The Divorce That Freed His Heart

“The cryptic message flashed on my phone: coordinates and a chilling command – "Come get your father." My heart hammered as I raced to a remote construction site, mud sucking at my boots. But the man crumpled on the ground, twisted at an unnatural angle, wasn't my dad. It was Emily's father, barely clinging to life, his face a bruised mess. Then Emily called, her voice cold and devoid of concern. "An ambulance? Don't be ridiculous, Liam. Do you have any idea what kind of scandal that would cause? I have the quarterly review next week and a promotion on the line." I stammered, "He's barely clinging to life!" "Then it's inconvenient timing," she said, her voice like ice. "Just get him out of there." I watched, frozen, as two burly men loaded her father onto a stretcher like a sack of debris, a piece of my own father's birdhouse, a gift tossed into the back of the van. "His death is so inconvenient," Emily' s voice echoed in my head. Back home, Emily and her friend Mark, her smirking business rival, accused my father of exploiting her, blaming him even for the birdhouse. My mother's jewelry box, the last tangible link to her, was shattered by Mark, its contents spilled across the floor. A cold, clear rage flooded me. I knew the truth, a truth they were desperately trying to bury. "The man you had beaten and left to die," I roared, pointing at Emily. "The man whose body you had dumped like trash... was your father." I had endured years of her father's criticism, her belittling, her financial exploitation. But now, something had snapped. I met her gaze, a numb certainty settling in. "I want a divorce."”