Forced Marriage: My Wife, My Redemption
Chapter 97: Friends from the past

Chapter 97: Friends from the past

"Davis, I’m okay. You don’t have to blame yourself." Her voice was steady, reassuring. Davis inhaled deeply, his expression dense. "You shouldn’t have done that alone."

Jessica’s smile softened. "I wasn’t alone. I had you with me, even if not physically. Aren’t we chatting through the ear piece?"

His throat tightened at the question, he sighed. He can never win against her.

With meticulous care he quickly poured her a glass of water which she took a quick sip from moisturing her parched throat.

While they chatted about the incident, a knock came at the door, breaking the moment. Davis didn’t let go of her hand, and Jessica didn’t pull hers away either.

Their fingers remained intertwined, the warmth between them speaking louder than any words at that moment.

Richard entered the room, and a knowing smile plastered his lips as he took in the sight of Jessica and Davis intertwined hands.

Jessica coughed lightly, shifting in slight embarrassment, but she knew there was no avoiding this.

Richard had always been the one managing things in her absence especially since she got married to Davis. He has been the one taking orders on her behalf after consultation while she will do her best to make them ready for delivery.

Also, her itinerary has been cleared off during this time with the reason she is on leave. After ensuring she was safely brought back last night, he had left to handle other pressing matters. And had returned few minutes ago.

"Richard, I think it’s time for you to officially meet my husband, though I planned you pay a visit but it’s unfortunate.. So I owe you one" Jessica announced, glancing between the two men.

Both Davis and Richard turned their full attention to her as she spoke, neither having yet taken a proper look at the other.

"Davis, I’ve been through a lot, and in that journey, I made some incredible friends—both male and female. Richard is one of them, my closest male best friend." She turned to Richard with a small smile. "And Richie, meet my husband, Davis Allen."

As the two men turned toward each other and extended their hands for a handshake, their gazes finally met—and the air froze as they stared at each other for some time.

"You?!" They both exclaimed at the same time.

Jessica’s brows shot up in bewilderment. Before she could even demand an explanation, something even more shocking happened—their hands clasped into each other with strength in their handshake.

Richard would have embraced him but then he couldn’t because he wouldn’t want to topple the wheelchair.

Jessica blinked, watching as what was supposed to be a simple introduction turned into a completely unexpected reunion.

Before she could question it, Richard patted Davis back lightly, their reactions filled with emotions too complex to understand.

Jessica clicked her tongue, she folded her arms while resting her back on the pillow for comfort. Giving them to reverie their meeting which is unexpected.

"Okay... I was expecting a polite greeting, maybe a little small talk, but this? Someone mind explaining to me, I don’t get it?" She said with intense smirk.

Richard pulled away first, his expression shifting from excitement to deep contemplation.

His gaze dropped to Davis’ legs, and his face fell as he took in the sight of him in a wheelchair. A deep sharp breath escaped his lips him at the sight. A glanced subtly at Jessica..

Jessica caught the change in his demeanor. "Richard?" She frowned. "What is it?"

Richard turned to her as he quickly masked his expression, eyes filled with something akin to disbelief. "Jessy, don’t you recognize him?"

Jessica’s brows furrowed. "What do you mean? Off course, I know he’s my husband"

"No, you are wrong." Richard shook his head. His throat bobbed as he swallowed hard. Can you recall about fifteen years ago?

Silence settled in the room as the weight of his words sank in. Fifteen years ago, was a story none of them would want to think about.

Jessica’s breath hitched. Her mind reeled, struggling to grasp the sudden flood of memories rushing back.

Several situations they had faced at that time yet there is one person that had been lost since then. She glanced at Davis "Could it be that...?" She mused.

At the beginning of their marriage, Jessica had always felt a sense of familiarity with Davis.

Sometimes she couldn’t help wondering if her memory is playing tricks on her. But as the day goes by, she began to relax into the situation unbothered as though it was a normal recurrence.

Taking a closer look at Davis now, she was able to merge the blurry face of the teenager in her memory to the the man before her.

Her mouth fell open in shock while her eyes glistened with unshed tears. She has missed him, looked for him and above all had been anxious to find out if he made it alive or dead —but no answers.

The night fifteen years ago was supposed to be like any other—a clear sky with the moon shining brightly, casting a serene glow over the world. While others reveled in the night’s eerie calmness, three children wandered through the darkness, burdened with pain, loss, and betrayal.

For Jessica, it was a night she became an abandoned and unloved daughter of the Brown family diplomatically sent on an exile. Her mother died, and before she could even grieve, the wolves within her so-called family descended upon her.

In less than a month, all that once belonged to her mother was seized. Then she was too young, too powerless to fight back, leaving her abandoned in a world that no longer felt like home.

Abandoned on the road side by the cab paid to take her to grandmother, she had no other option than to walk the remaining.

For Richard, the night was no less cruel. He had been adopted from the orphanage at a tender age that even he never knew he was adopted. His adoptive parents, once warm and loving, had cast him out without warning.

The same people who had once held him close now rejected and disowned him, treating him as if he had never been their son though they now had it.

He had nowhere to go, no one to turn to—just a hollow feeling of betrayal that gnawed at his soul, with one conviction "He must live to make them beg and hope for his help."

For Davis, the horrors of that night reached a whole new level. He had been kidnapped, held hostage, and terrorized for days, enduring pain, hunger, and fear while trapped in the clutches of his ruthless captors.

Throughout his captivity, he constantly devised escape routes, but each attempt ended in failure—until Jessica intervened.

She has stumbled into the building by chance. She found him, weak and wounded, and despite her own struggles, she helped him out the building while they ran the whole night in order to escape his captors.

He finally managed to break free. Yet, even as he ran, stumbling through the desolate streets, fear and grief clawed at him, threatening to consume what little remained of his shattered existence.

When she brought him back, Richard had been skeptical but together they treated his injuries with unwavering dedication.

In the aftermath of their losses, the three children—Davis, Jessica, and Richard—found solace in each other.

They coexisted in an abandoned apartment, surviving by hunting for wild fruits and scavenging for whatever scraps they could find.

The nights were cold, and the days were filled with uncertainty, but in their shared pain, they formed a bond stronger than blood.

During this time, Davis developed a deep, unshakable attachment to Jessica. He watched her endure hardship with quiet strength, and in his heart, he made a silent promise.

When the time came for him to leave, he promised to seek them out.

Even after he became engaged to Vera, he never stopped searching for Jessica. He asked questions, followed trails, and clung to the hope that he would one day reunite with the girl who had once saved him from despair.