She could not hear any emotion from the cold, mechanical voice. Yet, for the first time in days, Bertha finally smiled in relief. She was finally going to be free.
“Thank you for the gift.”
Right then, Simon opened the door and came in.
“What gift?”
She turned around. There he was, her husband who had disappeared for a week.
Noticing that Simon had not realized she had made a call, she smiled. Fortunately, she had lowered her phone when she uttered her final sentence. So, he probably thought that she was only sending a voice message. “It’s nothing. A roommate from my time at university sent me some specialties from her place.”
Simon did not ask any further questions and hugged her. “It’s been so long since we last saw each other, and you’ve become thinner. I’ve been abroad over the past few days, and I’ve hired a medical team that’s perfect for you. They’ll be installing those man-made cochleas for you.”
He placed his chin on her shoulder and took a whiff of her scent.
However, Bertha remembered the photo of him making love to Luna in the sea of flowers. She found him disgusting and pushed him away.
“You just got back. You should take a shower.”
Simon patted her head dotingly and signed excitedly, “In another two days, you can hear my voice again. During our anniversary, I want you to listen as I serenade you.”
Bertha smiled. “Sure. I look forward to it.”
Simon’s eyes lit up. He wanted to take a shower and make love to Bertha when his phone suddenly rang.
Outside, Bertha heard Simon answer his phone in the bathroom, and she could hear Luna’s name clearly.
Just as she expected, three minutes later, Simon rushed out while his hair was still wet.
“Bertha, my team from abroad has been detained by customs…” he signed anxiously.
Bertha waved nonchalantly. “Go on. You shouldn’t delay anything of importance.”
However, she could clearly hear Luna screaming in pain through the phone. Simon had not actually hung up.
After a moment of hesitation, he chose to leave in the end.
Once Simon disappeared from her sight, Bertha returned to her room and brought out the luggage bag she had packed up a long time ago.
Honestly, if Simon had stayed for even a moment longer and returned to their bedroom, he would have noticed something. The spots where Bertha’s belongings were supposed to be were already empty.
Unfortunately for Simon, he had not slept in their bedroom for a long time.
Her luggage bag was not big. Meanwhile, the maids who were supposed to work at night had been transferred to other places with the excuse that Simon did not like it when others bothered them at night. The maids could only stay during the day.
After Bertha entered the car, the view of the house gradually became smaller and blurrier before it disappeared, just like the thread binding her with Simon.
Before her plane took off, she imagined an eighteen-year-old Simon standing in front of her.
He was full of life as he stood among the crowd of people. “Bertha, fly off. You have to be happy.”
The engine roared, and she looked away as the plane flew into the sky.
