The rest of the day, we researched divorce lawyers and made enquiries. By the end, I was exhausted and emotionally drained.

I stood on the balcony of Alicia’s apartment as the sun descended, causing a burnt orange glow to stain the city skyline.

Dad stepped up beside me, his hands grasping the rail next to mine. That’s when I noticed his grazed knuckles.

“What happened?” I held my breath, knowing the truth would wound me, yet wanting it anyway.

“I punched him. Your mother only let me get one hit in, so I’m glad I made that one count.”

I nudged his shoulder with mine. A slight spark of amusement filtered away as soon as it came, leaving only worry behind.

“How’d he take it?” I whispered. I didn’t even know why I cared.

“He didn’t fight back. Owen was… broken before I even got to touch him.”

“I’m broken too, Dad.” My voice cracked.

Dad pulled me into his side, whispering into my hair, “You, my girl, are not broken. You are strong and intelligent and made for bigger and better things. Your so-called friend, Everly, may be having this baby, but she will never find love from the father. She will go on knowing Owen will always belong to another. And your soon-to-be ex-husband will regret this for the rest of his life. He already does.”

Chapter 6

ALEXIS

Days turned into months as I officially filed for divorce.

I kept my mind busy, always on the move, ensuring I didn’t have a spare moment to linger on my past. Alicia and I found a two bedroom apartment in the same building as her previous one bedroom. She already had most of the furniture, which made the move easy and relatively simple. I refused to take anything from my previous life.

I soon found a nursing job in a medical centre a couple of streets over, able to walk to and from work without a care. My previous job had already heard about the news of my separation, our small gossip monger town knowing more about my relationship than I did. They gave me an easy dismissal without upholding the mandatory period of resignation usually required.

A sense of amusement was the only win I considered when I thought of Owen and Everly dealing with the aftermath of their sins. The town would punish them in their petty, underhanded ways, and I was in for all of it. The only downfall was that I didn’t get to see or hear about it firsthand since I stood firm on the no-contact rule.

I did miss others I left behind. It would have been remiss to think I wouldn’t. Friends and old colleagues tried to reach out before I deleted all my social media. Even then, I couldn’t bring myself to reply or be in the same orbit as them, not wanting to unintentionally hear about Owen or Everly.