When Love Betrays

Night came quietly.

It did not announce itself with thunder or rain. It simply crept in, one minute at a time, turning the pale afternoon light into shadows that stretched across the living room floor. Gabriel noticed it only when the clock on the wall chimed softly, reminding him that hours had passed.

Victoria still wasn’t home.

He stood near the window, staring out at the empty driveway. The porch light had been on since evening, casting a lonely yellow glow over the concrete. Any second now, he told himself. She was probably tired. Maybe Aunt Mary kept her longer than expected. Maybe she fell asleep on the couch there, surrounded by old memories.

Yet his chest felt tight.

Gabriel glanced at his phone again. No missed calls. No messages.

That wasn’t like her.

Victoria always sent something—even if it was just a short text saying she was okay. Especially now, when her health was fragile and he hovered over her every movement. She never wanted him to worry.

He unlocked his phone and dialed her number.

Once.

Twice.

The number you are calling is switched off.

His brow furrowed. He tried again, slower this time, as if dialing carefully might change the outcome.

The same voice answered him.

A strange unease crept into his stomach.

“Why is your phone off?” he muttered under his breath.

He walked across the living room, then back again, his steps restless. He glanced toward the kitchen, where he’d earlier unpacked groceries she liked—fruit she could stomach, soup ingredients, herbal tea. He had planned to cook for her, make her sit at the table, watch her eat a few spoonfuls, praise her like a child for finishing.

Now the groceries sat untouched.

Gabriel wiped his palms on his trousers and scrolled through his contacts. His finger hovered for a second before he tapped another name.

Aunt Mary.

The call rang briefly, then went dead.

He frowned and tried again.

This time, it didn’t ring at all.

Disconnected.

His heart skipped.

“That’s odd…” he murmured.

Mary always answered. Even if she was busy, even if she was annoyed with him, she always answered when it came to Victoria.

A memory surfaced in his mind, sharp and sudden.

Victoria’s voice, earlier that day.

I want to go to my family house.

At the time, he’d smiled and agreed too easily, relieved she wanted something that didn’t involve questions or confrontation. He hadn’t thought much of it then.

Now, the thought lodged itself in his chest like a stone.

Her family house.

Gabriel grabbed his keys.

The drive felt wrong from the beginning.

The streets were familiar, yet everything seemed distorted, as though the city itself had shifted while he wasn’t looking. Traffic lights glowed red for too long. Cars passed him too slowly. Every second stretched, pulling at his nerves.

He drummed his fingers against the steering wheel, his mind jumping between possibilities.

Maybe she was just upset.

Maybe she wanted space.

Maybe she needed to be alone with memories of her parents.

But why turn off her phone?

And why wouldn’t Mary answer?

By the time he reached the neighborhood, his heart was pounding.

The Bathram family house stood at the end of the quiet street, just as it always had—large, dignified, its white walls muted in the darkness. Gabriel slowed the car, his eyes fixed on the gate.

Then he saw it.

The gate was locked.

Not just closed—locked tight with a thick, unfamiliar padlock that caught the light from his headlights.

His breath hitched.

He parked hurriedly and stepped out of the car, the night air cold against his skin. He walked closer, disbelief washing over him.

The padlock was new.

Heavy. Final.

“Victoria?” he called, his voice echoing down the empty street.

Nothing answered him.

He moved closer, gripping the iron bars of the gate.

“Victoria!” he called again, louder this time.

His voice bounced back, hollow and lonely.

The house was dark. No lights in the windows. No movement. No sign that anyone had been there recently.

Panic surged.

“Victoria, please!” His hands shook as he rattled the gate. “I’m here. Open the gate!”

Silence.

The realization hit him all at once.

She wasn’t here.

She hadn’t just come to visit.

She had left.

Gabriel’s knees weakened, and before he could stop himself, he slid down against the gate, his back hitting the cold metal. His breath came in broken gasps as tears spilled from his eyes.

“No… no, no…” he whispered.

His chest heaved as sobs tore out of him, raw and unfiltered.

“Please,” he murmured, his forehead pressed against the bars. “Please come back to me.”

The words poured out, desperate and disjointed.

“Victoria, I’m sorry… whatever I did, I’m sorry. Just come back. Please.”

He stayed there like that, crying into the night, his voice hoarse from calling her name. Cars passed occasionally, their headlights sweeping over him, but no one stopped. No one asked.

Time lost meaning.

Eventually, the tears slowed, leaving behind a hollow ache that felt worse than the sobbing.

Gabriel forced himself to stand.

His legs felt numb as he walked back to the car. He looked over his shoulder at the locked house one last time, dread curling tightly around his heart.

On the drive home, he tried calling her again.

Still switched off.

He tried Mary once more.

Nothing.

Fear settled in fully now, cold and suffocating.

What if she was sick?

What if she’d collapsed somewhere?

What if she’d found out everything?

The thought made his chest ache unbearably.

By the time he reached home, his hands were trembling.

Prisca noticed something was wrong the moment he stepped inside.

She had been pacing the living room, phone in hand, her excitement bubbling just beneath the surface. Victoria had been gone all day. The house had been quiet. Too quiet.

She smiled when she saw Gabriel—until she saw his face.

“What happened?” she asked, feigning concern.

He didn’t answer right away. He ran a hand through his hair, his movements frantic.

“She’s gone,” he said finally, his voice rough. “Victoria is gone.”

Prisca’s heart leaped—but she forced her face into a frown.

“Gone where?”

“I don’t know,” Gabriel snapped. “Her phone is off. Mary isn’t answering. The house—her parents’ house—it’s locked.”

Something flickered in Prisca’s eyes.

Relief.

Victory.

She quickly masked it, stepping closer. “Maybe she’s just upset. You know how emotional she gets.”

He rounded on her. “This isn’t normal.”

But Prisca barely heard him.

Inside, she was celebrating too soon.

Victoria disappearing meant fewer obstacles. Fewer complications. It meant the path she’d been waiting for was finally clearing.

“She’ll come back,” Prisca said softly. “She always does.”

Gabriel didn’t respond.

For the first time, he wasn’t so sure.