Christian hadn’t just wronged me. He had wronged my mother.
19
11.19
Chapter 2
The office was dead silent.
I watched as Christian’s already pale face turned a deathly gray. The emotion in his eyes seemed to freeze. Shock, disbelief, denial… a storm of
complex feelings swirled within him.
“How could…” he whispered.
“You haven’t been to see her in two years. Of course you wouldn’t know,” I reminded him.
My poor mother. On her deathbed, she was still asking for me. And I had to hold back my tears and lie to her, telling her Christian was busy with
work, that he would come see her as soon as he could.
Her death wasn’t an accident. She had simply run out of time. There was nothing more the doctors could do.
I was the one who signed the papers to end her treatment. I held her hand and watched her slip into a sleep from which she would never wake.
I handled all her affairs, alone and composed.
After it was all over, I happened to see the video of Christian and Lily.
E
川
The truth is, I had wanted to divorce him for a long time. I didn’t want to watch myself become a madwoman trapped in a toxic relationship.
My mother’s death was the final straw.
Oh, Christian. How could you not know?
From the day you made your mistake and refused to turn back, the countdown had already begun.
He stumbled backward, almost losing his balance.
I looked at him and didn’t forget to add, “If you have any conscience left, just let me go.”
Being with you now, every second is suffocating.
20
I left Christian’s office.
The conversation had not been pleasant. The tense atmosphere seemed to have seeped out into the office. When I emerged, everyone held their
breath, as if trying to disappear into the floor.
The only one who dared to move was Lily.
Furious, she followed me, catching up in a few quick strides. “Claire! You bitch! Are you happy now? What good does it do you to ruin Christian?”
she demanded, her voice full of resentment and indignation.
Her voice was just noise to me. I slapped her across the face. “You fool. If you had any skill, you would have gotten him to divorce me sooner.
Then he wouldn’t have been branded a cheater and a scumbag.” I sneered.
Lily clutched her cheek.
“And another thing,” I added, “watch your tone with me. I’m not divorced from Christian yet. Be careful, or I might just have him demand back every penny he ever spent on you.”
“He wouldn’t!”
“In his current state, you want to test that theory?”
I was determined to push her over the edge.
Lily was furious but speechless. She could only glare at me as I walked away.
21
Without Christian’s interference, my house sold quickly.
Coincidentally, the day the sale closed was the same day our divorce cooling–off period ended.
After our last conversation, I had thought he might try some other trick to avoid the divorce. But to my surprise, he actually showed up at the civil
affairs office.
Chapter 2
The agent sighed. “Ms. Kingsley, you’re too late. Your ex–husband offered to buy it back for triple the price…”
11 1
Whatever. The house wasn’t mine anymore. It was their business. I didn’t want to get involved.
But then, I saw what Christian was fighting for.
It was our wedding portrait, the one we’d had taken to make up for not having a real wedding.
“Christian!”
“Claire!”
His eyes lit up when he saw me. “Look, I bought the house back. And I’ll get all our things back, too…” he said eagerly, showing me the portrait.
But before he could finish, I had my car keys in my hand, and I dragged them across the photo.
Screeeech.
I tore my image from the canvas.
