg. He glanced at it, no longer bothering to hide it. His body tensed. "I have to go," he said, his voice flat, devoid of any pretense of affection. "Eat your food. I'll be back as soon as I can."

He didn't wait for my reply. He just turned, grabbed his keys, and walked out the door, his footsteps echoing down the hall.

I picked up my phone, my heart pounding a strange, hollow rhythm. I scrolled through my call log. There was a number I didn't recognize, unsaved, but I knew who it belonged to. Hermina Rivera. Elias's mother.

Elise POV:

Krystal was draped over Elias, her arms wrapped around his neck, her head resting on his shoulder. He held her close, steadying her as she swayed slightly, adjusting her position in his arms with a tender care he hadn't shown me in months.

"Baby, what were you thinking, coming up to the apartment like that?" Elias's voice was a low murmur, a playful scolding mixed with undiluted adoration. "You know you can't be so reckless. What if Elise had seen you?"

Krystal pouted, her lips swollen from recent kisses. She tightened her grip on him. "But I missed you, Daddy! And I was so clever, pretending to be the delivery girl. She would never have known!" She giggled, a childish, infuriating sound. "She's so clueless, right? So boring."

Elias chuckled, flicking her nose playfully. "You're a naughty little thing, aren't you? So clever. But don't do it again, okay? You know how important it is to keep our secret safe." He kissed her forehead. "I'll do anything for you, baby. Anything you want. But Elise finding out is the one line we cannot cross. It would ruin everything."

Krystal whined, sticking out her bottom lip. "But you always change your clothes after you see me! Are you really that in love with her? Do you even love Elise at all?"

Elias paused, his gaze distant for a beat. Then he sighed, a sound I knew well, a sound of feigned resignation. "Of course I love Elise," he said, his voice soft, almost convincing. "I can't let her find out. I can't hurt her."

"What about me, then?" Krystal pressed, her voice demanding.

He pulled her closer, burying his face in her hair. "You, my little peach, are my favorite distraction. My special secret. Besides Elise, you're the one I care for the most." He kissed her then, a long, deep kiss that made my breath catch in my throat.

He scooped her into his arms, carrying her towards his sleek black car. He opened the passenger door, gently placing her inside. He leaned in, whispering something I couldn't hear, but her delighted giggle was loud enough. He closed the door, walked around to the driver's side, and got in.

Moments later, the car began to rock.

I leaned back against a cold concrete pillar in the underground parking garage, slowly sliding down until I was sitting on the grimy floor. My heart was a shattered mess in my chest, but no sound came out. No tears fell. There was just an unbearable, crushing weight.

I didn't know how long I sat there, numb, emptied. Eventually, the rocking stopped. The engine roared to life, and Elias's car sped out of the garage, leaving me in the echoing silence.

My fingers, strangely steady, found Hermina Rivera's number in my call log. It was the number she'd given me years ago, "just in case." I had never called. Until now.

I pressed dial.

"Mrs. Rivera," I said, my voice a hollow whisper, watching the empty space where his car had been. "I'm ready to take your money. I'm ready to leave him." My voice was flat, devoid of emotion, yet it carried a weight that surprised even me.