Echoes of a Dead Wife's Voice

On the day the city's skyline was lit with fireworks spelling out my name, Julian Vance dialed my number. "Happy birthday, Clara. I'm so sorry I couldn't be there with you again this year." "Be good and wait just a little longer. Our eighth anniversary is in three days. I promise I'll be home to celebrate with you." The call ended. The woman beneath Julian wrapped herself around him like a serpent. "Are you really going back?" "What about me, then?" Seeing the hurt pooling in Evelyn Hall's reddened eyes, he leaned down and kissed her passionately, unable to hold back his tenderness. "If I don't go back, she'll throw a fit." What Julian didn't know was that I would never throw a fit at him again. Because I had died two years ago. The voice that just answered his call was nothing more than an AI voice replica I designed before I drew my last breath. Julian rolled over, pinning Evelyn beneath him instead of letting her straddle his waist. "We have to make this quick. My flight is at ten tonight." Evelyn froze. "Tonight? I thought you said three days from now." Julian replied casually, "Yeah, I decided to go back early. Surprise her." The moment the words left his lips, he gripped her chin and kissed her forcefully. His large hand roamed over her body with enough intensity to bruise, as if trying to crush Evelyn into pieces. I had never seen this side of Julian. The man in my memories had always been gentle and restrained. I still remembered the night of my eighteenth birthday, when I accidentally overheard him talking to his friends. "Julian, your little princess finally turned eighteen today. You planning on going all out tonight?" "Look how thoughtful I am. I got you the ultra-thin ones—ten whole packs!" Julian took the box and hurled it straight to the floor. "Clara is still young. Absolutely not." "Keep your trash ideas to yourself. Get the hell out of here, all of you." Once everyone left, I watched Julian sit on the sofa, irritably lighting a cigarette. When I pushed the door open, he stubbed it out immediately. I picked up the box from the floor, sat across from him, and met his gaze. "If you want to... I'm willing." "As long as it's you, I'm okay with anything." I saw the raw desire flaring in Julian's eyes. Yet in the end, he took that still-smoldering cigarette and pressed it hard against the back of his own hand. "I'm not willing. I want to save the best of you for our wedding night." "So, Clara... let's get married soon, okay?" Floating beside them now, I watched the two bodies tangling beneath the sheets, unable to tear themselves apart. It was a relief, honestly. Ghosts couldn't feel heartache. Afterward, Evelyn snuggled obediently into the crook of Julian's arm. "Does that good girl of yours play this rough in bed?" Julian stroked Evelyn's hair, looking utterly satisfied. "Clara doesn't know anything about this stuff. Of course she doesn't." "When it comes to bed, you're the one who really satisfies me." Evelyn tilted her head up with a smile and asked, "Then why don't you divorce her and marry me instead?" The second she spoke, Julian's face turned icy cold. "When I brought you abroad with me back then, I made it clear: I give you connections and resources, you satisfy my physical needs. I told you not to get any funny ideas, didn't I?" A flicker of jealousy flashed through Evelyn's eyes, but she quickly lowered her head. "I'm sorry." "I crossed the line." The sudden ring of a phone shattered the freezing tension between them. The driver's voice came through the speaker. "Mr. Vance, I've arrived downstairs. Are we heading to the airport now?" "Yeah, I'm coming down." Julian pushed Evelyn aside, got out of bed, and got dressed swiftly. Evelyn bit her lip. "When will you come back?" Julian pulled on his coat. "I'm not coming back. Thank you for your company these past two years. The resources I gave you won't change, and I'll wire an extra twenty million dollars into your account." "Take the money and stay here to focus on your acting. Don't come back to the city. If Clara ever finds out about us, you know what the consequences will be." Julian reached out and patted Evelyn's head. Just as he turned to walk away, Evelyn grabbed his sleeve. "Could you... please not leave tonight?"Evelyn whispered softly, "The charity gala is tomorrow. You promised you'd go with me." "I've been looking forward to this for so long. Just consider it a proper goodbye..." Julian looked down, meeting Evelyn's pleading eyes. I remembered three years ago, on the day Julian was about to leave the country, I had begged him with that exact same expression. "What kind of project is so urgent?" "Can't you wait until tomorrow, after spending my birthday with me, before leaving?" With red-rimmed eyes, I had looked at him, feeling so hurt. In the twelve years I had been with Julian, whenever my birthday came around, he would clear his entire schedule and spend a whole week preparing for it. Yet that time, he merely pulled a necklace from his coat. "I know tomorrow is your birthday, but Clara, this project is too important. Everything will fall apart if I don't oversee it in person." "I personally asked a French designer to custom-make this necklace for your birthday. Let me put it on you. Consider it as me spending your birthday with you, okay?" He gently fastened the necklace around my neck, didn't even pause to look at it, and planted a hurried kiss on my forehead. "Be a good girl. I have to go now. I'll call you as soon as I land." But on that day, I waited from dawn until midnight. I never got a call or a message from Julian. It wasn't until two in the morning, while thunder rumbled and lightning flashed outside. Huddled beneath the blanket, shivering, I dialed his number. It rang for a long time before being abruptly declined. All I received was a single, cold