Chapter 3

Sitting at the police station again, I felt like I was on pins and needles.

Fortunately, all the evidence showed that nothing had actually happened between me and the strange woman. We were both innocent. As for why she ended up in my bed, it seems she really had just drunkenly wandered into the wrong place.

After getting lectured by the police, on the way home I asked Lily why she had said those misleading things.

Rape accusations could ruin my reputation for life.

Plus, my company was in the middle of a restructuring. I had a good chance at a director position.

If anyone at work found out about this, even if it was all made up, it would still become the subject of gossip.

Lily glanced at me. There was a hint of some indescribable emotion in her eyes.

Her next words shocked me even more.

"Because I did it."

"That woman - I carried her to the bed."

My eyes widened in disbelief. I turned to look at Lily, about to ask why.

Just then, our taxi rear-ended the car in front of us.

The driver got out, cursing loudly as he went to argue with the other driver.

I glanced outside. The car we hit was an Audi. Apparently the other driver had changed lanes abruptly, causing the collision.

But that wasn't important.

What mattered was my wife, and why she would try to frame me as a rapist.

"Why?" I asked.

Deep down, I had an inkling. But I needed to hear it from her own mouth, to extinguish that last flicker of hope in my heart.

"This way we're even," she said.

"Neither of us owes the other anything."

What a thing to say - that we're even now.

"Did you think about the consequences of doing this?" I asked.

Lily seemed completely unconcerned as she turned to watch the argument outside.

"Of course I know the consequences."

"But if you love me, you shouldn't blame me."

I stared at her. The dim light cast shadows across her face. The red taillights reflected in her eyes, making her words seem even more vicious.

On the way home, I didn't say another word to her.

I knew she blamed me for causing her to lose her dignity, for the public humiliation that left her unable to show her face.

But if I'm being honest, I had never once looked down on her since the incident. I never showed even a hint of impatience. In fact, worried she might overthink things, I kept my distance from all other women. I turned down any work events I could avoid, just to stay home with her.

We even moved far away from where it happened. I promised her parents I would never divorce her.

What happened was an accident. More than anger, I felt heartbroken for her. Lily was the woman I had pursued for years, the apple of my eye. Even if her temper had become erratic, I felt it was understandable.

But last night, that one work event I couldn't skip was crucial for my promotion. I had to go.

Yet it was this one time that Lily decided to set such a trap.