Novels by zagles9

Sophia walked back into the house that night with a different kind of energy.Not broken.Not unsure.Focused.The next morning, she didn’t ease into it.“Dom,” she said, standing in the kitchen.He looked up immediately.“You need to think about your actions.”Her voice steady.Clear.“And you need to leave Kristi behind. Completely.”“I’m not going to stand in the middle of this anymore,” she added.“No more being the barrier while you decide.”He didn’t argue.Didn’t deflect.He just nodded slowly.“I hear you.”The next few days weren’t easy.Not for anyone.Sophia kept them busy.Parks.Movies.Ice cream runs.Anything to keep their world light—Even when hers wasn’t.She stayed moving too.Cleaning.Organizing.Working.But underneath all of it—Her mind was working.Planning.Late at night.When the house went quiet.Laptop open.Phone beside her.Bryan.Erin.This wasn’t emotional anymore.It was strategic.Controlled.She told herself—I’m saving my marriage.But deep down—I

The next night felt off from the start.Sophia could feel it before she even stepped outside.Dominic had texted her earlier.“Can you come over?”Not demanding.Not aggressive.Just… tired.She stepped out toward the camper.The air was still.Too still.The second she opened the door—She knew.He was drunk.Not just a little.Really drunk.Eyes glassy.Words slower.But emotions…Louder.“Soph…” he said, standing up too fast.“I miss you.”That hit.Because it sounded real.Raw.A voice.Through the phone.Loud enough to hear.“Man, why are you even dealing with her?”Sophia froze.“She’s just using you,” Joe continued.His tone ugly.Disrespectful.“Get rid of her and have your fun, Dominic.”Everything stopped for a second.Sophia didn’t move.Didn’t react right away.This—Was what Dominic was surrounded by.This voice.This influence.He didn’t shut it down.Didn’t hang up immediately.He just stood there.Caught.Than the words themselves.“Put the phone down.”Her voice calm.

Sophia paced the living room, phone in her hand.Lily stayed on the line.Listening.“I’m not just going to sit here and let him do this to me,” Sophia said, her voice sharp now.Lily didn’t interrupt.“I have a plan.”“I’m going to create accounts,” Sophia continued.“Fake ones.”“Talk to him. Trap him. Show him exactly what he’s doing.”Her heart was racing.Not from fear anymore.From control.There was silence on the other end.Then—“Soph…”“That’s not going to fix anything.”“It’ll make him stop,” Sophia fired back.“It’ll make him see what he’s doing.”Lily’s voice stayed calm.“No… it’ll make him feel what you feel.”A beat.“But that’s not the same as fixing this.”Sophia stopped pacing.Just for a second.“Do you want to win…”Lily said softly,“…or do you want your marriage back?”Sophia didn’t answer right away.Because those weren’t the same thing.Revenge would feel good.For a moment.But it wouldn’t rebuild trust.It would destroy whatever was left of it.Sophia sat do

The camper was still.Too still.Dominic sat there, elbows on his knees, phone in his hand.Everything from inside the house still echoed in his head.The yelling.The girls crying.Sophia’s face.His phone buzzed.A sharp, sudden sound in the silence.Kristi.His chest tightened.Not anger this time.Something else.Escape.“Hey… I’ve been thinking about you.”For a split second—Everything else faded.No responsibility.No guilt.No consequences.Just… easy.His fingers moved before his mind caught up.Typing.Fast.Almost automatic.A small rush hit him.The kind he hadn’t felt in a while.Attention.Validation.Distraction.Sophia sat on the couch with the girls.Holding them close.Whispering softly.Reassuring them.Two completely different worlds.Just feet apart.Dominic hit send.Another message.Then another.His face lit slightly from the screen.For a moment—He forgot everything that just happened.Because then—The image came back.His daughters.Standing in the doorway.

The silence didn’t last.Not after the yelling.Not after the words that echoed through the house.Small footsteps.Hesitant.Then—“Mom?”Sophia’s heart dropped instantly.She turned.The girls stood in the doorway.Eyes wide.Tears already falling.They didn’t understand everything.But they understood enough.Raised voices.Tension.Fear.“Why are you yelling?” one of them cried.The other clung to her sister’s arm.Everything else disappeared.Sophia rushed to them.Dropping to her knees.Pulling them close.“It’s okay… it’s okay,” she whispered, holding them tight.But it didn’t feel okay.Not to them.Not right now.Dominic stood frozen.Phone still in his hand.The anger—Gone.Replaced with something heavier.This wasn’t just between him and Sophia anymore.It never really was.“Are you fighting?” one of them asked through tears.Sophia swallowed hard.“No… no, baby,” she said softly.“We’re just talking loud.”But even as she said it—She knew they didn’t fully believe it.Be