POV – Alex Besson
My name is Alex Besson. I run a company specializing in import-export. We are doing well, we are recognized worldwide, and I am proud of it.
My wife, Asael Besson, is the woman of my life. We have known each other since our teenage years, and we have been married for twenty-six years. Those years have not been easy… far from it.
---
Flashback – 26 years earlier
We are at the hospital.
Asael has just had another miscarriage. That makes more than six now.
I enter the room and see her sleeping on the hospital bed. Seeing her like this breaks my heart. With every miscarriage, she stays strong… and she is always the one who comforts me, who tells me it is God's will and that we will have "many other children."
But today, she says nothing.
She doesn't smile.
She just stares into emptiness.
I walk closer, sit beside her, and gently stroke her hair. She turns her head toward me… and tears begin to fall.
Asael: "I… I'm sorry…" she says through sobs.
I immediately take her into my arms.
Me: "It's not your fault. You're not responsible."
Asael: "Yes… I am. I couldn't protect our baby… or the others. I'm a bad mother…"
Me: "Stop. You have no right to say that. You are not a bad mother. You said it yourself—we will surely have many children later. So… don't cry anymore."
I feel her relax, just a little.
I try to smile.
Me: "And besides, it's usually my job to feel guilty, not yours."
She lets out a faint smile. Yes… even in the worst moments, I joke. It has often saved us.
We stay like that for hours. Then she whispers:
Asael: "I want to go home… I don't want to stay here anymore."
Me: "Alright. I'll ask for permission to leave."
I go to see the doctor. He agrees—according to him, there's no need to keep her.
---
We head back to the car. The driver starts the engine, begins to reverse… then hits something.
Me: "What was that?"
Driver: "I don't know, sir. I'll check."
I get out as well.
A woman is sitting on the ground. Her clothes are torn. Bruises cover her body. She's shaking, terrified.
Asael gets out of the car at the same time. Her eyes widen.
The woman: "Help me… please…"
Asael rushes toward her and helps her up.
Me: "We're going to take you to the hospital."
At my words, she freezes, as if I had just uttered the worst threat.
Her: "No… not the hospital… He'll find me… no—"
She faints in Asael's arms.
The driver helps carry her.
Driver: "Sir, where should I take her?"
I think for a moment… then say:
Me: "To the hospital."
Asael: "No. She said it, Alex. She was afraid. Let's listen to her."
Me: "Asael, but—"
Asael: "Take her home. I can take care of her."
Me: "I don't know… we don't know her and—"
Asael: "Please. Let's help her."
I sigh.
Me: "Alright. But only for you."
I give in because it seems to do her good… and besides, she's a doctor—she'll know what to do.
We bring the woman home. We settle her into the guest room, and Asael immediately begins to care for her.
---
Three days pass.
The woman still hasn't woken up. Asael watches over her tirelessly.
Deep down, I'm relieved—it keeps her mind occupied… she thinks less about the loss.
Finally, the woman opens her eyes. She looks around, still terrified.
Asael: "Hello. How do you feel?"
Her: "Fine… I think. Thank you… Where am I?"
Me: "In our home. You didn't want to go to the hospital, so we brought you here."
Her: "Thank you… truly."
Asael: "What's your name?"
Her: "My name is Mina Watson… I'm from—"
She stops, hesitant.
Asael: "Nice to meet you, Mina. I'm Asael Besson. And this is my husband, Alex."
Me: "Tell me, Mina… why were you in that state? And why did you refuse to go to the hospital?
Mina takes a long breath. Her hands tremble slightly, as if what she is about to say costs her dearly. She lifts her eyes toward me, then toward Asael, and whispers:
Mina: "I… I can explain… a little…"
She sighs, a heavy breath, filled with exhaustion and fear.
Mina: "I've been married for five years. At the beginning… it was perfect. Happiness. He was attentive, gentle… I truly thought I had found the right person."
Her voice breaks slightly. Asael gently squeezes her hand, encouraging her to continue.
Mina: "But one day… he changed. I don't know why. He started shouting, getting angry over nothing… and then he started hitting me. At first… I didn't say anything. I told myself it would pass… that it was my fault."
