Chapter Four

After what seemed to be hours to Renee, she finally stepped out of the restroom, her eyes red with pain and her heart shattered. Even though she had wiped her tears, the tears were still visible to anyone who cared to look.

She cleared her throat one more time, forcing a mask onto her face to seal the pain. She was going to let them believe she was still clueless but, only for a short time.

She walked back into the dining room to see them all laughing and gisting, laughter echoing through the room. Daniel was the first one to sense her return. He turned to her with a bright smile.

“You took forever in there. We were starting to wonder if you were giving birth.” He joked and everyone at the table laughed, everyone except Renee.

Instead, she swallowed hard and balled her fists, holding herself from exploding.

The dinner dragged on for two painful hours, with her foster parents fawning over Daniel and completely ignoring her existence except when Chloe threw a smug comment at her.

Every time Daniel laughed at those jokes, every time her foster parents showed more affection towards him, her resolve hardened.

They had taken her in when she had nothing and gave her a roof over her head but she had done more than enough to pay them back for it and now, she was done.

Her appetite was already long gone. Whatever she ate tased like dust. Maybe it was the pain but, she nothing amused her or tasted good, not even her favorite strawberry cake.

After a while, Renee knew that if she stayed there longer, she would explode so, as soon as the desert was over, she stood.

“We should get going. It’s already late.” She said, forcing a polite smile, and Daniel who was completely oblivious to the storm that was brewing checked his time and joined.

“Oh my! So much time has gone by already!” He pointed out. “Thank you so much for having me, Jane, Charles, Chloe. I had a wonderful time and your food was delicious as always.” He said, grinning widely at Jane and then sent a quick wink at Chloe who replied with a blush.

And for the first time, Renee saw it.

The knowing glances, the flirtatious looks…she saw it all.

With a final glance at the people who had spent years pretending to be her family, she turned and walked out.

The ride home was filled with silence. Daniel tapped his fingers against the steering wheel, occasionally stealing glances at Renee who had a cold expression on her face as stared at the window.

“Is there something on your mind? You’ve been awfully quiet?” Daniel finally asked but….

Renee didn’t respond.

She continued looking out the window, staring at any and everything but her husband’s face.

He sighed, shaking his head. “Is this about the comment Chloe made at dinner?” He asked in a casual and dismissive tone, briefly taking his eyes off the road to glance at her.

“You’re always too sensitive, Renee. It was an obvious joke that everyone at the table understood except you.” He said with an eye roll that forced a bitter chuckle from Renee’s lips.

“A joke?” She finally turned to look at him. “Chloe asking if I have a womb, fully knowing our predicament is a joke to you?” She repeated in a sharp tone, glaring at him.

Daniel groaned. “Oh God, Renee. You know Chloe didn’t mean it like that. She’s too innocent to do that. Don’t make a fuss out of nothing—"

“What kind of a husband are you?! You didn’t even say a word to side with me at dinner but here you are, defending Chloe like she’s your wife when we both know that she was in the wrong! You never defend me! Not me, Never!” She screamed, pointing at him, hot tears dropping from her eyes.

It then dawned on her that he was always like this but she never saw it because she didn’t believe he could be wrong. She trusted and loved him too much so even when he sided with Chloe to mock her under the disguise of a joke, she laughed along, trusting that it was just a joke.

What a fool she had been!

“You know what you are, Daniel? A coward! You’re a fucking coward!” She finished and returned to her previous position, staring out the window with her chest heaving like she had just ran a marathon.

His knuckles went white on the steering wheel as they tightened. “What did you just say?” He asked with gritted teeth.

She said nothing.

His jaw clenched in anger but he controlled himself, only showing his anger by the speed increase of the car.

By the time they reached the house, he was still fuming but she didn’t care. She got out before him and instead of going into her room, she went into the guest room, only stopping by her room to get her nightwear.

As she lay in her bed, the weight of the betrayal pressed on her. Just when she thought she only had to deal with Daniel’s affair, another betrayal was revealed.

Her entire life had been a lie!

Her marriage, her family…it was all a lie!

After hours of turning and sniffing, she finally decided to sleep but just as she was about to turn off the lights, her phone buzzed.

It was Priya.

Priya: [The papers will be delivered tomorrow.]

The text read and Renee exhaled deeply, her fingers tightening around the phone.

It was finally time.

It was settled.

Tomorrow, she would erase Daniel from her life for good as well as her foster family and finally find true happiness.

She placed her phone down and slid into the covers, a small smile tugging at her lips as an unexpected feeling of calmness enveloped her.

*

*

The next morning, Renee freshened up early but remained in her room. She didn’t care about seeing Daniel one last time. She didn’t even want to see him for the rest of her life.

He had played her, lied to her, deceived her, and took her love for granted. Now, she was going to make his life miserable, just like he had done to her.

Meanwhile, Daniel sat at the dining table, occasionally stealing glances at the guest room which was on the ground floor.

“She’s really going to drag this, isn’t she? When she’s tired of acting out, she’ll come back to me and beg. She always does.” He said with an evil smirk and continued with his meal.

He had no idea.

Renee waited in the room until she was sure he was gone before stepping out. She gave a call to the number Priya sent and in a few minutes, a knock sounded on the door.

“There’s a delivery for you, Ma’am.” The butler announced, handing the documents to her.

“Thank you, Arnold.” She said with a smile and took the papers.

As soon as he left, she hurried to her room, her heart pounding as she tore it open.

There it was…the key to her freedom.

A slow smile stretched across her lips as she flipped through the pages.

She was giving him the house and a check of ten million dollars as alimony and wasn’t asking for a dime from him. Surely, it would be enough to get him to sign the papers.

Without hesitation, she grabbed a pen and signed her name at the bottom.

Then she walked to her dressing table and pulled one of the drawers where her surprise for Daniel lay- a printed photo of him and Chloe naked and having sex on their matrimonial bed.

She placed it on top of the documents and kept it all on the bed.

Then, she grabbed her already packed box and walked to the front door.

Taking one last look around the house she had built with so much love, a tear escaped her eyes and it was soon followed by another.

With pain in her heart for the wasted years, Renee turned around and walked out of the door.

She was done.

And soon would be Daniel and of course….her ‘family’.