How a Dying Woman Rewrote Her Epilogue

Esmeralda's outburst came out of nowhere.

Elodie barely had time to react.

Jarrod staggered back two steps under the force, but his core remained steady— he didn't even sway much.

His dark eyes flicked over Esmeralda. If he felt anything, he didn't show it.

Elodie understood; a man like Jarrod never bothered to argue with women about such things.

But Esmeralda's emotions had long since slipped out of her control. Elodie's illness had already pushed her to the edge; all of her anger now found one target -the man in front of her. "Why is it that someone like you gets to be just fine? What gives you the right? You cheat, you're cold and cruel, and you left Elodie to carry all that pain alone—are you even human?"

Esmeralda was beyond furious.

She couldn't hold back anymore.

Nor did she care that the person she was shouting at was Jarrod.noveldrama

All she felt was heartache and outrage for Elodie.

This anger had been waiting to be unleashed.

Jarrod watched Esmeralda silently, his voice calm, his gaze shadowed. "I get it— you're her best friend, and you're standing up for her. That makes sense. But I've never seen you this angry before. What happened today, Ms. Mercer? Mind enlightening me?"

Esmeralda froze, words caught in her throat.

She clenched her fists. "What reason do you want? Is there anything you've done that's innocent? Jarrod, without you, Elodie's life would be a thousand times better. You're the reason for all of this!"

Elodie had worried Esmeralda might, in a fit of anger, reveal everything.

Thankfully, Esmeralda managed to hold herself back, not letting a single secret slip.

Jarrod heard her words; his long lashes trembled just slightly.

In certain moments, even he had wondered the same thing—if Elodie would have been happier without him.

He fell quiet for a few seconds, then looked directly at Elodie. "All that time we were together, if there was something you couldn't bear, why didn't you just tell me-like she does now?"

Elodie felt her throat tighten.

There was a time she'd thought Jarrod didn't love her anymore—maybe he'd never truly loved her at all.

Women are sensitive about these things; the smallest change in the wind, and suddenly, it's impossible to speak your heart. Because it feels humiliating.

"Come inside, Esmeralda," she said, taking Esmeralda's arm and punching in the code, not once looking back at the man standing behind them.

Even though she knew Jarrod was probably waiting for her to come back.

But she'd spent enough of her life waiting around for him.

Jarrod stared at the door as it closed again.

He lowered his eyes, emptiness clouding his gaze.

Elodie had changed so much. She didn't tolerate any more injustice, didn't make room for compromise.

He exhaled, almost a sigh. She was finally moving on, growing stronger. How could he resent that?

The moment they stepped inside, Esmeralda's face was still twisted with anger. "What was Jarrod doing here?"

"He lives across the hall," Elodie replied, setting down her bag. She sounded far calmer now.

Esmeralda looked stunned. “He's not trying to get back together, is he?"

Elodie pressed her lips together, hesitated, and then said quietly, "There's something else I never actually divorced him."

Esmeralda's eyes went wide.

She needed a moment to process that.

Elodie let out a slow breath. "There was a problem with the paperwork. The system never processed it so technically, we're still married. And he has no clue about my illness."

"So I figure, sooner or later, we'll have to sort things out. But he doesn't need to know about the pregnancy."

She didn't want to waste energy on meaningless things. It was better if they both stayed out of each other's lives as much as possible.

Esmeralda understood—and honestly, coming from Elodie, it made perfect sense.

That was just who Elodie was: when

she loved, she gave her whole heart;

but when she decided to draw the line, she never looked back. She cut things off cleanly, never dragging things out.

Now that she knew the divorce hadn't gone through, Esmeralda was even more furious. "You're absolutely right not to tell him! Jarrod deserves every bit of this. He has no right to know what you're going through, no right to interfere with your choices or your life. If he tries to win you back, and finds out you're pregnant-of course he'll care! But after your surgery, you should throw it in his face. Let's see if the almighty Mr. Silverstein can still keep that smug smile."