Rebirth: The New Bride Wants A Divorce-Chapter 386: Cat caught your tongue

"How I wish I was there," Anna fumed, anger surging back into her voice. "I would’ve smashed his face in. He wouldn’t even recognize himself afterward."

"He won’t," Betty said with a small, relieved smile. "Shawn already did your part. And the cops will handle the rest."

Anna clenched her jaw, still visibly upset, but she didn’t argue. Betty knew that after Shawn, if there was one person who genuinely cared about her, it was Anna. So she let her vent, didn’t interrupt while she cursed Theo under her breath.

When Anna finally stopped, she noticed Betty watching her—smiling softly, almost fondly.

The anger drained out of her in an instant.

"I still can’t imagine what you must’ve gone through," Anna said quietly. "All of that... in such a short span of time." She shook her head. "I’m just glad Shawn got there when he did."

Anna had never lied when she spoke about trusting Shawn. He was the kind of man who stayed alert, who acted the moment something felt off. He didn’t wait for things to spiral.

Since Betty was staying at Shawn’s place now, Anna hadn’t questioned it—not even for a second. After everything that had happened, it was obvious Betty needed someone close. And Shawn was exactly where she needed him to be.

"By the way, sis," Betty said gently, once the tension finally eased, "what was the reason behind your sudden drinking spree?"

The question was careful, not accusing.

Betty was no longer worried. And Anna was no longer drunk enough to dodge it with nonsense like she had the previous night.

Anna studied Betty for a moment. The girl sat across from her, calm now, composed, clearly prepared to listen—really listen.

That was when Anna knew she couldn’t hide it anymore.

"I’m not a Bennett," she said quietly.

"..."

Anna waited. Braced herself.

Instead, Betty burst out laughing.

"Oh my God, Big Sis," she said between giggles. "I know I’m easy to prank, but please don’t do this. You’re making me laugh."

Anna frowned, confusion flickering across her face before something heavier settled in.

"I’m not joking, Betty," she said firmly. "It’s true. I’m not Anna Bennett."

The laughter faded—slowly, unnervingly—until Betty’s smile disappeared altogether. Her eyes searched Anna’s face, as if looking for a crack, a hint of humor.

There was none.

"Then..." Betty swallowed. "Then who are you?"

Anna exhaled and leaned back in her chair, exhaustion suddenly weighing on her shoulders.

"That," she said softly, "is something I still have to figure out myself."

For the first time since last night, the tight ache in her chest eased. Saying it out loud felt like releasing a breath she had been holding for years. But in its place came something sharper—clarity.

Collin’s hatred.

The way he spoke about her family.

The intensity of it all.

Anna’s thoughts collided, one after another, until her expression hardened.

"No way..." she whispered.

She shot up from her chair so abruptly that it scraped against the floor. 𝒻𝓇𝑒𝘦𝘸𝑒𝒷𝓃ℴ𝑣𝘦𝑙.𝒸ℴ𝘮

Betty flinched. "B–Big Sis?" she stammered, fear creeping back into her voice as memories of the previous night resurfaced. "What’s wrong?"

Anna didn’t answer immediately. Her heart pounded, her mind racing toward a possibility she hadn’t wanted to consider.

But now that it had taken shape— She couldn’t ignore it anymore.

"Betty I need to leave" Anna stated and without waiting for Betty’s response rushed out of the house.

***

[Hospital]

Collin lay on the narrow bed, the sterile scent of disinfectant clinging to the air, his mind replaying the fragments he remembered from before he had passed out in the cell.Someone had entered then, disguised as police staff.

Collin had been too weak to lift his head, too dazed to focus on a face, but he had heard the voice clearly. Calm. Certain. Purposeful. Whoever it was had not come by accident. And from the few words spoken in that darkness, Collin knew one thing with chilling clarity. Someone had helped him.

As his mind reeled with those thoughts a soft click of the ward door pulled him back to the present.

His eyes snapped open, his pulse quickening as he turned his head toward the sound. Footsteps approached, slow and deliberate.

"Roseline," he muttered, forcing himself upright despite the dull ache spreading through his body. His hands gripped the bedsheet as disbelief washed over his face.

