Chapter 6

For days, Alexander wandered the city, retracing her steps. He walked through the market where she had once bought flowers for their son, through the quiet streets where she had spent endless nights alone. Each step deepened the ache in his chest, a relentless reminder of all he had taken for granted. At the orphanage, he met a woman who had known her—Madame Bisset, an elderly caretaker with kind, knowing eyes. "She loved him fiercely," Madame Bisset said, her voice heavy with sorrow. "Even when she had nothing, she made sure he had everything. I have never seen a mother so devoted." Alexander swallowed the lump in his throat. "And what of him? Julien?" Madame Bisset sighed. "He was a beautiful child. So full of life. But illness... it took him too soon. She was never the same after that. She spoke less, smiled less. And when she stopped coming here altogether, I knew her heart had finally broken beyond repair." Alexander clenched his fists. He had been so blind, so careless. He had spent years chasing fleeting pleasures while the greatest love of his life had suffered in silence. And now, there was nothing he could do to change the past.