text from Julian: [Clara, I'm tied up right now. I'll text you later.] Back then, I genuinely believed Julian was swamped with work. So busy that he forgot to even wish me a happy birthday. Looking back, he was just busy pouring all his devotion into Evelyn. Julian stared at Evelyn, hesitating for a long moment. In the end, he called his executive assistant, Leo. "Push my flight to tomorrow night. Something came up on my end." "Take some time tomorrow to check on Clara. See if there's anything she's been eyeing lately. I want to pick up some gifts for her at the auction tomorrow." Julian still had the decency to keep me in his thoughts. Too bad I had been dead for two years. At the charity auction, Evelyn made a grand entrance as the ambassador, capturing all the cameras and commanding the entire room's attention. Everything went smoothly until the final round of bidding. An A-list starlet who had always despised Evelyn spoke up across the hall: "All proceeds from tonight's auction go directly to charity." "As the ambassador, how come Miss Hall hasn't bid on a single item? Surely it's not because you don't actually care about charity, right?" With that single remark, every pair of eyes in the room locked onto Evelyn. Evelyn maintained a poised, calm smile. "Of course not. I was simply waiting for the final piece." "After all, the finale is always the most valuable. I just wanted to make a bigger contribution." Just as she finished speaking, the final round officially began. Evelyn immediately raised her paddle, bidding triple the starting price. "Ten million." The room fell dead silent. Only that rival starlet slowly raised her paddle with a smirk. "Twelve million." From then on, every time Evelyn raised her bid, the other woman countered without hesitation. Until the diamond necklace was pushed all the way to fifty million. Evelyn's face darkened completely. She knew the woman had no intention of letting her off the hook. Yet she had already bragged in front of everyone. If she backed out now, she would become the laughingstock of the industry. As she hesitated, the auctioneer began the countdown. "Fifty million going once, going twice..." "I'll take the entire lot."Julian slowly raised his hand. Along with everyone in the room, I drew in a sharp breath. He lazily lifted his gaze, making direct eye contact with the starlet. "Care to follow?" Julian was one of the most powerful billionaires in the city. Who in this room didn't recognize him? In the end, he secured the necklace without breaking a sweat. In front of everyone, he clasped the necklace around Evelyn's neck. "This piece suits Miss Hall perfectly, so I'm gifting it to her." "Likewise, the payment for the bid will be donated entirely in Miss Hall's name." He was truly so different from who he used to be. Back when he was first building his startup, we couldn't even afford a decent apartment. We could only huddle together in a damp, freezing basement to keep each other warm. Back then, he pulled the tab off a soda can, slipped it onto my ring finger, and promised me: "Don't worry, Clara. I swear I'll claw my way to the top and give you the best life this world has to offer." And today, he had truly made it. Dropping tens of millions of dollars without batting an eye. All just to back Evelyn up. Predictably, Evelyn became the center of the universe, swarmed by guests clamoring to toast her. She didn't want to drink, but she didn't dare offend the VIPs either. Just as she was trapped in an awkward bind, Julian pulled her out of the crowd and tucked her into his arms. "She's allergic to alcohol. She can't drink." "I'll take this glass for her." My chest tightened sharply. Once upon a time, whenever someone tried to push drinks on me at banquets, Julian would shield me the exact same way. It wasn't that I couldn't drink, but that Julian's company had suffered a devastating blow years ago. Aching for the stress he was under, I secretly went out to negotiate deals, attending dinner after dinner. I ended up in the emergency room three times with severe gastric bleeding. The last time, my stomach perforated. I nearly died on the operating table. When I opened my eyes, I was lying in a hospital bed. Beside me sat Julian, who was supposed to be across the country on a business trip. I croaked in surprise, "Why are you back..." "Clara Vance, who gave you permission to go out drinking like that?!" "Drinking until your stomach literally ruptured! Do you have any idea how close you came to dying?! What the hell am I supposed to do if something happens to you?!" In all the years we had been together, that was the first time Julian had ever raised his voice at me. Tears instantly welled in my eyes. "I just... I didn't want to see you struggle so hard..." "Did I mess everything up? I'm sorry... I just wanted to help. I'm so useless, I ended up making things worse for you..." Julian raised his hand and slapped himself across the face with a brutal crack. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have yelled at you. I was just terrified. I was terrified of losing you." "I'm the useless one. I failed to protect you. I swear I will never let a single drop of alcohol touch your lips again..." What Julian never knew was that during the countless sleepless nights after he left the country, I couldn't count how many times I had drunk myself into oblivion. Draining the glass in one gulp, Julian patted Evelyn's shoulder. "I'm leaving. If anything comes up in the future, don't call me. Contact Leo, my assistant. He'll handle it." "I don't want Clara getting jealous." With that, Julian turned and walked away. But just as he reached the lobby stairs, Evelyn's voice echoed behind him. "Julian!" Julian turned back to see Evelyn running toward him with tear-filled eyes. In the next second, her heel slipped. She tumbled down the