Victor's outburst hit her like a physical blow, and she took a step back as if recoiling from a physical strike. The shock on her face was evident, her translucent features slack with disbelief. His words were like a wound, and the pain they carried cut deep.

"Victor... I..." She struggled, her voice barely more than a whisper. The last ten months of her existence had been marked by her determination to stay by his side, a commitment born out of love and her duty, or so she had believed. It had been her choice, her solemn commitment to their marriage, that even death could not part them.

But now, his words echoed in her mind, and they resonated with every doubt she had ever had about her place in the Daphnel family, her worth as a wife, her role now in the house and society. Her brother's words before the marriage, her mother's reminders since — they all came crashing down on her. She had feared that no one truly wanted her here, and now, it seemed her fears had become her reality, and most significantly he didn't want her here.

Belle's heart, unbeating as it was, ached with a sorrow she had not thought possible. The silence that lingered between them was thick with pain, regret, and an overwhelming sense of isolation. The feeling of drowning that had taken her in the immediate aftermath of his death returned and she felt like she was drowning.