James stood alone in his office, the silence pressing in around him like fog. The house felt emptier than ever, despite Susanna's presence. Something had shifted. Since Mary's passing, a restlessness had taken root inside him, and it refused to let go.
He had spent weeks in denial—blaming circumstances, blaming Susanna, even blaming Mary herself. But now that the noise had faded, the silence revealed something far more uncomfortable: the truth.
Driven by an unfamiliar need to understand, James began sifting through Mary's old belongings and files. At first, he expected receipts for shopping, beauty treatments, or maybe half-finished home projects. Instead, what he found was something entirely different.
One by one, newspaper clippings, architectural plans, and charity proposals spilled out before him. There were articles from local papers praising a mysterious young architect—Marie Bee—for her visionary work in revitalizing Silvercity's old quarter. She had designed community centers, affordable housing units, and green public spaces long before they became trendy. She had fought for zoning changes, secured funds from skeptical investors, and even created internships for underprivileged youth.
James's hands trembled as he uncovered more. A foundation she had co-created to support women fleeing domestic abuse. Job-training programs for single mothers. Renovation projects that had employed hundreds of workers from struggling neighborhoods.
"She did all this… and I thought she was idle," he whispered to himself.
In a meeting with a city official later that week—one he had arranged to discuss a stalled project—he heard the name again. "Marie Bee? She was a legend. Quiet, but brilliant. One of the best. Wait… you didn't know?"
James shook his head, unable to speak.
That night, as he sat alone in the vast silence of his penthouse, a new emotion emerged: awe. Mary had never boasted. Never once asked for recognition. She had built an empire of good, all while he sneered from his pedestal.
And the cruelest irony?
He had fallen for a glittering actress who basked in attention… while discarding the one woman who changed a city—silently.
For the first time, James wept not just out of guilt—but because he realized he had never truly known his wife.He never care.