Betrayal's Wake: A Wife Scorned

Name: Betrayal's Wake: A Wife Scorned
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Gavin

Short stories | Completed

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The clear blue water shimmered, and beneath me, my seven-year-old daughter, Lily, swam like a tiny mermaid. It was in these quiet underwater moments that I, Ava, felt closest to her, the wall between us finally seeming to dissolve. Then, her small fingers, meant to grasp my hand, wrapped around the hose of my regulator. She pulled. The mouthpiece was ripped from my mouth. My vision blurred as I choked, a terrifying gush of bubbles replacing my smile, my lungs screaming for air. What struck me most, though, wasn't the panic, but the cold, deliberate focus in her eyes as she swam away, leaving me to drown. Back on the boat, shivering and gasping, I watched my husband, Jake, arrive. He didn't come to me, still wrapped in a scratchy towel and dripping saltwater. He went straight to Lily, holding her tight, asking, "Are you okay, princess? Did she scare you?" His eyes, chips of ice, finally landed on me. "What did you do?" he demanded, his voice low and menacing. Lily, buried in his shoulder, sobbed, "No, I didn't! Mommy got angry and took her own mask off! She scared me!" My head snapped up. The lie was so quick, so easy, so utterly believable to him. His shadow fell over me, and he hissed, "You can't even take care of our daughter for one afternoon without some kind of drama. Are you that desperate for attention?" He didn't believe me, not for a second. He just sneered, "She's seven, Ava. What possible reason would she have to do something like that?" The cold of the deep water was nothing compared to the chill settling in my bones. I was utterly alone. That night, Jake revealed the bitter truth: I was never Lily' s mother, just a "vessel" for Olivia' s child. The marriage, the contract, the baby-it was all a calculated trap. "You have no idea what you've done, do you?" he snarled, grabbing my chin, "You've upset Lily. Badly." Then came Lily's seventh birthday party, where she subtly cut my dress strap, exposing my C-section scar to everyone. As I stood humiliated, she beamed, "Ew, look! Look at her ugly scar! It's so gross! I'm going to be sick!" The realization hit me: this wasn't a childish prank. It was calculated. My heart, already shattered, felt like it was being ground into dust. All I had endured crystallized. I picked up the small scissors she'd used. "You wanted to cut something, Lily?" I asked, my voice terrifyingly calm. Before anyone could react, I plunged them into the magnificent birthday cake, stabbing again and again, destroying the perfect castle. "There," I said, dropping the scissors. "Happy birthday." I walked out of the ballroom, leaving the stunned silence, the screaming child, and the ruins of a life I was finally ready to abandon. My phone rang; it was Olivia' s mother. "You can't leave! Think of your duty!" she shrieked. "That poor child just deliberately humiliated me," I replied, then Lily's voice came on, "I hate you! I wish you would die like my real mommy did!" Suddenly, it all clicked: they had used me. I was a placeholder, a prop. A bitter laugh escaped me. "You can have the ring. You can have the house. You can have the clothes. You can have the whole damn life. I don't want it." I pulled the SIM card from my phone, letting it fall into the bushes. As I reached the front door with my single small suitcase, Jake blocked my path. "I've already figured it out," he announced, "We'll send Lily to Switzerland. Then you can come back, and we can go back to normal." I looked at him, at Sarah clutching his arm, at Lily cheering, "Is Sarah going to be my new mommy now? You have to leave with nothing. That's what happens to bad people." They wanted to strip me of everything. And in that moment, it was exactly what I needed. "Okay," I said, a real smile on my face. I let go of my suitcase, leaving it on the marble floor. "Okay, Lily. I'll leave with nothing." I turned my back on them all and walked toward the open door, a wave of intoxicating freedom washing over me. Just then, a piercing scream from inside shattered the quiet. Lily. A decorative candle had fallen on a velvet curtain; flames were already licking their way up, and Lily stood frozen in terror. My body moved before my brain could process-she was a child, in danger. I ran back inside. I grabbed Lily, turning my back to shield her, just as a burning curtain rod crashed down on me. The pain was searing, but I held her tight, pushing her into Jake' s arms. "Get her out!" I choked, tasting blood. He grabbed Lily, his face pale, but then he looked at me, covered in soot, my hair singed. "Ava! What did you do now?" he roared. That was it. The last piece of my old life turned to ash. I had just saved his daughter, and he was screaming at me. An incredible lightness filled my chest. I felt profound pity for them, trapped in their beautiful, burning prison. "Seven years," I whispered, "It was only seven years. I can afford to lose that." I turned away from the sirens, from his accusing face, and started walking down the long, winding driveway. No shoes, torn clothes, my back screaming, gravel digging into my bare feet. But I didn't care. The pain was real, it was mine, and I felt alive. I walked on, into the darkness, not looking back.

