Page 166 of My Ruthless Husband

“What is it?”

She pulls out a folded piece of paper from her pocket. She hands it to me, and I unfold it.

Hey,

It’s me. Matt. Well, I suck at writing letters. Don’t even remember the last time I wrote one but I wanted to start this letter by telling you that I miss you.

I miss you like crazy, River. The center feels empty without you. The art sessions lack their spark, and even Erin’s cookies taste a little less sweet without you to share them.

I can’t shake the feeling that something’s off since you stopped coming. I hope it’s not me that pushed you away. If I hurt you in any way or said something when we were in the storage room, I’m really sorry.

Please come back. Everyone misses you. Even the moody Anne asked about you.

When you left that day with your husband, I was so mad. After meeting him, I understand the sadness in your eyes now.

The asshole is intimidating, and even though I might probably lose, I would still fight him for you. Just say the word.

I promised to find out about your father, so I started looking into Melissa. That’s when I found out she’d been in a serious accident just over a week ago and was now in a coma. The news left me rattled.

What made it worse was what I saw at the hospital. She was completely alone—no family, no friends, not even her ex-husband, who couldn’t be bothered to show up.

The more I looked into her life, the darker the picture became. Her husband went bankrupt a few months back, and their marriage had been falling apart even before that. Then there was her father—he took his own life six months ago. No one knows why. Some blame the mountain of debts he couldn’t escape; others say he was tormented by loan sharks. The truth remains a mystery.

Her mother, Nadine Thompson, has turned her back on her entirely. She’s now working as a live-in housekeeper for a surgeon and refuses to acknowledge Melissa at all. Even when the hospital contacted her after the accident, she didn’t come.

Melissa was hit by a car near her apartment, and the authorities said the CCTV footage from the area was mysteriously wiped. I can’t shake the feeling that something isn’t right.

I’m still gathering information, but I’ll keep you updated through Vicky’s email.

And don’t worry about your father; I’m going to look into him next, and find out what’s happening.

Take care of yourself, River.

Love,

Matt.

I collapse back into the chair.

“River? What’s wrong? What does the letter say?” Vicky’s voice breaks through my haze of shock.

Too stunned to reply, I pass the letter to her. She reads quickly, her face shifting from confusion to disbelief. “Oh my god.”

“Yeah.” I whisper, the reality of it all crashing down around me.

“Her accident sounds like—”

“It was planned.” Dread pools deep in my stomach. The thought that Damian might have a hand in this chills me to the bone.

“I need to find him,” I murmur. I excuse myself, urgency driving me as I hunt for Damian.

William Thompson is gone. I still can’t wrap my head around the fact that he committed suicide. The man who always seemed so larger-than-life, so sure of himself and unshakable, chose to end it all. It doesn’t feel real. He was Dad’s best friend—I can’t imagine how broken he must be.

And Melissa… she’s lying in a coma. Then there’s Nadine. How can a mother turn her back on her own daughter like that? Abandon her in a time like this? It’s unthinkable.

I find him in his home office, seated at his desk, papers scattered around him. I stride in without knocking. He looks up.

“I needed to talk to you.”

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