The Indifferent Ex-Husband: Heartstrings in the Mall of Fate novel Chapter 603

Sophia was catching up on some much-needed Z's, but she was tossing and turning, not getting any solid shut-eye. She was hot and cold all over, feeling like she was roasting on a spit one second and soaking in a tub the next. It was back and forth, wanting to sleep and not being able to, half-awake but not really snapping out of it, like she was sunk into some kind of nightmare.

The moment Amanda busted through the door, she spotted Sophia on the bed with her brows all knotted up, clearly not resting easy. Her hair was plastered to her forehead with sweat.

"Sophia." Amanda called out, worried, as she moved closer to touch her forehead. The heat coming off Sophia's skin nearly gave her a heart attack, so she quickly started shaking Sophia's shoulder, calling out her name, "Sophia, wake up."

But Sophia didn't come to, and just frowned in distress. Amanda was about to keep at it when Sophia's phone went off on the nightstand, a WhatsApp video call coming in.

Amanda barely glanced at it before she snatched it up and hung up, continuing to shake Sophia's shoulder, "Sophia, wake up."

Finally, with all the shaking, Sophia's eyes fluttered open from nightmares, but she was still groggy, not quite sure where she was, her eyes empty and vacant.

Amanda's heart was racing with worry, about to call out to her again, but then the WhatsApp call she just hung up on rang again.

Anxious, Amanda grabbed the phone and hit the answer button, politely saying into the phone, "Hi there, now's not a good time. We'll catch up later."

And with that, she killed the call.

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Brandon was staring blankly at the phone screen that'd gone back to the WhatsApp chat. He didn't make a move.

It was not her. Even though the shaky camera didn't give him a look at her face, just a glimpse of the bedding, the floor in a rushed sweep, the voice and tone were all wrong - not Sophia.

Every clue except that blueprint had pointed to Arlene not being Sophia, but there was still this heavy feeling of letdown when the reality hit. He thought he'd come to terms with her being gone, but...

With a snap, Brandon put the phone down, shifting his gaze to the murky sky outside the window, lost in silence.

Kent in the outer office couldn't help but cast a worried look at Brandon. From his position, he could only see the deep lines of Brandon's profile, but against the light, the bob of his Adam's apple and the faint redness of his eyes were clear as day.

No matter how composed his face, the thick disappointment of dashed hopes was unmistakable.