The Day I Quit Him (Autumn and Mars) novel Chapter 50

**Chasing Light, Finding Peace – by Rohan Verma**
**Chapter 50**

Mars Wright had always taken for granted the unwavering presence of Autumn Lopez in his life, never once considering that she might choose to vanish without a trace. The sudden silence from her side was deafening, and the realization that he didn’t even know where she resided made his frustration swell. Where on earth could he even begin searching for her?

After a brief outburst of anger, Mars crouched down to retrieve his phone, the device that felt like a lifeline in this moment of confusion. He was determined to unravel the mystery of Autumn’s connection to the Bennett Group, a thread that seemed to weave through the fabric of their lives.

Just as he contemplated dialing her number once more, his phone rang, interrupting his thoughts.

His heart raced with anticipation, and without a second thought, he answered the call, not even glancing at the caller ID. “Autumn!” he exclaimed, his voice tinged with a mix of hope and desperation.

However, the voice that responded was not the one he longed to hear. “Mars? It’s me.” The unmistakable tone of Lydia Lopez cut through his excitement like a cold wind.

Instantly, irritation bubbled within him. “Oh, it’s you, Lydia. What’s going on?” he replied, his impatience evident. “I’m kind of in the middle of something. Can we talk later?”

His finger hovered over the end call button, itching to disconnect as soon as she agreed. Yet, Lydia, sensing his urgency, feigned innocence in her usual playful manner. “What’s wrong? C’mon, tell me. Maybe I can help?”

Despite her simmering anger, Lydia remembered her mother’s advice to keep Mars engaged, forcing her to swallow her frustration. In the past, whenever she had thrown a tantrum, Mars had been quick to apologize. Now, after days of silence from him, she felt compelled to reach out.

A hint of grievance crept into her voice, “Are you really being this distant just because of that project? Didn’t you promise you’d always spoil me?”

The moment she uttered those words, a wave of annoyance washed over Mars. It was the worst possible thing she could have said, instantly reminding him of the disastrous deal with the Mistveil Group that had slipped through his fingers.

“I spoiled you too much! That’s why you’re pulling this nonsense!” he retorted, his voice rising. “Do you even grasp how much Cloudbreak stands to lose because that project is going to the Lopez Group?”

“Lydia, you’re not a child anymore. When Autumn was your age, she was out there hustling for business, drumming up investments for me. And what about you?”

The moment Mars made that comparison, Lydia’s anger ignited. If she weren’t trying to maintain some semblance of maturity, she would have demanded to know why he was still so entangled with Autumn if he was so infatuated with her. Why had he gotten Autumn pregnant if he had such high expectations for Lydia?

Mars had painted himself into a corner, and she wondered if he was now regretting his choices.

“Mars, how could you say that to me…? I was just worried about you, trying to help… What you said really hurts.”

With a calculated vulnerability, Lydia played her trump card, letting her voice tremble. “I know I shouldn’t have gotten between you and my sister. I’m sorry. It won’t happen again. I’ll disappear. I promise not to interfere with your happiness with her.”

“Honestly, I’m just grateful for the time we shared. I wish you and my sister a happily ever after. And our baby… even though I won’t be there for his birth, I know you’ll be a great father and take good care of him, right?”

“Goodbye.”

“You’ll never see me again.”

Before Mars could respond, Lydia hung up abruptly, leaving him in stunned silence.

In a moment of despair, she grabbed a fruit knife and made a shallow cut on her wrist. Watching the crimson droplets trickle down, she snapped a picture and posted it on Facebook, restricting visibility to ‘Only Mars.’

When Mars saw Lydia’s post, panic surged through him like wildfire.

He called her repeatedly, his heart racing, even attempting a video call, but she remained unresponsive. The only option left was to comment on her post.

[Lydia, don’t do anything reckless!]
[That’s not what I meant before!]
[I wasn’t putting you down; I was just drunk and in a bad mood. Just pretend it was all drunk talk, okay? Lydia, don’t scare me! Please answer me!]

His frantic comments were met with an eerie silence.

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