Goodbye to My Secret Wife

For six years, I was secretly married to an Admiral’s daughter. Yet everyone at Port Sterling Naval Base saw me only as a pitiful doctor chasing a woman far beyond his reach.
She never corrected them.
Everything came to a head at a victory celebration. A voice laced with scorn cut through the crowd:
“Dr. Cross, the Admiral’s daughter is engaged to a diplomat’s son. Stop dreaming.”
Even Seraphina stood coldly nearby, champagne in hand. “Don’t waste your time on me,” she said.
In my past life, that broke me. I exposed our marriage certificate, only for her to call it a childish prank. To protect David, she had me jailed for a week.
Later, pirates ambushed my transport. Bleeding out, I sent a distress signal. She received it but chose the opera with David over saving me. I died knowing I was just a pawn.
Now, reborn at that same moment, I met her indifferent gaze with a calm smile.
“Very well. I wish you and Mr. Croft a happy life together. By the way, my transfer’s been approved. Farewell.”

1
For the first time, a crack appeared on Seraphina Vance’s ice-cold facade.
Standing beside her, David Croft’s triumphant smirk froze on his lips. He shot a panicked glance at Seraphina. “Sera, what is he…?”
I didn’t give him the satisfaction of finishing. I turned and walked away.
In my last life, I shoved our marriage certificate in their faces. The stunned silence was followed by Seraphina tearing the document to shreds, claiming I’d forged it. I came out of the brig seven days later with half my hair turned gray from the stress and despair.
This time, I couldn’t be bothered to even present the evidence.
There’s no point in fighting for someone who doesn’t give a damn about you.
“Ethan!” Seraphina’s voice was sharp, chasing after me.
I didn’t stop.
The sound of her heels clicked rapidly on the polished floor, getting closer. A second later, her hand clamped down on my wrist. I stopped, not struggling, just turning my head to look at her.
Her face was a mask of fury. “What is this? What new game are you playing? A transfer? Who authorized it?”
It was the same tone she’d used in my past life as I, half-mad with grief and betrayal, grabbed her uniform and demanded to know why she’d left me to die. “Ethan, what kind of scene are you making now?”
I pushed the memory away and used my free hand to pull a folded document from my satchel.
“Commander Vance,” I said, my voice steady. “Read it carefully. It was approved directly by the National Military Medical Center. Your authority doesn’t extend that high.”
Her pupils contracted.
That transfer was a favor, cashed in. It was a debt owed to me by a four-star general whose granddaughter I’d saved. In my last life, I never asked for anything in return, but the general insisted he owed me a debt that could never truly be repaid.
This time, I called it in early.
Seraphina snatched the paper from my hand, her eyes scanning the text. Her expression shifted from shock to disbelief, and finally hardened into a dark glower.
“Cancel it,” she commanded, her eyes locked on mine. “I forbid it.”
I laughed, a dry, humorless sound. I wrenched my wrist, now red from her grip, free and took a step closer.
“And on what grounds do you forbid it?” I tilted my chin up, meeting her gaze without flinching. “On the grounds of our secret marriage certificate that can never see the light of day? Or on the grounds that you’ve stood by and let the entire base humiliate me for six years?”
Her mouth opened, but no words came out.
I pressed forward, closing the space between us.
“Seraphina,” I whispered, the name feeling like ash in my mouth. “To me, you are nothing anymore.”
Just then, the sound of expensive leather shoes echoed from the end of the hall. David came running, a look of faux concern plastered on his face as he stepped between us.
“Dr. Cross, how can you speak to Sera like that? She’s been more than patient with you all these years. You should be grateful…”
“Move,” I cut him off.
“You…”
“I said, move.”
My voice was quiet, but it held a new kind of steel. David, for all his bluster, instinctively took a step back. He bit his lip, his eyes welling up with crocodile tears.
“Dr. Cross, I never wanted to be your enemy. I just love Sera. Is that so wrong?”
“No,” I nodded. “But standing in my way is.”
With that, I brushed past him.
He shouted at my back, “Ethan Cross, you’re just a common medic! Without Sera’s protection, you’re nothing!”
I stopped and turned to look at him, a faint smile playing on my lips.
“Am I? I thought I was just making room for you.”
