Five Years of Lies: My Secret Escape

To the outside world, Xavier Sullivan and I are a loving couple. In truth, my father sold me to him to repay the debt he owes the Sullivan family.

When the five-year contract expires, Xavier's parents want me to extend it. They threaten me and tell me I'm heading for certain death if I refuse.

I have no choice but to fake my death and leave everything behind, taking only the child in my belly with me.

............

Out of the ten dates arranged by the Sullivans, I only ever saw Robert Sullivan and Maisie Corbus, but never Xavier Sullivan himself.

He always had countless excuses over the phone—he was in a meeting at work, drinking at a bar, or in bed with a woman.

I thought that our agreed marriage would automatically fall through due to his lack of cooperation.

But Xavier's parents, Robert and Maisie, looked at me with determination and said, "Once he sees you, he will agree to marry you."

When Xavier finally met me, he seemed completely entranced and agreed to the marriage right away.

I thought he had fallen in love with me at first sight. But later, I discovered that I was merely a stand-in for his first love, Elsa Zermeno.

The first time I saw Elsa was in a photo I found hidden inside one of Xavier's books. She looked very much like me, except for her eyes.

I had round doe-eyes that looked innocent and unassuming, whereas Elsa had upturned eyes that were seductive and alluring.

So, I confronted Xavier with the photo. He snatched it away and pushed me to the ground mercilessly.

With a frosty expression, he sneered, "Don't touch that photo. You're not worthy."

The second time I heard Elsa's name was in bed. Xavier was drunk and suddenly became uncharacteristically tender. As he kissed me, it was as if he was handling a fragile piece of art.

His gentle touch stirred my emotions. But as he leaned close to my ear, he whispered softly,

"Elsa."

I froze in an instant when I heard that name.

The next day, I went to Xavier's parents and asked, "Who is Elsa? Is she the woman who looks like me?"

Their expressions faltered immediately.

Maisie spat, "She's the temptress who almost cost Xavier his life!"

Robert tried to reassure me. "Don't worry, we've already sent her out of the country."

They kindly informed me that Elsa liked to wear jasmine-scented perfume because that was Xavier's favorite scent.

Xavier had a ghastly scar that was about eight inches on his leg. But every time I asked about it, he refused to tell me how he got it.

When I got home, I sprayed on the jasmine perfume I had just bought and coaxed Xavier into drinking with me.

Usually, he ignored me when he came home, but this time, he surprisingly agreed. I got Xavier drunk and asked him about the scar.

With red eyes, he confided, "Elsa and I were traveling