Framed Father's Fierce Flight

on my skin. Sophia' s face had gone from disbelief to a cold, controlle

th contempt. "Are you serious, Liam? After everythin

m the one who gave up my life so you could have yours. I'

u think cooking a few meals and washing some clothes is some grand sacrifice? I'm the one out there earning the money

in my place. A few months ago, they would ha

and Mia appeared in the doorway, their fac

Lucas asked. "Why

g into one of a victim. "Your father is being

hing that I couldn't comprehend at first. The

ith us?" she asked, her voice filled with g

h! That would be awesome!

omething inside me break. It wasn't just the casual cruelty; it was the realization that they had already replaced me in

sing restaurant, working my way up. We decided together that one of us should stay home, to give our kids a stable foundation. I volunteered. I loved

nd she, in turn, had reconnected with Ethan. They had a brief, intense romance in college before I met her. A romance she'd always described

to their perfect new family. The cut on my hand was a dull ache now, a distant pain compared

usiness textbooks, I pulled out a manila folder. I had seen a lawyer a month ago, a secret act of

. "I'm not being silly," I said, my voice flat. "T

ments. Her face turned pale, then flushed with a de

back?" she hissed.

she possessed, she ripped the thick stack of paper in half, then in half again, the sound

ving. "There are your divorce pa

feel defeated. I felt free. The act was so childish, so transparently desperate, that it con

ng at me with confused, slightly fearful expressions. I didn't look at them. I w

phia screamed from behind me. "

e, not slamming it, just closing it firmly on that chapter of my life. I didn't have a plan.