The Husband Who Never Loved Me

THE HUSBAND WHO NEVER LOVED ME

by

PRIMA

DEDICATION

To God Almighty, Thank You for giving me the strength to dream, the courage to begin, and the grace to keep going. To everyone who has ever felt unseen, unheard, or afraid to tell their story— may you find your voice, believe in your story, and never be afraid to let it be heard.

With love,

Prima

Chapter 21 — The Man Behind Adrian Chapter 22 — The False Father Chapter 23 — Still On The Photograph Chapter 24 — The Night She Disappeared Chapter 25 — The Order Chapter 26 — The Night Elena Was Born Chapter 27 — The Woman Who Claimed to Be Her Mother Chapter 28 — The Wrong Baby Chapter 29 — The Third Girl Chapter 30 — The Girl Who Was Taken Chapter 31 — Samuel’s Truth Chapter 32 — The Voice in the Dark Chapter 33 — The Man They Buried Chapter 34 — More On The Photograph Chapter 35 — The Girl Who Lived My Life Chapter 36 — The Last Lie Chapter 37 — Richard’s Confession Chapter 38 — The Man Who Looked Like Richard Chapter 39 — My Choice Chapter 40 — The Husband Who Loved Me Epilogue — One Year Later

Chapter 1 The Wedding Night

Elena Carter stared at herself in the mirror. The woman looking back at her was dressed in a beautiful white wedding gown, but she barely recognized herself. Her hands trembled as she touched the small diamond necklace around her neck. Today was supposed to be the happiest day of her life. Instead, she felt afraid. Behind her, the bedroom door opened. Elena turned. Adrian Blackwood walked into the room. Her husband. He had changed out of his wedding suit and was now wearing a black shirt with the sleeves rolled up to his elbows. His expression was cold, almost unreadable. He closed the door behind him. For several seconds, neither of them spoke. Elena swallowed nervously. "Adrian..." He looked at her. "What?" She forced a small smile. "I know this marriage wasn't exactly what either of us planned, but..." "Don't." His voice stopped her. Elena frowned. "Don't what?" "Don't pretend this is a love story." Her smile disappeared. Adrian walked toward the window and looked outside. "The marriage is happening because our families agreed to it. That's all." Elena lowered her eyes. She had known he didn't love her. She knew that before she walked down the aisle. But she had secretly hoped that things might change. Maybe after they lived together. Maybe after he got to know her. Maybe one day...

"Adrian," she whispered, "I'm not asking you to love me tonight." He turned around. "Good." His answer was so cold that her heart sank. He walked toward her and stopped a few feet away. "You need to understand something, Elena." She looked up. "This marriage is an arrangement." "I understand." "No." His eyes hardened. "You don't." Elena remained silent. Adrian continued. "You will have everything you need. A house. Money. Security. Whatever your family needs." She stared at him. "But?" "But you will stay out of my personal life." Her chest tightened. "And what about yours?" "You don't need to know anything about it." Elena couldn't believe what she was hearing. She had just married a man who was already telling her to stay away from him. "How long is this supposed to last?" she asked. "One year." "One year?" "After one year, we will divorce." Elena stared at him. A strange feeling settled inside her. She had become his wife that morning. And he was already planning their divorce.

"Fine," she said quietly. Adrian looked surprised. "Fine?" She nodded. "If that's what you want." She turned away from him. But before she could walk away, Adrian spoke again. "There is one more thing." Elena stopped. "Never ask me why I married you." She slowly turned around. "Why?" His face became completely expressionless. "Because if you find out the truth, you may regret ever becoming my wife." Elena's heart began beating faster. "What truth?" Adrian said nothing. He simply walked past her and opened the bedroom door. Then he stopped. Without looking back, he said, "Goodnight, Elena." The door closed. Elena stood alone in the room. She slowly sat on the edge of the bed. Why had he married her? She had spent weeks asking herself that question. Now she finally understood one thing. Adrian Blackwood wasn't hiding his feelings. He was hiding a secret. And somehow... that secret was connected to her.

