Darling, You Lose

Chapter 21: The Locked Drawer

She looks over her shoulder nervously, half-expecting to see Rafael standing there, watching her, ready to call her out. But the room is still, the only sound the soft rustle of papers in the drawer. Elena swallows, steeling herself. She’s come this far. She can’t stop now.

But the worst part isn’t the photos of her. It’s the other set of photos, the ones she hadn’t expected to find.

There are photos of Alexander.

She stares at them for a long time, her breath shallow as she looks through them. He’s walking down a street. He’s entering a building. There’s one from the back, as if someone’s watching him from behind a corner. There’s even a close-up of his face, taken from the shadows.

Her mind races. Rafael’s been watching Alexander too. He’s been tracking him. She thought it was just her he was obsessed with, but now she knows—he’s been keeping tabs on Alexander for years. This isn’t just some coincidence. This is a pattern.

Elena can feel the heat rise in her chest. Anger. Betrayal. How could Rafael do this? How could he invade their lives like this, taking pictures, collecting information, keeping it all hidden from her?

As if the photos weren’t enough, she flips through a few more pages, her fingers trembling, and finds a report—an in-depth background check on Vivienne.

Vivienne.

Rafael has been gathering information on her too. There are details in the report she didn’t know, things she had no idea Rafael had access to. Her family, her childhood, her history—every little thing that could give Rafael more power over them, more control. It’s like he’s built some twisted dossier on their entire lives.

Elena’s mind is reeling. The weight of everything she’s discovered is almost too much to process in one sitting. She’s suddenly feeling dizzy, her head spinning as she tries to make sense of it all.

She can’t keep looking at this. Not now. Not when it feels like everything is slipping out of her control.

But then her eyes catch something else—a small, folded document buried underneath the rest of the papers. A marriage certificate.

Her breath catches in her throat as she pulls it out, hands shaking. She unfolds it carefully, her eyes scanning the words. Her name is at the top, the ink black and bold. Elena.

She stares at it for a long time, her heart thundering in her chest. There, right beneath her name, is Rafael’s. And the date.

It’s signed.

Her stomach drops as she reads the words: Marriage Certificate.

Her mind goes blank for a moment. A marriage certificate? How can this be? She hasn’t signed anything, hasn’t agreed to this. There’s no way Rafael could have…

But the signature is there. His signature, right next to hers.