Chapter 4

Rain closed the approved trail before sunrise.

By seven, the national park campaign was already falling apart.

The brand manager wanted to cancel the day. Two vans were loaded with equipment, but our permit covered only a few approved areas.

Ethan looked across the group at me.

I checked the weather map, the access list, and the call sheet.

"Give me twenty minutes."

I moved the shoot to a lower overlook, rebuilt the shot order, shifted the product footage to a covered picnic area, and cut everything we did not absolutely need.

By six that evening, we had every required shot.

The brand manager let out a breath.

"Maya, you saved us again."

I smiled and checked the final files.

That night, Ethan and Sloane went into town with our management team.

I stayed at the rental house to finish the upload.

A new email appeared on my laptop.

NEXT YEAR CONTENT PLAN - FINAL.

I opened the attachment.

The first page stopped me.

Ethan - Lead Creator.

Sloane Carter - Permanent On-Camera Partner.

Maya - Executive Producer.

I kept reading.

First-date stories.

Anniversary trips.

Marriage advice.

Most romantic memories.

Then one note appeared again and again.

Adapt from Maya and Ethan's existing relationship stories.

I scrolled farther.

There was already a list.

Vermont Christmas.

Yellowstone sunrise.

Moab breakdown.

Our first anniversary drive.

Eleven years of my marriage had been turned into next year's content calendar.

I sat very still.

The livestream had not been a last-minute decision.

The camping ad had not been one sponsor pushing too far.

The interview had not been an awkward misunderstanding.

They had already decided what came next.

Sloane would keep playing Ethan's wife.

I would stay behind the camera and give her the material.

I did not call Ethan.

I did not message Sloane.

There was nothing left to ask.

I opened my email and wrote three lines.

Effective immediately, I am stepping down from all future creative and production work for the account.

My responsibilities on the current campaign end tonight.

Please direct all future shoots, scripts, edits, and commercial work to the remaining team.

I sent it to Ethan, our manager, the agency, and every active brand contact.

Then I closed the laptop.

I packed quickly.

Documents.

Clothes.

Private hard drives.

My camera bodies and lenses.

I left the shared equipment exactly where it was.

At eleven twenty, I carried the last bag to my car.

When I came back inside, the annual plan was still open on the screen.

Sloane's name sat directly beneath Ethan's.

Mine was below hers.

I looked at it once.

Then I removed my wedding ring.

I placed it beside my key on the table.

No note.

No explanation.

For years, Ethan had been used to me questioning, fixing, adjusting, staying until the problem was solved.

I had spent enough time making difficult things easy for him.

I turned off the light, closed the door behind me, and drove away before he came back.

I did not tell him where I was going.

I did not give him a chance to stop me.

By the time Ethan opened my email, there was nothing left in that house for us to discuss.