When I was kidnapped and strapped to a bomb with ten minutes left to live, the thug forced me to make one last call.
I called him. Desperate, shaking, praying he’d save me.
What I got? A lecture.
“Lily, what is it this time? Are you seriously risking your life over jealousy? Do you even get what I’m dealing with here? Sophia’s cat’s been stuck in a tree for three days! She’s losing her mind over it!”
He didn’t stop there. “If I miss rescuing it because of this, Lily, that’s on you. You’d practically be a murderer.”
And then I heard it. A sickly sweet voice in the background. “Thank you! You’re the best!”
Sophia. His precious childhood friend.
As the bomb ticked closer to zero, I sent him a text:
“Goodbye forever. I hope we never meet in the next life.”
Chapter 1
My boyfriend, Charles Anderson, is a forensic pathologist.
I was kidnapped by a criminal he helped put behind bars. They strapped a bomb to me.
The thug sneered, his voice low and threatening. “So, you’re Charles Anderson’s girlfriend? Call him. Now.”
My hands were shaking as I dialed. Charles answered, and his tone was sharp, annoyed.
“I told you not to call me during work hours, Lily. What do you want?”
Swallowing my fear, I spoke quickly. “Charles, I’ve been kidnapped. They’re after you. Please, don’t come—”
Before I could finish, the thug snatched the phone, growling into it.
But Charles didn’t even sound fazed. His voice came through loud and irritated. “Lily, are you serious? Is this some kind of sick joke? I’m at work, and you’re pulling this now?”
I tried again, desperate. “Charles, listen to me, I—”
But he cut me off again. “Do you know Sophia’s cat has been stuck in a tree for three days? THREE DAYS, Lily. If I don’t get it down, it could die. And you’re wasting my time with this? You’ll say anything to get my attention, won’t you? Why not just tell me you’re about to die while you’re at it?”
I glanced at the bomb strapped to my chest. Ten minutes left on the countdown.
“Charles, please—”
“Enough!” he snapped. “If Sophia’s cat dies because of this, it’s on you. You’ll be the murderer, and I’ll never forgive you.”
In the background, I heard a girl’s sweet, chirpy voice. “Charles, you’re amazing. Thank you for saving my baby!”
And just like that, the line went dead.
The thug swore under his breath. “Unbelievable. Charles doesn’t even care about this girl. We kidnapped the wrong person!”
He stormed off, leaving me alone with the ticking bomb.
Tears blurred my vision. Even the thug could see it, but I’d been blind.
Sophia. The name hung heavy in my mind. She wasn’t just his childhood friend. She was everything to him.
When Charles and I first got together, he told me Sophia was like a sister. I believed him. I ignored the signs, thinking his heart was with me.
But whenever Sophia called, Charles dropped everything.
The first time he met my parents, he walked out halfway through dinner because Sophia said she was scared of the dark.
No apology. No explanation. Just a cold “Something came up,” before he left.
I begged him to stay, to show my parents some respect. He just laughed. “Lily, Sophia and I have been like this for twenty years. If you can’t handle it, don’t marry me.”
I should’ve known then. But I didn’t.
Now, staring at the bomb’s blinking timer, I finally understood.
Charles never loved me. His heart belonged to Sophia from the start.
With trembling hands, I sent him one final text.
“Goodbye forever. I hope we never meet in the next life.”
