The Surgeon's Five-Year Lie

my hero, my devoted caregiver through a brutal bat

overheard him confess to his assistant, Brianna. My illness, the dozens

d an unnecessary hysterectomy, stealing my ability to have chi

nto our home, expecting me to raise their child. He

a promise that if he ever betrayed me, I would be free. When he sent me to the

pte

ina

cer, or so I thought. I endured over a dozen surgeries, each one a testament to my supposed fragility, and to Gregory' s unwavering strength. He was my rock, my

St. Jude' s. The doctor, a kind woman with tired eyes, held my new medical report. She told me I was perfectly

Five years of pain, fear, and invasive procedures. All for nothing? A cold dre

hammered against my ribs, a frantic bird trapped in a cage. I pushed open the door t

, usually so controlled,

"You know how much I love Alai

ke her sick to keep her! Her initial appendicitis? I turned it into a terminal diagnosis for you, Gregory. All to 'compensate' me for a decad

es white. The words registered slowly, th

scope of betrayal. Those countless nights I cried myself to sleep, the agonizing

awl. Brianna' s voice, now a purr. "She's so weak, so brok

Yes, I was broken. But not by cancer, not by fate. Bro

te for more, for any shred of understanding.

egret, but of weary resignation. "She

us edge. "After all these years, after everything I've done for you? I deserve

after my last surgery. Was that also a lie? A cold sweat broke out on my fore

, but with a dangerous undercurrent. "Alaina is my wife

t me go. Not if he thought I was healthy. He wouldn't let me leave this gilded cage he

eath my feet. My legs gave out, and I crumpled to the ground, pulling my knees to my chest. The world was

gh I felt numb. Five years. Five years of my life, meticulously stolen

d I would never leave him. He believed I was dependent, broken. That

ettled deep in my gut. I would leave him. I would

who could help me navigate the labyrinth of the Murphy family, someo

riarch who looked at my "illness" with thinly veiled contem

m ready to leave Gregory. And I promise y

plied, her voice as sharp and cold as

o my terms, her pragmatism overriding any semblance of familial loyalty to Gregory,

egory' s voice, now devoid of the ea

d, his tone laced with concern, a master p

myself. I couldn't let him see the truth in

," I lied, my voice wavering.

ch, once a comfort, now felt like a brand. His eyes, full

y slipped the medical report into my purse. He couldn't kn

his breath warm against my hair. "You need

cage. And I was determined to find the key. The prenup