Elle
I stood frozen in the middle of the spilled cake, the sweet chocolate smell turning sickly in the air. My hands would not stop shaking. The mess on the floor felt like it mirrored everything inside me right then, broken and sticky and impossible to clean up neatly.
Glen's face twisted into clear annoyance. His brows pulled tight and his mouth pressed into a thin line as he looked at the chocolate smeared across the marble. He did not speak out loud at first. Instead, I felt the familiar buzz in my head again, and then his voice came through, private and sharp, straight into my mind.
She just arrived and messed up the floor with some dirty cake. Just a human being dramatic.
He was talking to Toria right there in front of me, thinking I could not hear a single word. The casual contempt in his tone made my stomach twist. After six years of trying to be the wife he needed, after all the nights I had waited up for him, he still saw me as nothing more than a dramatic human who could not even keep the floor clean.
Kai stood beside his father, his small shoulders squaring up like he was trying to match Glen's height. "Why dress like an old woman, mom?"
The words from my own son landed heavy. I looked at him and saw the little boy I had rocked through fevers and moon-sickness, the one whose tiny hand used to grip mine so tight when he was scared. Now he stood there defending his father, scolding me like I was the one who did not belong.
My voice came out shaky at first, but it steadied as I spoke. "Toria," I said, saying her name clearly even though my throat felt tight.
Glen's head jerked back slightly. Real shock flashed across his face for a second before he covered it with a frown. "How do you know that name?" he asked, his tone guarded.
Then he shook his head like he was brushing the thought away. "Never mind. You must have overheard me talking to her on the phone sometime. That does not mean you get to throw it in my face now."
He took a step closer, his broad frame making the hallway feel smaller. "Toria is pack business, Elle. She is frail and important to the pack. Her gift matters to everyone. You do not get to meddle in things you do not understand."
I wanted to tell him then. The words about the Luna Decay sat right on the tip of my tongue. I wanted to say that the doctor had given me maybe six months, that my body was rejecting the mate bond, that the failed treatment this morning had left me feeling hollow and scared. I opened my mouth to speak, but before any sound came out, another voice cut through my head, clear and sweet and far too familiar.
Glen, my favorite Delta. The doctors here are being so difficult again today. I always feel better when you come see me. Hurry if you can, okay?
Toria.
The tone was soft and possessive, like she had every right to call him that. Glen's whole body language changed in an instant. His shoulders relaxed just a fraction, and when he answered her, his voice softened in a way I had not heard directed at me in a very long time. "I will be there soon. Just hold on for me."
He said it out loud, but I knew the real conversation was happening in the mindlink I was never supposed to hear. I kept my face still. I did not let him know I could hear every word passing between them. The pain in my chest grew sharper, pressing against my ribs until it felt hard to breathe.
This was the man I had loved so deeply. The one who had saved me from harassment back in the slums all those years ago. The one whose scars I had traced with gentle fingers at night, telling him he was my safe place. Now he was standing in our home, speaking tenderly to another woman while I stood in the mess of a cake I had bought with my last savings, hoping to bring some comfort before I told them I was dying.
Something inside me finally snapped.
For the first time in years, I stopped being the tolerant housewife who swallowed every hurt to keep the peace. I stopped being the woman who smiled through the cold nights and the secret marriage and the way Kai had slowly started pulling away from me.
Glen turned toward the door and reached for his jacket. "I have to go. There are things that cannot wait."
I looked him straight in the eyes. My voice came out cold and steady, even though my hands were still trembling at my sides. "I want a divorce."
His face went completely blank for a long moment. The annoyance, the suspicion, everything froze. Then he let out a harsh laugh, short and disbelieving, like I had just told the funniest joke he had heard in months.
"You are not serious," he said, still smiling that cold smile. "This is some kind of emotional fit because you think you overheard something. You will calm down by tomorrow and we can talk like adults."
"I am serious," I replied, holding his gaze. The words felt heavy but right. After everything I had given, after all the years of quiet sacrifice, this was the line I could no longer cross.
Glen shook his head, the laugh fading into irritation. "You knew what this marriage was from the start, Elle. It was secret. It was complicated. My position as Delta comes with expectations from the pack. You accepted that. Now you want to throw six years away over one bad afternoon?"
"It is not one bad afternoon," I said quietly.
The diagnosis still sat unspoken between us. I could not bring myself to say it yet, not when he was looking at me like my pain was nothing more than a tantrum.
Kai peeked out from the hallway again, his eyes wide with confusion. "Dad, what is going on? Why is Mom talking like this?"
Glen placed a hand on Kai's shoulder without breaking eye contact with me. "Go back to your room, son. This is adult talk."
Kai hesitated, then turned and disappeared down the hall, but not before shooting me one last look that mixed guilt with that same self-righteous expression from earlier.
Glen grabbed his jacket and headed for the door. "We will talk about this nonsense when I get back tomorrow. Do not do anything stupid while I am gone."
As he reached for the handle, I spoke one last time, my voice low but clear. "If you walk out that door right now, this marriage is truly over."
He paused for half a second. His shoulders tensed. For the briefest moment I thought he might turn around. Might show some sign of the man who once carried me to bed when I fell asleep waiting for him. The man who used to kiss my forehead and call me his peace.
But then his posture changed again. Another mindlink, I knew. Toria reaching out to him once more. He straightened his back, jaw set tight, and opened the door without looking back.
In his hurry, his elbow caught my shoulder. I stumbled backward and fell hard against the side table. Pain shot through my hip, sharp and bright. I gasped, catching myself on the edge of the table as best I could.
Glen hesitated in the open doorway. His hand twitched like he wanted to reach for me. His eyes flicked down to where I had fallen, and for a split second something almost like concern crossed his face.
But Toria must have said something else that pulled him away, because he turned and kept walking. The door slammed shut behind him with a heavy final sound that echoed through the quiet penthouse.
I stayed on the floor for a long minute, breathing through the pain in my hip and the much deeper ache in my chest. Tears finally came, hot and angry, sliding down my cheeks as I stared at the chocolate mess on the floor.
The blue text from the ECHO SYSTEM appeared again in my vision, soft and steady.
[Quest Issued: Break Free]
[Reward: First Stat Point Allocation]
I did not care about any quest right then. All I could think about was how easily he had walked away. How quickly he had laughed at the idea that I might actually leave him.
My phone buzzed on the counter. I dragged myself up slowly, wincing with every movement, and answered it.
"Elle?" Lena's voice was full of worry. "I have a bad feeling. Are you alright?"
I sank onto the nearest chair, my voice thick with everything I had been holding back. "No. I am not alright."