Chadwick Gabriel shook his head, clinging to denial, his eyes glazed over with utter ruin.
I smiled sarcastically, “Your wife?” I echoed. “Didn’t we get divorced long ago?”
A devastating tidal wave of disbelief surged through his pupils, widening them in horror.
“You knew?” His voice cracked. “No–no, that divorce was just on paper! I never acknowledged her as my wife!”
“Didn’t acknowledge her?” I cut him off with calm irony. “Didn’t you move her into our marital home?”
His face turned ghostly pale.
I kept going.
“Actually, the day I returned, I stopped by the estate.”
Chadwick’s carefully constructed composure shattered completely.
“I saw you on the second–floor balcony, whispering sweet nothings to her like lovers in a drama.”
“Oh, and by the way–while you were at it, you declined my call. Twice.”
Johnson Lachelle turned sharply to stare at him, disbelief and horror mixing in his expression.
Chadwick staggered backward, a raw, broken sob tore from his throat.
He had never regretted anything as much as he did in that moment.
It was all out in the open now.
Everything I had seen, everything I had endured–he could no longer deny any of it.
His tears came, helpless and unrelenting. He knew then–it was over. There was no salvaging us.
Johnson stood silently, tears already streaming down his face.
So much pain, so much humiliation–all suffered by his sister, and all while he’d been blind.
He took a moment to gather himself, then rasped out, “Jess… do you still see me as your brother?”
I looked at him steadily.
“This will be the last time I call you that,” I said softly. “You gave my candy to someone else. I don’t need you anymore.”
His face turned deadly pale. The light of hope in his eyes went out.
Steven Wilson came out just then, carrying Shelly.
He gave my cheek a playful pinch and turned to the two men outside the gate. “It’s getting late. Jess and Shelly need to rest. You should go.”
We turned away together, walking back toward the house.
Behind us, the ragged sounds of their grief tangled in the crisp sea breeze.
“Jess…”
Chapter 9
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Their voices were barely audible–snatched away by the wind.
At the door, Shelly looked up at me.
“Mommy, who were they?”
I kissed her gently on the forehead.
“No one important.”
Steven’s hand tightened around mine, warm and steady.
“I can finally breathe again,” he murmured.
“Hm?”
“Nothing,” he said with a quiet smile.
I was too busy playing with Shelly to catch what he said.
“What did you mean, about going back?”
But Steven didn’t answer. He just looked at me for a long moment, eyes full of something unreadable–part relief, part joy, and something else, too.
“Nothing,” he said again. “Just thinking how lucky I am.”
Years later, I heard about Chadwick Gabriel again. He had jumped into a river, bringing the final chapter of his story to a tragic close.
News of his death sparked heated discussion online.
They said he died clutching a wedding ring in his hand. They called him a tragic lover.
I scrolled past it casually… and froze. In his hand was our wedding band.
Even his funeral was broadcast live.
And that was when I saw Johnson again. He’d tonsured and dedicated his life to God.
He was there to lead the memorial pass.
In the footage, his eyes–once so vibrant–were now dry and withered, like cooling ash.
And yet, for a moment, it felt like his gaze met mine.
“Jess,” he said softly, voice hollow from the weight of redemption.
His black vestments fluttered in the wind.
“I’ve made peace with myself. I don’t ask for your forgiveness anymore. I only wish…”
“…that you live the rest of your life in peace and happiness, free of sorrow.”
Then, with solemn reverence, he pressed his palms together and bowed toward the camera.
It was the gesture of a man praying to the last light of his life. Or maybe bidding farewell. Chapter 9
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I turned off my phone. A single tear slid down my cheek.
Steven came up behind me and wrapped his arms around my waist.
“It’s all over,” he whispered.
I nodded.
“Yeah. It’s over.”
The past had run its course.
And I had stepped into a brand new chapter of life.
Chapter 0