Chapter 2 The Blackwood Family

Elena barely slept. Adrian's words kept repeating in her mind. If you find out the truth, you may regret ever becoming my wife. What truth? By six in the morning, she finally gave up trying to sleep. She got out of bed, changed into a simple cream dress, and walked downstairs. The Blackwood mansion was enormous. She had visited it once before the wedding, but yesterday had been so overwhelming that she hadn't noticed how quiet the house was too quiet. A maid was arranging flowers in the sitting room. When she saw Elena, she immediately stopped. "Good morning, Mrs. Blackwood." Elena smiled politely. "Good morning." The maid lowered her head and continued working. Elena walked toward the dining room. She expected to find Adrian there. Instead, three people were already sitting at the long dining table. An older man sat at the head. Adrian's father. Beside him sat a beautiful woman in her early fifties. His mother. And across from them was a young woman Elena had never met. Everyone stopped talking when Elena entered. The older woman looked her up and down. "So," she said coldly, "you're finally awake." Elena hesitated. "Good morning." The woman didn't answer. The older man gave Elena a small nod. "Come and sit."

Elena sat in the empty chair beside Adrian's mother. Nobody spoke for several seconds. Then the young woman across the table smiled. It wasn't a friendly smile. "So you're Elena." "Yes." "I'm Sophia." "Nice to meet you." Sophia leaned back in her chair. "I've heard quite a lot about you." Elena looked at her. "Really?" "Not much, actually." Sophia laughed softly. "That's the problem." Elena didn't understand. Before she could ask, Adrian walked into the room. Everyone became quiet. His eyes immediately found Elena. For a moment, something changed in his expression. Concern? No. It disappeared too quickly. He walked to the table and sat beside her. "Good morning," he said. Elena looked at him. "Good morning." His mother placed her cup down. "Adrian, we need to talk." "About what?" "Your marriage." Adrian's jaw tightened. "We've already discussed it."

"No. We discussed the arrangement before the wedding. We did not discuss what happens now." Elena looked between them. His father finally spoke. "You brought Elena into this family. That means she has a right to know certain things." Adrian's expression hardened. "Not yet." His father frowned. "Not yet?" Adrian stood. "Not in front of everyone." Sophia suddenly laughed. "Why? Afraid she'll discover something?" Adrian looked at her. "Enough." Sophia's smile disappeared. Elena felt increasingly uncomfortable. Something was wrong. Everyone seemed to know something except her. Adrian reached for Elena's hand under the table. She looked down in surprise. His fingers closed around hers. His grip was firm. Almost like a warning. "Come with me," he said. Elena followed him out of the dining room. The moment they reached the hallway, she pulled her hand away. "What is happening?" "Nothing." "Don't lie to me." Adrian stopped walking. His eyes met hers. "You ask too many questions." "And you refuse to answer any."

For the first time, Elena saw anger in his eyes. But it wasn't directed at her. It looked like fear. He glanced toward the dining room. Then he lowered his voice. "Listen carefully." Elena waited. "Whatever you hear from my family today, don't believe everything." "Why?" "Because someone in this house wants you gone." Elena's heart stopped. "Who?" Adrian looked at her for a long moment. "I don't know." Then his phone rang. He answered. "Hello?" His expression changed immediately. "What?" Elena watched him carefully. He listened in silence. Then he said, "Send me the photograph." A few seconds later, his phone received a message. Adrian looked at the screen. His face went pale. Elena stepped closer. "What happened?" He didn't answer. She looked at his phone. There was a photograph. A photograph of Elena. But it wasn't a photograph from yesterday's wedding. It was much older. Elena stared at the image. She recognized the place immediately. Her childhood home. Her breathing stopped. "Where did you get that?" Adrian slowly lifted his eyes to hers. "I didn't." He turned the phone toward her. "The person who sent it did."

A message appeared underneath the photograph. YOU MARRIED THE WRONG WOMAN! Elena's hands began to shake. Then another message appeared. SHE IS NOT WHO YOU THINK SHE IS!

Chapter 3 The Photograph

Elena stared at the message. SHE IS NOT WHO YOU THINK SHE IS! Her heart pounded. "What does that mean?" she whispered. Adrian didn't answer. He kept staring at the photograph. Elena…