“And what else does your mother think?”
The question came out sharper than she intended. Alex frowned, and an uncomfortable silence settled between them. Sophia immediately regretted her words.
“I’m sorry. I’m just tired. This nausea is draining me.”
Her husband nodded, but she saw a shadow of hurt in his eyes. He could never take her complaints about his mother calmly. To him, Eleanor was the ideal woman, strong, wise, always right. And Sophia… Sophia was just the wife who, for some reason, couldn’t find common ground with his family. As she got ready for work, she mechanically touched the pendant on her neck, an elegant silver oval with an engraved ivy leaf. Alex had given it to her for their third wedding anniversary two months ago.
“So you can always feel my love close to you,” he had said then, fastening the chain around her neck.
Since then, she hadn’t taken the piece of jewelry off for a minute. The pendant was cool and pleasant against her skin, and Sophia smiled involuntarily. Whatever happened, she had Alex, the man who had changed her life 3 years ago.
On her way to work, as usual, she went down into the subway. The morning crowd, the smell of coffee and perfume, the murmur of voices, all of it had become the familiar backdrop to her days. Sophia leaned against the handrail, closing her eyes. The nausea had subsided a bit, but the weakness remained.
“Excuse me.”
The voice was very close, and Sophia jumped, opening her eyes. In front of her stood an older man, tall, with a neat gray beard and an attentive gaze in his dark eyes. He wore an old-fashioned but well-kept suit, and on his ring finger was a wide gold ring with an intricate engraving.
“Do I know you?” Sophia asked, bewildered.
