All Chapters of WHICH MAN STAYS?: Chapter 1 - Chapter 8

MAYA'S POVThe bakery box in my hands is heavy, filled with the chocolate dinosaur cake my son, Leo, has been talking about for a month. Six years old today. My heart feels light, a balloon ready to soar. I picture his face, the gap-toothed grin, the way he’ll launch himself at his father, Daniel. I’ve already texted Daniel three times this morning. Don’t forget, 5 PM sharp at home. Surprise! He never replied, but he’s been busy. I make excuses for him even before I need to.I balance the box with one arm, fumbling with my keys at our front door. The house isn’t quiet. Laughter spills from the living room. A child’s high-pitched giggle that isn’t Leo’s. Confusion prickles my skin. Did Daniel invite people over for the party without telling me? My surprise plan, ruined.I push the door open.The scene in my living room is a photograph from someone else’s life. Balloons are tied to the chair, but they are silver and blue, not Leo’s favorite fiery red. A banner hangs over the mantel. It

MAYA'S POV The silence after deleting Daniel’s voicemail is a clean slate. A terrible, empty one. I walk back to Leo’s room wearing Liam’s jacket like armor.He’s right where I left him, a steadfast silhouette in the terrible chair. He looks up. “You okay?”“Define okay,” I say, but my voice is lighter. Having one person who simply shows up rewires your nervous system.Dr. Vance, our main doctor, comes in smiling. “It’s time. We’ll start bringing him back to us.” The process is slow, a careful dial-turn of consciousness. Leo’s tiny fingers twitch. My world narrows to the space between his eyelashes.Daniel arrives halfway through. He walks in with the hesitant air of a tourist. He’s clean, shaved, wearing a crisp shirt. He looks at Liam, and his polite mask slips for a second into pure, unguarded annoyance.“Liam. I didn’t know you were in town.”“I am now,” Liam says, not looking away from Leo. His voice is neutral, but his posture—leaning forward, elbows on knees, a fortress around

MAYA'S POV“You look terrible, Maya. Are they not letting you use the shower?”The voice, smooth and invasive as syrup, slides into the room. I look up from wiping Leo’s brow. Clara stands in the doorway, holding a ludicrously oversized bouquet of white lilies. She’s dressed for a board meeting, not a pediatric ICU.Liam, who’d been dozing in the corner chair, is instantly on his feet, a silent, solid wall between her and the bed.“What are you doing here?” My voice is flat. All my emotion is reserved for the beep of the monitor.“I came to see the child, of course. And to see you.” She places the flowers on the windowsill, an act of conquest. “We need to talk. Man to man, as it were.”“There’s nothing to talk about.”“Oh, I disagree.” She smiles, glancing around the room with a pitying look. “I think we need to understand each other. For Daniel’s sake. He’s… stretched very thin.”A cold laugh escapes me. “Is that what we’re calling it?”She ignores me, stepping closer. Liam shifts, b

LIAM'S POVThe date. The damn date.I sit in my car in the hospital parking garage, the envelope crumpled on the passenger seat. I’ve run the math twelve times. The bachelor party. The night Daniel vanished for four hours. The night Elise called me, her voice slurred and weeping, asking if I’d seen him, mumbling about promises he’d broken.Aiden Martinez was born exactly nine months later.My brother’s child. Another one.The rage is a clean, cold blade. It cuts through the shock, through the hurt of Maya sending me away. This isn’t about me anymore. This is about the sheer scale of Daniel’s lies. Maya thinks she’s surviving one betrayal. She doesn’t know she’s living in an earthquake zone.I start the engine. I don’t need sentiment. I need evidence. I need to look Elise in the eye.Her apartment is in a complex that’s seen better days. I park across the street, my photographer’s eye scanning. I’m not here for a family reunion. I’m here for reconnaissance. An hour passes. Then I see i