The color drained from David’s face. He lunged at me, his fist raised, but an arm shot out and stopped him. Seraphina had appeared, her expression unreadable as she gripped David’s wrist.
“David, stop it.”
His eyes instantly reddened with real tears this time. “Sera, you see? This is how he treats me! He has no respect for you at all!”
Seraphina didn’t answer him. Her gaze was fixed on me.
“Commander Vance,” I said formally, “I wish you and Mr. Croft all the happiness you deserve.”
And then I left, without a single look back.

2
My transfer was blocked.
The official reason was beautifully crafted nonsense. The base is currently engaged in a highly classified medical research project, and Dr. Cross, as a core member, cannot be reassigned at this critical juncture.
I stared at the notice and almost laughed out loud.
A core research member? I was a trauma surgeon. I hadn't even been briefed on the project, let alone seen the inside of that lab.
I knew it was Seraphina’s doing. She was a woman accustomed to control, to having the world bend to her will.
The phone rang while I was organizing patient files. Her father’s voice, the Admiral’s voice, boomed through the receiver, laced with its usual condescension.
“Ethan, I hear you’ve been acting out.”
I said nothing.
“I understand that young men have tempers,” he continued, “but you need to learn your place. The Vance family is not a ladder for a man of your background to climb, nor is it a cage you can just walk away from. Come back, apologize to Seraphina, and we’ll pretend none of this ever happened.”
My fingers tightened on the receiver until my knuckles were white. Then, I relaxed.
“Admiral,” I said calmly, “I think I’ll leave that particular blessing for you to enjoy.”
I hung up.
The retaliation was swift. The next day, the rumors started. They slithered through the barracks and the mess hall, poisoning every conversation.
Dr. Cross has no professional ethics. He’s been using his position to harass a superior officer. He’s a social climber, trying to marry into the Vance family by any means necessary.
The stories were viciously detailed, woven with just enough truth to be believable. When I was getting food in the mess hall, I heard the whispers behind me.
“I heard he’s been some commander’s secret boy-toy for six years. Now he’s trying to make it official.”
“Shameless. The woman’s already engaged and he won’t give up.”
I turned, tray in hand, and the gossipers immediately fell silent.
It didn’t take a genius to figure out the source of the slander. The Vance family was trying to destroy my reputation, to make my life in the Navy so unbearable that I’d have no choice but to come crawling back to them, begging for mercy.
But a man who has already died once has very little left to fear.
Three days later, the base hosted a diplomatic event. Several foreign military attachés were visiting for a tour and exchange. David, as a diplomat’s son, was naturally part of the welcoming committee. As the on-duty physician, my only job was to remain in the clinic and be ready.
That afternoon, chaos erupted. One of the foreign attachés collapsed, his breathing ragged, his face turning a terrifying shade of purple. Anaphylactic shock. Severe.
Someone burst into the clinic, screaming for a doctor.
I took one look at the man and knew we had seconds. “Get the crash cart! I need epinephrine, now!”
A corpsman ripped open the medical kit and then froze. “Doctor… there’s no epinephrine.”
My blood ran cold.
Impossible. I had personally inspected that kit yesterday. Every vial, every ampule was accounted for.
The attaché’s breathing grew fainter. The people around me started to panic, their fear turning to accusation.
“What do you mean there’s none? How is this clinic being run?”
“If he dies, who’s responsible?”
“Get him on oxygen, keep his airway clear!” I commanded, trying to remain calm. “And get the nearest hospital on the line, have them dispatch a full emergency team, now!” I dropped to my knees and began chest compressions.
Thankfully, the backup team arrived in time. The attaché’s life was saved.
But the investigation report placed the blame squarely on me.
The inspection log, which should have shown my signature from the previous day, had vanished. In its place was a forged document, showing the kit hadn't been checked in three days.
I looked up and saw David leaning against the doorframe of my office. He was holding a cup of coffee, a gentle, cruel smile on his face.
“Dr. Cross, I hope you’re not thinking of doing anything rash. After a screw-up this big… well, if it were me, I don’t know how I’d ever show my face again.”
I got to my feet and walked toward him. “You think this is enough to destroy me?”
“Destroy you?” He laughed, the sound full of genuine amusement. “Oh, Ethan, you give yourself too much credit. You’re just a mistake Seraphina made, a stain she was always going to wipe away. I’m just helping her clean up the trash a little early.”