She did not rush to him. She did not ask how he was. She simply stood there, her expression unreadable, her gaze fixed on him as though he were a stranger.

"So it is true," Roseline said at last, her voice flat, stripped of warmth. "They really caught you."

She stepped closer, close enough for him to see the tension in her jaw, the quiet fury burning in her eyes. Then she let out a short, hollow scoff.

"All those threats," she said coldly. "All that fear you planted in me." Her lips curved, but there was no humor in it. "was for nothing"

Collin’s lips twitched at her remark. There it was. Mockery. He could see it clearly in the way she looked at him, as if he were nothing more than a pathetic joke confined to a hospital bed. The realization did not anger him. If anything, it amused him.

But Roseline did not stop. All the fear she had carried while he kept her constantly on edge suddenly collapsed into clarity. Standing there, watching him helpless and exposed, she understood it at last. Collin was not a monster. He was a loser who had thrived only because she had once believed in him.

"I know I have disappointed you, Roseline," Collin said softly. "But you still won’t hate me, will you?" The corner of his lips lifted as his eyes lingered on the disdain etched across her face.

He leaned back against the pillows, studying her reaction as her expression darkened.

"So what now?" Roseline asked, her voice sharp, controlled. Her eyes bored into him. "Do you plan on disclosing everything?"

She hated herself for the way her pulse spiked. Even now, exposed and restrained, Collin carried himself as if he still held the upper hand.

"Why?" Collin replied lightly. "Are you afraid of losing everything you gained with your lies?"

The words struck harder than she expected. A sharp breath escaped her lips before she could stop it.

"Don’t," she warned, her chest heaving as she tried to steady herself.

Collin laughed, low and humorless. "You are still the same, Roseline. A scared cat. Always terrified of being exposed. Terrified that people might finally see the lies you climbed on to reach where you are."

Her fingers curled into fists at her sides.

"No one knows you better than I do," he continued calmly. "Not your admirers. Not the people who praise your strength and ambition." His eyes darkened. "I was your husband. We had a child together. I saw every version of you."

Roseline swallowed, her jaw tightening.

"You wanted more," Collin said. "More power. More attention. More control. And even after getting everything, you were never satisfied."

Silence stretched between them, thick and suffocating. Roseline stared at him, realizing with a cold knot in her stomach that the man on that bed was still dangerous. Not because of what he could do anymore, but because of what he knew.

"What do you want, Collin?" Roseline finally asked, breaking the suffocating silence between them.

For a moment, the smile on Collin’s face froze. Then he slowly lifted his gaze to meet hers, the curve of his lips stretching wider, sharper.

"Everything," he said simply.

The word lingered in the air, heavy and deliberate.

"Ever since I got out," he continued, his voice calm yet venomous, "all I have wanted is to see you and your so called husband destroyed." He watched closely as her face flushed with anger, the control she prided herself on beginning to crack.

Roseline clenched her jaw. Seeing him enjoy her reaction only fueled her resolve. She would not let him win. Not again.

"You know that is not possible," she said coldly. "Not when I can still turn the tables against you, Collin."

His smile faltered, just for a second. She noticed it. Her eyes flickered with quiet triumph.

She pulled a chair closer and sat in front of him, crossing one leg over the other with deliberate ease. "It will not take me long to flip the story," she added smoothly. "And we both know how good I am at it."

Despite the unease curling in her stomach, Roseline straightened. She might be intimidated by him, but she also knew this truth. Collin was nothing without her. He never had been. Not until she had him wrapped around her finger, bending to her will.

Collin, however, knew better than anyone how twisted Roseline could be when winning was at stake. He had lived it. She had done it before, trapping him in honeyed words, pushing him into choices that dragged an innocent person into their mess.

If she had not gained Hugo’s support back then, maybe things would have been different. Maybe he could have lived freely, maybe even with his child. But in trying to save himself, he had destroyed everything instead.

And now, even if he wanted redemption, it was impossible. The charges against him were etched into his life permanently, a stain he could never wash away.

Roseline watched him closely, waiting for his usual sharp retort. When he remained silent, her lips curved slightly.

"What happened?" she asked softly, eyes narrowing. "Cat caught your tongue?"

This time, the silence felt less like fear and more like the calm before something far more dangerous.