She lowers her eyes, ashamed… though she has no reason to be.
Mina, fighting back tears: "Even when I was pregnant… he didn't stop. He hit me again and again. I was so afraid…"
She places a hand over her stomach, as if by instinct. I feel my heart tighten.
Mina: "Because of all that… because of his blows… the doctors said that… I will never be able to have children. Ever."
Silence falls over the room. A heavy, almost suffocating silence.
Asael brings a hand to her mouth, shaken. I see her eyes fill with tears—she, who has just lost yet another child… and this woman before her who will never be able to carry one.
I swallow hard. Anger rises in my chest, a cold, uncontrollable anger.
Me, with a gentleness I struggle to maintain:
"Mina… what he did to you is unforgivable. And I promise you one thing: as long as you are under our roof, no one will lay a hand on you. No one."
Mina closes her eyes, as if relieved to finally say it, to finally breathe.
Mina, in a very small voice:
"Thank you… I didn't know where to go…"
Asael wraps an arm around her shoulders, comforting her as if she had known her forever.
A few months later, Mina had settled in with us. Strangely enough, everything happened naturally. She got along very well with Asael, and thanks to her, my wife slowly began to smile again. Mina helped her, made her laugh, went everywhere with her… and Asael, by taking care of her, gradually forgot the pain of her miscarriages.
As for Mina's husband… he was in prison for the horrors he had inflicted on her. She divorced him quickly. And for the first time in a long while, I saw her truly happy.
One evening, I was in our bedroom, putting away a few files, when Asael came in. She sat down beside me, her head lowered. Her shoulders trembled slightly. She tried to hide her tears… but I know her too well.
I immediately stand up and gently take her arm.
Me: "My love… why are you crying? Did someone say something to you? What's going on?"
She takes a deep breath, but her voice trembles as she speaks.
Asael: "I… I'm pregnant."
I freeze. My mouth falls open.
Pregnant.
Pregnant.
Pregnant.
She is pregnant.
I smile and pull her into my arms at once, my heart racing.
Me, in a low voice: "That's wonderful news… incredible news. But then… why are you crying?"
She clutches my shirt, as if afraid I might disappear.
Asael: "Because… I'm scared. I don't want to lose our baby again. I want to give birth, Alex… I want to hold our child in my arms. If I lose this one too… I won't survive."
Her words pierce straight through me. I hold her even tighter, as if to protect her from everything.
Me: "No. That won't happen. Listen to me carefully: I will protect you, and our child. Nothing will happen to you. I will defend you both until my very last breath."
At those words, she slowly calms down. And this time, she is the one who holds me tightly.
---
✦ End of the flashback ✦
I am abruptly pulled out of my thoughts when one of my pens falls to the floor. I straighten up, run a hand over my face. Life… what irony. Today, we have a nineteen-year-old daughter. She overflows with energy, laughs all the time, and is our pride. I love her more than anything in the world. I would do anything to protect her.
A knock sounds at my door.
Me: "Come in."
My secretary peeks through the doorway, hesitation on her face.
Secretary: "Mr. Besson… excuse me for disturbing you, but another envelope has arrived for you."
She places a red envelope on my desk.
Secretary: "Like… the previous ones."
Her voice trembles slightly—she knows exactly what it means.
Me: "Thank you, Claire. You may go."
She nods and quickly leaves, closing the door behind her.
I pick up the envelope. It is identical to the others I have been receiving for months. Inside, a message written in tight letters:
"Your daughter's honor will be tarnished, and she will suffer a disappointment she will never forget."
I place the letter back on my desk, my fist clenched. For weeks now, someone has been threatening to ruin my daughter's reputation. I hired the best detective in the city. The result: nothing. No trace. No clue. Always the same conclusion—impossible to identify the sender.
And me… it eats away at me.
It frustrates me.
It fills me with rage.
---
Back home, I walk into the living room. Mina and Asael are sitting side by side, as always, talking quietly. But the moment they see me… their smiles fade. They know. They can see it on my face—I have received another envelope.
...
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