He leaned in, his voice dropping to a conspiratorial whisper. “Just imagine, what if that attaché had actually died? Negligent homicide? An international incident? Or would they just ship you straight to a court-martial?”
I stared at him. This man, in his obsession to marry Seraphina, had gone completely insane.
That evening, I received my official orders.
Suspended from duty, pending further investigation.

3
The heavy steel door of the brig slammed shut behind me, the sound echoing in the small, concrete cell.
On the third day, Seraphina came.
“Just admit it was your mistake, and I’ll step in and protect you,” she said, her voice devoid of emotion. “You’ll get a formal reprimand, a demotion, but you’ll be able to stay in the Navy. It’s your best option.”
I didn’t move.
“Ethan, don’t be stubborn,” she continued. “You can’t win against my family, and you certainly can’t win against the Crofts. Confess. And this all goes away.”
She was offering me a lifeline, on the condition that I get on my knees and admit to a crime I didn’t commit. To admit I was incompetent, that my medical ethics were flawed, that I was unworthy of the uniform I wore.
A bitter laugh escaped my lips. I wondered how I could have ever loved this woman.
I was just an intern at the naval hospital when we met. She was already a decorated Special Forces commander, not just an Admiral’s daughter. During a training exercise, a mortar misfired. She was hit by shrapnel, bleeding out and unconscious. On a makeshift operating table, I was the one who dug three pieces of metal out of her.
When she woke up, the first thing she asked was my name.
After that, she began to pursue me, in her own awkward, clumsy way. I thought her coldness was a shield, a wall she put up.
I was wrong. It wasn’t a shield. It was her foundation.
“What if I told you David did it?” I said, finally looking up at her, my voice flat.
Her brow furrowed instantly, a flicker of annoyance in her eyes. “Ethan, don’t be ridiculous. Don’t drag innocent people into your mess.”
“I know David,” she stated, as if it were fact. “He would never do something like this.”
In her world, David was forever the innocent victim, and I was forever the one making a scene, lying, making excuses.
“You know him?” I pushed myself off the cot and walked to the bars of the cell. “Seraphina, what do you really know about him?”
I stared into her eyes. “You know I would never shirk my responsibilities. You know I have a perfect record after six years as a physician. You know how much my honor as an officer means to me. And yet, you still choose to believe him instead of me.”
“Because the evidence is against you,” her voice grew colder. “You were responsible for the kit. You were in charge of the epinephrine. How am I supposed to believe you?”
I laughed until my eyes stung.
“What if I told you the kit was tampered with the day before the event? What if I told you David knew in advance that the attaché had a severe peanut allergy? What if I told you he personally arranged for the catering to include powdered peanuts in the pastries?”
Her expression didn’t change. “Do you have proof?”
My heart stopped for a beat. She didn’t care about the truth. All she wanted was my submission.
“No,” I said, letting all emotion drain from my face. “But I will find it.”
“Ethan.” Her voice was low, a clear warning. “Don’t fight a battle you can’t win. Admit your guilt, accept the punishment. It’s better for both of us.”
I took a step back from the bars. “Seraphina, when have you ever once considered what’s better for me?”
She fell silent.
I looked at her, this woman who once made my heart race, and all I felt was a profound sense of pity.
“Seraphina,” I said, my voice barely a whisper, “the day is coming when you will come begging me. Remember that. You will beg me.”
She stared at me for a second, the contempt in her eyes overflowing. “It seems seven days in the brig isn’t enough for you,” she said, turning to leave. “You can stay in here and keep dreaming.”

4
At the court-martial, David sat in the front row of the gallery, a picture of solemn support. Seraphina was seated to the side of the judicial panel.
The duty roster was presented as evidence. My signature was there, but the date had been clearly altered. Three corpsmen testified that I had been distracted and unfocused that day, claiming that I must have tampered with the kit after their initial inspection.
I listened to the cascade of lies and didn’t say a single word in my defense.
The presiding judge finished reviewing the file and looked up. “Dr. Cross, do you have anything to say in response to these charges?”
Whispers rippled through the gallery. I scanned the room. Not a single person in this court was on my side. But then, I had always been alone.
My gaze finally landed on Seraphina. Her face was as impassive as ever.