marble staircase with a violent thud. "Evelyn!"In the hospital corridor, Julian stared at the glowing "In Surgery" sign with pure anxiety etched across his face. He lowered his head and checked his watch. There was only an hour and a half left before his flight took off. Letting out an exasperated sigh, he pulled out his phone to call Leo. Only then did he notice ninety-nine missed calls. Every single one was from Leo. Julian frowned, confused. Before he could dial, Leo's call popped up again. He answered it, and Leo's panicked voice spilled through the receiver: "Boss, something terrible happened! Mrs. Vance, she..." The surgical light clicked off, and the surgeon stepped out, instantly capturing Julian's attention. Julian spoke into the phone dismissively, "Reschedule the flight. I'm busy right now. Whatever it is, it can wait." Without waiting for a reply, he hung up. Leaping from his seat, he rushed to the doctor. "Doctor, how is she? Is she okay?" The doctor pulled down his mask and shook his head reassuringly. "She's fine, just a minor hairline fracture. We've casted it." "She needs plenty of bed rest. No weight on that leg." Julian let out a breath of relief and smiled. "Thank you so much." Seeing the nurse wheel Evelyn out, he stepped forward and scooped her into his arms. "Careful." He carried Evelyn all the way back to her private suite, gently setting her down on the bed. He leaned down and instructed, "The doctor said you need complete rest. Cancel your upcoming shoots. I'll cover all the cancellation penalties." "I really have to leave now. If I don't, I won't make it back in time for our anniversary. Clara will be devastated." Just as he turned to leave, Evelyn wrapped both arms tightly around his waist from behind. She sobbed into his back, "Julian, please don't go." "I can't live without you." Julian had navigated the ruthless business world for years; he wasn't an idiot. He could clearly see that Evelyn was intentionally delaying him over and over again. Julian reached back, grabbed her chin, and forced her to look up. He raised an eyebrow with a cold, mocking smirk. "Didn't I tell you not to harbor any illusions about me? Why can't you just behave?" "The male lead in your next production has massive buzz right now. Spend some time with him. If you hit it off, I'll sign him and market you two as a power couple." "If you don't like him, just milk it for PR stunts. It'll still do wonders for your career." Evelyn understood his meaning loud and clear. She slumped onto the bed, biting her trembling lip as tears streamed down her cheeks. "Julian, you can be heartless to me, and you can discard me whenever you want." "But what about our baby? Are you going to abandon your own flesh and blood too?" "What did you just say?" I could clearly see Julian's entire frame lock up. A child had always been the deepest, most excruciating scar between Julian and me. During the second year of our marriage, his business rival kidnapped me. I was five months pregnant at the time. Those thugs beat my stomach with iron rods until the baby was torn from my body. I never knew how Julian managed to rescue me. All I remembered was waking up to the doctor telling Julian the brutal truth: My uterus was severely damaged. I would never be able to carry a child again. From that day on, children became a forbidden topic between Julian and me, a wound neither of us dared to touch. Until one day, I saw Julian holding his best friend's newborn, cradling the baby for hours, completely unwilling to let go. Swallowing the agony in my chest, I forced a fragile smile and told him, "Julian, let's adopt." Yet he saw through my heartbreak in an instant. With reddened eyes, he pulled me tightly into his chest. "If it's not yours, I don't want it." I held my breath, floating in the air, watching Julian intently. Waiting for his verdict. I watched him lower his head. After a long silence, he took a deep, steadying breath. "Haven't you always wanted to pursue Hollywood and become an international star? Once the baby is born, I'll send you overseas. Don't ever come back." As expected, Evelyn was an exception to his rules after all. I looked down and let out a self-deprecating laugh. The very last trace of affection I had harbored for Julian dissolved into nothingness. Julian ultimately left Evelyn with nothing but a cold, resolute silhouette. He scrambled to catch the very last flight of the night, rushing back to our home city. When the plane touched down, it was exactly eleven at night. Julian let out a long sigh of relief, muttering to himself, "Thank God. I can still make it before midnight for our anniversary." On his frantic drive back, he even stopped by a late-night florist to buy a bouquet of red roses for me. Yet red roses had never been my favorite flower. Besides, when visiting the dead, one ought to bring white daisies instead. When Julian pulled up to the villa, it was exactly 11:50 PM. He tiptoed upstairs and gently pushed open the master bedroom door. "Clara, I'm home." Assuming I was fast asleep, he approached the bed quietly. Bathed in the faint moonlight, the bed was completely empty. He froze. Flipping on every light in the villa, he ran into the hallway, shouting my name at the top of his lungs: "Clara! Clara!" "I'm back! Where are you?" No response came. He searched every single room, upstairs and downstairs, but found no trace of me. Standing alone in the vast living room, Julian began to panic. In all the years we had been together, I had never stayed out past ten at night. Suddenly, Leo's interrupted phone call flashed through his mind. A dreadful premonition gripped his chest. He dialed Leo immediately. "Where is my wife? Why isn't she home this late?!" "Boss... Mrs. Vance isn't coming back." "What do you mean she isn't coming back?!" "Mrs. Vance... passed away two years ago..."