"Yeah, you feel he deserved it," Fred shot back, tone serious, "but that's not how the public will see it. No one knows who attacked Sabe yet. People might pin the blame on you. You're expected to be in the hospital right now, sitting by his bedside, crying or something. But it's Matthew that's there instead of you."
Fred paused, letting his next words sink in.
"Sabe wouldn't want people gossiping that he values his whore over his official, legally wedded partner. He can't afford that kind of stain on his reputation. And you know he doesn't love you anymore. He's always searching for a way to discard you, just waiting for a valid excuse. So he'll twist it… say you abandoned him in his hardest moment just to sleep with someone else." Fred's voice hardened, every word sharpening like a blade. "He'll say he tried to get you back, tried to tell you he loved you, but you ignored him. Only for him to get kidnapped because of your new 'fornication partner.'"
