A Hundred Bracelets

James Muller walked through the door just as I was tossing the post-abortion care sheet into the trash.Three days ago, while he was supposedly on a business trip, he was actually at a birthday party—for another woman.He gifted the woman a million-dollar house.I got so upset that I had a miscarriage.Back from the hospital, I stared at the jewelry box full of bracelets—99 of them.Then I ordered fried chicken and a cold soda, ignoring everything the doctor told me.James walked over, snatched the food, and threw it away. "You know you had a bad stomach. Why are you still eating this stuff?"He pulled a small box from his bag and handed it to me. "Got you something. It took a lot of effort."Inside was a bracelet. Rare. Expensive. Probably worth over 10 million dollars.He was not lying. This kind of piece was difficult to get. He must have pulled every string he had.If he had given it to me before we got married, I would have jumped into his arms.At this point, though, I

Yvonne stood in all black, cradling an urn in her arms, eyes filled with sorrow.Next to her, James gave instructions to three bodyguards as they dug into the empty burial plot to the left of my mother's grave.They did not see me walking up.Soon, the bodyguards had dug a deep hole.Yvonne knelt down and gently placed the urn inside, choking back tears."Rest in peace, Ball."My head pounded as I marched forward and slapped her across the face."Who permitted you to use that plot?!"She turned, startled, her expression a mix of shock and hurt."I—" she stammered.I clenched my jaw and slapped her harder. "Take that urn and get it the hell out of here. Now!"I rarely lost my temper in public.I paid a fortune to purchase the two empty plots beside hers—one for my dad, the other for me.It was her last wish, to have our family of three buried side by side.It was totally nonsense that Yvonne tried to bury her dog here.Yvonne's cheeks turned red, and she leaned against Ja

James snatched the papers away from Yvonne. As he skimmed through them, his expression darkened."Did you really abuse cats and dogs? You lied to me?""I didn't!" Yvonne shook her head frantically.She then glared at me. "You're trying to ruin me with forged evidence!"I crossed my arms and looked straight at James, saying, "You can run up background checks yourself. That's why your mom never approved of her. You think someone who abuses animals would go out of their way to cremate a dog and bury it next to my mother? She's lying."James marched up to Yvonne and grabbed her by the throat. His eyes were bloodshot."You said my mom stopped us from being together because she looked down on your family?" James asked.After Yvonne was sent overseas, James argued with his mom for years because of that lie. During that time, my mother treated him like her own.Yvonne continued to deny and said with a wronged tone, "I don't understand. It was just some cats and dogs. Why does everyone

James reached out, trying to hug me, but I pushed him away without hesitation."Babe, why are you suddenly being so mean? Did someone say something to you? Did you misunderstand me again?"He sighed. "Look, I know you're mad about the bracelets, but I can explain everything."He opened the jewelry box he brought and started pointing to each bracelet."This one—I gave it to you because Yvonne threatened to kill herself that day. I stayed with her on her birthday because I was afraid she'd do something. I couldn't just let her die in front of me, could I?"This one—I gave it to you on your birthday. My buddies and I were playing truth or dare that night. I lost, and they dared me to post an old photo with my ex on social media. That's why I did it."And this one—"Annoyed, I went to grab a coffee.James followed behind me, still rambling on with his excuses.As he talked, his voice started to lose confidence. I sipped my coffee and finally cut him off."James, ask yourself—do y