A Wife's Reckoning

ne. My whole body ached, a deep, throbbing pain that was a cons

mile. "You're very lucky. A janitor foun

itter taste in my mouth. He hadn't come. He hadn't even called. I asked the nurs

e okay? Whe

ing tired but unharmed. He rushed to my bedsid

come?" I asked

me if I called the police or tried to find you, they'd... they'd kill

as busy ensuring Chloe and his unborn child were safe. He downp

f that explained everything. "It was the only c

as no remorse in his eyes, only self-pity and justification. The love

dn't even look at me. Her eyes, shar

nded. "The doctor said the sho

her. "She's resting at home. I hav

in. "This is all your fault. If you had been a proper wife an

t I felt nothing. I was beyond her venom. I

m door, a bouquet of cheap flowers in her hand. She looked pale and fragile, a picture of

so sorry. I told Liam to choose you. I told him my life did

ess martyr. Liam looked at her with ador

rmured, stroking her hair. "You jus

linical way he had treated my own near-fatal injuries. In that moment, watching them, I felt a profound sense of peace. The

oking at me, expecting tears or

se, Liam. There was no fear for me. Only calculation. You weren't saving an heir. You were saving yourself from your gr

before she hid it behind a fresh wave o

I said, the words feeling

that I would fall for. I saw the future clearly. I would

Our home. I walked through the rooms that held so many memories, but they felt lik

Photographs from our wedding, souvenirs from our travels, the silly gif

round the edges of the photographs, turning our smiling faces to black ash. I watched until everything was gone, until all that w