The Remains of Summer) Chapter 8
Soaked and shivering, Amelia stared
at her scraped palms. She remembered the
first time Ethan had taken her to meet his
parents. His mother had placed the same
heirloom bracelet in her hand, declaring,”
You’re the only daughter–in–law I’ll
ever accept.”
His friends had grinned.“One Mrs.
Carter, and that’s you.”
Now, his mother was accepting
another woman, and his friends were
calling another woman “Mrs. Carter.”
Like Ethan, they’d lied to her face,
their words of love and respect
meaningless.
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And the most devastating part? They‘
d known about Chloe all along. They’d all
conspired to keep her in the dark.
She was the only fool.
She crouched on the sidewalk, the
rain washing over her, passersby hurrying
past, no one offering shelter.
The downpour left Amelia with a raging fever, drifting in and out of
consciousness.
Back at the house, Ethan paced, his
voice tight.“She’s been burning up for three days! Why isn’t the fever breaking?!”
The doctors murmured, offering no
answers. The tension in the room was
suffocating.
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Ethan dismissed them with a wave of
his hand. He sat by Amelia’s bed, holding
her hand, his eyes red–rimmed.
“Baby, please get better…”
But Amelia remained still, pale and
unresponsive.
Another night passed. Finally, the
fever broke. Amelia woke, weak and
parched.
She tried to speak, but a crash from
outside the door cut her off.
Ethan’s strained voice followed.“I
told you to stay away from her!”
Then Chloe’s whiny voice, “But the
baby wants to see Daddy! And I have a
surprise for you. Want to see?”
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The sounds of rustling clothes and
panting breaths followed.
“Why are you dressed like that?”
Chloe giggled.“Don’t you like it?”
Ethan’s groan was the only answer.
Amelia was about to pull the covers
over her head when the door swung open.
“It’s cold out there. Let’s go inside.”
Amelia’s eyes flew open. In the faint
light reflected in the window, she saw
their intertwined shadows fall across the
sofa at the foot of her bed.
The rain intensified, the drumming
against the glass growing louder. The chill
air seeping through the gaps in the
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window mirrored the growing coldness
in Amelia’s heart.
After her illness, Amelia remained frail and listless, wrapped in blankets, staring out the window.
Ethan hovered anxiously. Amelia had barely eaten since waking up, refusing all his attempts to coax her. He brought tray after tray of comforting soup, but she remained unresponsive, ignoring him
completely.
Panic gnawed at him. The wedding was tomorrow, and she was like a living
shadow.
He knelt beside her, his voice
pleading.“Amelia, please eat something. I
know you’re not feeling well, but you
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need to keep your strength up.”
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“I was so scared when you had that fever. If anything else happened to you, I‘
d go crazy…”
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