Chapter 5

"Dave, don't blame Mrs. Lane. She was just really mad... It's all my fault," Kerry choked out.

She nestled weakly in his arms, her breath so faint that it barely stirred the air.

David jerked his head up and glared at me, eyes burning with rage, disappointment, and loathing. The look made my cold heart sink even further into the abyss.

"Carrie," he growled through gritted teeth. "I can't believe you'd be this vicious. Even an unborn child isn't safe from you. If you want to fight, come at me instead!"

Vicious? Seriously?

Just my luck, another savage stomach pain came crashing in, way worse than any I'd ever felt before.

I nearly collapsed, my face turning ghostly pale as cold sweat drenched me. I had to clutch onto the table just to keep myself upright.

To David, though, all my pain and weakness were just me putting on a guilty act, like I'd been caught and was now pretending.

He shot me an even more disgusted look. "Still pretending, Carrie? You think playing sick will make me take pity on you? When did you get so manipulative?"

Manipulative? Faking sick?

My stomach churned like a storm. A wave of nausea and the sick taste of blood rose in my throat.

I gritted my teeth, forcing myself to stand tall, clutching onto the last shred of my pride, refusing to let myself collapse in front of him.

I watched, bitterness surging inside me, as David treated that drama queen like a delicate treasure, all while ignoring my very real pain and throwing nasty words my way.

Even the stabbing agony from the cancer in my stomach seemed to numb out completely, leaving me just cold and empty inside.

I couldn't reveal anything yet. First, I had to take back what was rightfully mine.

I gave them one last, lingering stare—cold, heavy, and full of things I didn't say.

Then I turned on my heel and left the café, each step deliberate and unwavering, dragging out the distance between us like I was cutting the past apart.

I tuned out David's yelling and the hushed gossip all around me.

When I got home, I headed straight for my study.

My stomach was still hurting, but it felt a lot better than earlier.

A sudden surge of emotions seemed to have temporarily pushed the pain aside.

David came home soon after, looking sullen.

"Carrie, we need to get things straight right now," he yelled, slamming the door shut. "You went way too far today. If anything happens to Kerry, I swear I'll-"

"Let's get divorced, David," I cut him off, my voice cold as I slid the divorce agreement toward him.

He just stood there, stunned for a moment, then scoffed, a sneer tugging at his lips. "What drama is this now? Is it because Kerry's pregnant? Carrie, you're really trying to threaten me with divorce?

"Isn't that a little pathetic? You're not some jealous schoolgirl anymore."

"I'm not throwing a tantrum," I said, locking eyes with him. "I'm serious. Signing this is better for all of us."

"Serious?" David's smile disappeared, replaced by pure annoyance. "All because of a kid? I told you, it was just a mistake. You're the only one I care about.

"She can't even compare to you. Are you really going to keep harping on this little thing?"

"Little thing?" I almost burst out laughing, my stomach twisting in disgust. "David, you got another woman pregnant, and you think that's just a little thing?

"You brought your mistress into our place like she owns it, stomped all over everything we've built. How is any of that a 'little thing'?"

I pulled out my phone and played that sordid video, blasting the volume as high as it would go.

All at once, the obscene sounds of him and that "Kerry" he was always going on about instantly blared out, echoing off every wall in the study.

David's face turned chalk-white, his eyes glued to the screen as if his whole world had just collapsed.

"You... You secretly filmed this?!" he burst out, jerking his head up, his eyes burning with shock and outrage, like I'd crossed some unthinkable line.

"What else was I supposed to do?" I snapped the video off, my eyes cold as ice. "Just sit around waiting for you to come crawling back? Or maybe wait until you and Kerry stroll in here with a kid?"

My words shut him down. His face went from ghostly pale to flushed red, and for a long moment, he just clawed at his hair like he was losing it. "Carrie, please, just hear me out. It was a slip, alright?

"I was feeling stressed, I wasn't thinking straight. With her, it was just... chasing a bit of the old rush, that feeling from when I was young. I never planned to leave you. We're partners, aren't we?"

A conciliator. Just a slip.

"A conciliator?" I repeated, my voice dripping with scorn. "So sleeping around and stabbing me in the back—that's your magic solution for fixing a marriage?"

"What do you expect me to do?" David bursts out, slamming his palm on the table as he jumps to his feet, his frustration spilling over. "I already said I'm sorry! It was a stupid impulse, that's all. My heart's always been yours.

"Are you really going to throw away more than ten years together just because of this? We've weathered every storm and survived so much. Our love's supposed to be rock solid. How can you just say it's all over like that?"

"David," I said, taking a deep breath, swallowing back the ache in my throat and the queasiness gripping my stomach. "It's over. The moment you cheated on me, everything ended. Just sign the agreement."

"I'm not signing!" he roars, slamming down on the table like a cornered beast. "Carrie, don't push it. Think you can really walk out on me? Is that what you believe?"

Suddenly, David's eyes flashed like he'd just remembered my weakest spot and was ready to twist the knife.

"Didn't you promise me, Carrie? You said as long as you live, your home would always be with me," he said.

He came closer, voice low and threatening. "Remember who got you out of that hellhole of a family? Who gave you food, gave you shelter, gave you everything?

"Without me, you're nothing. Just a fish out of water, doomed to flop around and die. You can't live without me, so don't even think about leaving. Not ever."

Every word hit like a whip dipped in salt, cracking down on a heart already scarred and bleeding.

He threw my worst memories and deepest fears at me, trying to control me, to make me surrender.

Maybe once, that would have worked.

But now...

I stared at his handsome face twisted with anger, and all I felt was bitter sorrow. And it almost made me want to laugh at the whole thing.