Family Betrayal Revenge Divorce Personal growth

Chapter 10

07-04 13:55

Introduction

Then, her small fingers, meant to grasp my hand, wrapped around the hose of my regulator. She pulled.

The mouthpiece was ripped from my mouth. My vision blurred as I choked, a terrifying gush of bubbles replacing my smile, my lungs screaming for air. What struck me most, though, wasn't the panic, but the cold, deliberate focus in her eyes as she swam away, leaving me to drown.

Back on the boat, shivering and gasping, I watched my husband, Jake, arrive. He didn't come to me, still wrapped in a scratchy towel and dripping saltwater. He went straight to Lily, holding her tight, asking, "Are you okay, princess? Did she scare you?"

His eyes, chips of ice, finally landed on me. "What did you do?" he demanded, his voice low and menacing. Lily, buried in his shoulder, sobbed, "No, I didn't! Mommy got angry and took her own mask off! She scared me!"

My head snapped up. The lie was so quick, so easy, so utterly believable to him. His shadow fell over me, and he hissed, "You can't even take care of our daughter for one afternoon without some kind of drama. Are you that desperate for attention?"

He didn't believe me, not for a second. He just sneered, "She's seven, Ava. What possible reason would she have to do something like that?" The cold of the deep water was nothing compared to the chill settling in my bones. I was utterly alone.

That night, Jake revealed the bitter truth: I was never Lily' s mother, just a "vessel" for Olivia' s child. The marriage, the contract, the baby-it was all a calculated trap. "You have no idea what you've done, do you?" he snarled, grabbing my chin, "You've upset Lily. Badly."

Then came Lily's seventh birthday party, where she subtly cut my dress strap, exposing my C-section scar to everyone. As I stood humiliated, she beamed, "Ew, look! Look at her ugly scar! It's so gross! I'm going to be sick!"

The realization hit me: this wasn't a childish prank. It was calculated. My heart, already shattered, felt like it was being ground into dust. All I had endured crystallized.

I picked up the small scissors she'd used. "You wanted to cut something, Lily?" I asked, my voice terrifyingly calm. Before anyone could react, I plunged them into the magnificent birthday cake, stabbing again and again, destroying the perfect castle. "There," I said, dropping the scissors. "Happy birthday."

I walked out of the ballroom, leaving the stunned silence, the screaming child, and the ruins of a life I was finally ready to abandon. My phone rang; it was Olivia' s mother. "You can't leave! Think of your duty!" she shrieked. "That poor child just deliberately humiliated me," I replied, then Lily's voice came on, "I hate you! I wish you would die like my real mommy did!"

Suddenly, it all clicked: they had used me. I was a placeholder, a prop. A bitter laugh escaped me. "You can have the ring. You can have the house. You can have the clothes. You can have the whole damn life. I don't want it."

I pulled the SIM card from my phone, letting it fall into the bushes. As I reached the front door with my single small suitcase, Jake blocked my path. "I've already figured it out," he announced, "We'll send Lily to Switzerland. Then you can come back, and we can go back to normal."

I looked at him, at Sarah clutching his arm, at Lily cheering, "Is Sarah going to be my new mommy now? You have to leave with nothing. That's what happens to bad people." They wanted to strip me of everything. And in that moment, it was exactly what I needed.

"Okay," I said, a real smile on my face. I let go of my suitcase, leaving it on the marble floor. "Okay, Lily. I'll leave with nothing." I turned my back on them all and walked toward the open door, a wave of intoxicating freedom washing over me.

Just then, a piercing scream from inside shattered the quiet. Lily. A decorative candle had fallen on a velvet curtain; flames were already licking their way up, and Lily stood frozen in terror. My body moved before my brain could process-she was a child, in danger. I ran back inside.

I grabbed Lily, turning my back to shield her, just as a burning curtain rod crashed down on me. The pain was searing, but I held her tight, pushing her into Jake' s arms. "Get her out!" I choked, tasting blood.

He grabbed Lily, his face pale, but then he looked at me, covered in soot, my hair singed. "Ava! What did you do now?" he roared. That was it. The last piece of my old life turned to ash. I had just saved his daughter, and he was screaming at me.

An incredible lightness filled my chest. I felt profound pity for them, trapped in their beautiful, burning prison. "Seven years," I whispered, "It was only seven years. I can afford to lose that."

I turned away from the sirens, from his accusing face, and started walking down the long, winding driveway. No shoes, torn clothes, my back screaming, gravel digging into my bare feet. But I didn't care. The pain was real, it was mine, and I felt alive. I walked on, into the darkness, not looking back.