The Wife They Broke

ntly testing my love by showering attention on another woman, K

g film scores, was severely crushed. But Jacob and Anton chose to pr

hem. They continued their cruel game, celebrating Kassandra' s birthday lavishly, while I sat in a secluded corner, watching them. J

age. My pain was their sport

years die. It withered and turned to ash, leaving behind something hard and

pte

and son were pathologi

trange way o

, constantly tested her love. They would feign indifference, showering atten

, her misery-it was proof of her devotion. It w

iently endured it, believing she could fix them. Believi

was

mall things, cancelled dates, "forgetting" her birthday whi

int arrived on

r accident.

ra was in the passenger seat, a space that used to be Alexia

of shattered glass

nd that wrote award-winning film scores, was trapped, crushed against the

f them looked at Alexia' s ha

now. Ma'am," he said to Alexia, "your hand is severely crushe

other young lady has a head i

auma. Your wife's hand requires intricate nerve microsurgery. Any delay significantly reduces the chance of a

g Jacob to m

small face a perfect copy of his fath

assandr

tared at the

son. A flicker of somethi

. "Mommy loves us the most. She'll understand. If she sees how much we care about Kassandra, sh

bare in the sterile, unforgivi

er, a silent approval. He looked at t

. Take care of Ms

in the ringing of her ears. The physical pain in her hand wa

a statement. Her pain was their

d Anton hovering over Kassandra's gurney,

he love she had nurtured for years die. It withered an

medication, a decision

t fix them. She would esca

out of surgery. The do

ng we could, but the delay was too long. T

e to say the

at had brought stories to life with melody, were now just hands. Th

lways with Kassandra in tow. They would fuss over Kassandra, who milked h

ting for the tears, t

ce a placid mask. Her silence was a language

ting. She had called him from the hospital, us

ady," he said, ha

with her goo

the living room where Jacob, Anton, and Kassandra were laughing. T

llowed to enter. The door was locked, but she had learned his habit

esk. But behind a bookshelf, she found what she was really looking for.

as a shrin

composing, Alexia crying. It was a timeline of her life with him, documented through a stalker's lens. On shelv

ollection of

so distant, so uninterested. She had spent years chasing him, trying to ear

, she knew, would be similar "treasures." A lock of her hair he'd

just their way. That her patience, her endu

d that illusion. This was

own room and began to pack, not clothes, but memories. She took the wedding album and

erasin

ey walked right past her, their laughter echoing

dly, "Kassandra is staying for d

his eyes fixed on Alexia, waiting for

Alexia just looked at th

n't part of the script. Her lac

at the furniture. "Jacob, darling, I think that blue sofa woul

his voice loud, meant for Alexia to hea

ed and walked towa

home, her space, me

ix of triumph and unease. "Don

r her. "Her opini

Kassandra bites from their plates, praised her meaningl

mind elsewhere. Then, a piece

She gasped, her hand

Jacob' s and Anton's eyes. Jaco

cut my finger!" She held up her hand, where a tiny, almos

back to their game. Their moment of genuine concern vanis

andra' s side. "Are

o get the f

arting to blur at the edges, and

lood onto the white tablecloth. Then, she collap

darkness took her was Jacob's voic

s done. Anythin

c taste of blood in her mouth. The ho

aching. She looked at the bloods

ked back into the room. He had

a show," he said

" Alexia whispere

were worried about Kassandra.

red to argue. She

sked, the question a ghost of a bre