“Your Honor,” I began, my voice ringing out in the silent courtroom. “My defense has nothing to do with this medical incident.”
The judge frowned. “Dr. Cross, what are you talking about?”
I didn’t hesitate.
“I am formally requesting this court launch a full and immediate investigation into Commander Seraphina Vance on charges of illegal confinement and conspiracy to endanger the life of a service member!”
The room fell into a dead silence.
I turned to face Seraphina. The color was draining from her face.
“She did this,” I announced, my voice booming, “so that she could use me as a living blood bank and a personal pharmacy for her terminally ill brother, Leo Vance. She has been doing this, by deceiving me into a fraudulent marriage, for six years!”
Seraphina shot to her feet.
I kept my eyes locked on her. “Furthermore, I have reason to believe that six years ago, as a new recruit, I was the victim of a so-called ‘medical accident’ where I was illegally transfused with blood products from Leo Vance himself!”
The courtroom erupted.
The judge slammed his gavel. “Order! Order in the court!”
David was ghost-white, stumbling to his feet. “You’re lying! Leo has been…”
“He’s been dead for years, right?” I cut him off. “Except that’s not the story the Vance family tells, is it? The official story is that he’s receiving treatment abroad. Commander Vance even takes a personal trip to ‘visit’ him every year.”
I reached into my pocket and pulled out a thick file, holding it high.
“These are my complete medical records for the past six years. Every blood draw is documented. And every time, the amount of blood taken was far beyond what is required for routine tests. But on every single record, the field for ‘Purpose of Draw’ is conveniently left blank.”
An officer of the court took the file to the judge, whose face grew darker with every page he turned.
“This is absolute nonsense!” Seraphina roared.
I ignored her, sliding a small, encrypted USB drive across the table to the judge. “This is a copy of a hidden medical file that Commander Vance kept. I managed to decrypt it.”
The drive was plugged into a laptop, and the data filled the screen.
Patient: Leo Vance. Condition: Rare genetic disorder, fewer than twenty documented cases worldwide. Requirement: Blood transfusions from a specifically matched donor, twice monthly.
And there it was. Starting six years ago, the donor code was listed as EC-001.
My initials.
“Leo Vance first showed symptoms at age twelve,” I continued, my voice cold and clinical. “Six years later, at eighteen, during my enlistment physical, my blood was found to contain a unique antibody. Three months after that, I was involved in a ‘medical accident’ and transfused with blood products from an ‘unidentified source’.”
The gallery was in an uproar.
Seraphina stared at me, raw panic finally breaking through her composure. “Ethan, do you have any idea what you’re saying?”
I turned to her, a true smile finally reaching my face. “Of course I do. I’m saying that to save your brother, you turned me into your personal, living blood bag.”
Her face was as white as a sheet.
“Your suspicion isn’t proof!” she stammered. “Where is your evidence?”
I didn’t answer her. I just looked at the judge. On the screen, he had pulled up another file. It was the original incident report from my transfusion six years ago. The signature of the attending physician belonged to the Vance family’s private doctor. The line item for the source of the blood had been redacted.
But you can’t redact a digital footprint.
Seraphina staggered, grabbing the railing for support. “This involves family privacy,” she gasped, turning desperately to the judge. “This is a matter of military security, I demand…”
She was cut off by the sound of unified, heavy footsteps from the back of the courtroom. Several officers in different uniforms stood up. The man in the lead flashed a badge.
“Judge Advocate General’s Corps. We’re taking over this case.”
The last traces of color drained from Seraphina’s face. She knew. Once JAG was involved, there would be no burying this.
“Commander Seraphina Vance,” the JAG officer announced in a grim voice, “you are under suspicion of conducting illegal medical experiments, unlawful imprisonment, and endangering the life and health of a service member. A full investigation begins now.”
Two military police officers moved toward Seraphina. But her eyes were locked on me, filled with a terrifying mix of disbelief and fury.
I felt nothing.
The JAG team worked with terrifying efficiency. In less than an hour, they found the missing syringe of epinephrine. It was hidden in David Croft’s office desk. The fingerprints on it weren’t his, but they belonged to his personal assistant.
The judge slammed his gavel one last time. “On the matter of medical negligence, the court finds the defendant, Dr. Ethan Cross, not guilty. You are acquitted of all charges.”

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