Christina went upstairs to her room to pack her things. As she looked around, she saw all the evidence of how her husband had hurt her again and again.
The first time Hervey hurt her was on their wedding day.
Keala had run away from her own wedding, turning him into the biggest joke in all of Tallahassee. She was the one who stepped up and married him in her sister’s place, choosing to face the gossip and humiliation alongside him.
But on the day of the wedding, someone switched out her wedding gown for mourning clothes.
Later, they discovered that Keala—who was abroad at the time—had been behind it. But Hervey didn’t scold her, not even once. He even defended Keala.
To comfort Christina, Hervey went so far as to have a lawyer draft an agreement: every time he hurt her, he would transfer 1% of his shares into her name.
That was the first time, and he really did transfer 1% to her.
In the three years since, he had long forgotten the promise he made back then, and he had no idea that all of his shares had slowly ended up in her hands.
For three years, every extra percent meant another time she had been hurt.
If she couldn’t win his heart, then she might as well take his money.
After looking through the countless ways he had wronged her, Christina gently wiped away the tears at the corner of her eyes.
‘Hervey, this is where we end.’
The next day, her parents learned that Keala had returned and asked them to come home for dinner.
Right before getting into the car, Hervey said, “Christina, sit in the back. Keala likes riding in the front.”
She still remembered how his female secretary once tried to take the front seat, only to be harshly scolded because “the front passenger seat is for my wife.”
So, of course—deep down, the wife in Hervey’s heart had always been Keala.
Keala looped her arm through his and smiled. “Oh, Hervey, you always treat me the best. If I had married you back then, I can’t imagine how happy I’d be now.”
Christina’s lowered fists clenched tight.
She knew Keala was provoking her.
A few years ago, she would’ve argued. She would’ve tried to reason it out.
But now? She had already decided to let this man go. None of this mattered to her anymore.
As soon as they got in the car, Hervey pulled out motion-sickness medicine and handed it to Keala.
“Keala, I got this ready for you.”
Keala glanced back at Christina, smiling with deliberate meaning. “But Hervey, there’s only one pill. If you give it to me… what about Christina?”
Hervey’s hand froze. His mind was so focused on Keala that he forgot Christina also got carsick.
He pressed his lips together and said, “Christina, it’s just a twenty-minute drive. Try to bear with it.”
A sharp ache sliced through her chest.
They were both human, so why did she always have to be the one to “bear with it”?
Then she caught the warm, tender look in Hervey’s eyes as he gazed at Keala, and she let out a mocking laugh in her heart.
Of course. Because the person he cherished wasn’t her.
The entire ride, her stomach churned violently. When they arrived, she practically collapsed to the ground and started vomiting.
But neither her parents nor Hervey spared her even a single glance… just like when they were children.
Both daughters got carsick, yet all their parents’ concern went to Keala.
In the end, it was a housemaid—unable to watch any longer—who helped Christina inside.
Watching her parents and her husband fuss over another woman, Christina let out a bitter laugh.
If they all liked Keala so much, then once the divorce cooling-off period ended, she would leave for good.
Her parents... Her husband…
She didn’t want any of them.
Inside, the table was filled with dishes, but every one of them was Keala’s favorite.
During dinner, her parents kept piling food onto Keala’s plate, saying she had suffered too much while abroad and had even lost weight.
“If we knew you were struggling overseas, we would’ve brought you home sooner,” her father said. “We’d never let you go through all that hardship.”
“These are your favorite ribeye and creamy mashed potatoes,” her mother added. “I had everything sourced fresh from out of state as soon as we heard you were coming home.”
Keala curled her lips into a smile and gave Christina a provocative look. “Thanks, Mom. I knew you two loved me the most. I’m not leaving this time. I’ll stay and be your good daughter.”
Then she pointed at the ribeye and said to Hervey, “Hervey, I want some ribeye. Can you slice it for me?”
Hervey immediately picked up the knife and carefully cut the ribeye into neat slices, one by one.
Christina’s eyes stung.
She had asked him to cut meat for her before, and he had said, “I don’t make a habit of cutting food for anyone.”
Turns out it wasn’t a habit—he just didn’t want to do it for her.
Love and indifference… the difference really was that clear.
Her fists tightened beneath the table, nails cutting into her palm until blood dripped onto the floor.
Seeing her reaction, Keala smirked and deliberately said, “Dad, Mom, Hervey—stop focusing only on me. Otherwise my sister might get upset.”
At that, a flicker of impatience crossed Hervey’s face. He grabbed a slice of roast chicken breast and dropped it into Christina’s plate, his tone sharp.
“You’re a grown woman. Can’t you feed yourself? Do you really need someone to serve you?”
When she still didn’t pick up her fork, Keala spoke up again.
“Why aren’t you eating, Christina? Do you not like the food? Or… do you just not like me?”
With that one sentence, all three adults at the table turned their accusing gazes on her.
It was as if she had committed some unforgivable crime.
Elijah frowned. “Christina, your sister finally came home. Stop being childish and showing attitude for once.”
Christina stared at the piece of chicken meat on her plate. She let out a bitter breath, picked up her fork, and ate it.
It tasted salty.
Because her tears had fallen onto it.
Even after all these years… they still didn’t remember she was allergic to chicken.
