Chapter 877
[ 479 words ]
Chapter 877:
The call ended before I could utter another word.
I stood there motionless, clutching the phone as the disconnected tone echoed through the receiver.
He had never spoken to me with such coldness. Never.
Ruby must have overheard everything. She hurried out of the bedroom and ran straight to me, stopping at my feet as she looked up with wide, frightened eyes.
Although she was still so young, she could already sense the emotions of the adults around her. The moment she saw the expression on my face, her lips began to tremble. Her eyes quickly filled with tears.
“Mommy…” she whispered, clutching the hem of my shirt with her tiny hands. Her voice shook as tears rolled down her cheeks. “Did I do something wrong? Does Daddy not want me anymore?”
My heart twisted in pain. I immediately knelt down, gathered her tightly into my arms, and gently rubbed her back. “No, sweetheart. You didn’t do anything wrong,” I murmured softly, stroking her hair. “Your daddy’s just feeling a little down right now. That doesn’t mean he doesn’t want you. He loves you more than anything in the world, alright?”
Ruby buried her face against my shoulder, crying in uneven little sobs. “But… I heard Daddy yelling at you…”
My nose stung, and for a moment I almost lost control of my own emotions. Blinking back my tears, I forced a gentle smile and whispered, “He didn’t mean those words. He’s just very tired right now. When he’s feeling better, he’ll come home.”
𝖱𝖾𝘢d 𝗼ո 𝖺n𝗒 d𝗲vі𝖼e 𝗼𝗻 𝗴𝘢𝗅ո𝗈𝗏𝗲𝗅𝗌.𝘤o𝗆
I continued holding her close, patiently whispering reassurance after reassurance until her sobs slowly quieted, her breathing became steady, and she eventually drifted asleep in my arms.
Silas stood nearby the entire time, watching in silence without asking a single question. After a while, he quietly walked over and gently squeezed my hand.
After I’d tucked both children into bed, I found myself alone in the pitch-black living room.
Moonlight bled through the floor-to-ceiling windows, pooling in pale puddles across the floor. I pulled my knees to my chest and curled into the corner of the sofa, suffocating under the weight pressing down on my ribs.
My thoughts were a tangled mess, consumed entirely by Ethan’s frigid words and the finality of that dial tone cutting me off.
After a long stretch of hesitation, I reached for my phone and scrolled to a number I never thought I’d willingly dial: Melisa’s.
It rang a few times before her calm, slightly surprised voice came through. “Lianne? It’s late. What’s happened?”
I didn’t bother with pleasantries. “Melisa, are you using my condition to corner Ethan? Did you force him to push me away?”
A few seconds of silence passed, then she let out a quiet, almost amused laugh. “I haven’t threatened him with anything. You give me far too much credit.”
But before I could release the breath I’d been holding, her next words cut through me like glass.
.
.
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