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All Chapters of I Bought Only One Ticket Home: Chapter 1 - Chapter 10

10 Chapters

Chapter 1

"The front desk says they don't rent rooms by the hour this late. Splash some water on your face in the restroom and make do with a lobby couch tonight."Vanessa Clarke's voice message arrived just as I settled into the back of a cab."Tomorrow morning, take my mom to that trendy breakfast burrito place. Her stomach's sensitive, so tell them to leave out the cilantro."A second message followed. "Get there early and stand in line. I don't want her waking up hungry."I lowered the phone from my ear.The cab was quiet."Where to, buddy?" the driver asked, glancing at me in his rearview mirror."The airport.""Got a flight number? I can take you to the right terminal.""Whichever flight gets me back to Riverton first. I'll buy a ticket when I get there."He looked surprised. "Middle of the night? Have a fight with your girlfriend?""No fight."I watched the streetlights slide past the window. "Just get me to the airport, please. As fast as you can."My phone vibrated again. T

Chapter 2

Vanessa's voice rang out, sharp with impatience."The delivery guy says you're not in the lobby. You can't even be trusted to watch our bags?""My mom just fell asleep. Could you stop being so difficult for once?"I put the call on speaker."Well? Say something! Are you sulking again?""I'm telling you right now, don't you dare give me an attitude about tonight.""Mom's back is killing her, and Tyler's upset because he just quit his job. You're his brother-in-law. What's wrong with making a little sacrifice?""If you can't handle one uncomfortable night, what kind of father are you going to be?"I listened without interrupting.An announcement sounded above the gate."Attention, passengers traveling to Riverton. Your flight is now boarding."There was a second of silence on Vanessa's end."Where are you? What was that about boarding?""The airport.""What are you doing at the airport?""Making room for the three of you.""Have you lost your mind? You're running away in

Chapter 3

"Do you know how the sales clerk looked at us? Like we were begging for handouts!""Unfreeze it right now! Stop humiliating me in public!"I opened the bedroom closet."Your card?" I asked."It's my husband's card, which makes it mine! Quit arguing and turn it back on!""Vanessa." I tossed several jackets onto the bed. "I'm not running a charity for your family anymore.""What is that supposed to mean?""Exactly what I said."Diane seized the phone."How dare you! Once you're married, your money belongs to the Clarke family!""You make eight thousand dollars a month. So what if you spend six thousand on me?"You'd better send that money, or I'll deal with you when I get home!"I didn't bother listening to the rest. I hung up and blocked this number too.Then I pulled out two suitcases and started packing my clothes and documents.There wasn't much to pack.Diane's supplements and Tyler's endless online orders had swallowed nearly every available shelf in the apartment. M

Chapter 4

The comments section was buzzing.Vanessa's aunt Margaret had written: "What a thoughtful daughter, taking her mother on vacation!"Her cousin Rachel chimed in: "Now that's a good woman. Unlike certain people who get married and suddenly forget all about family."Vanessa replied to Rachel: "Some people only think about themselves. The best thing is to ignore them until they learn some manners."Owen sent a voice note."What the hell is wrong with that family? You paid for the honeymoon, they invited themselves, and now they're taking shots at you online?""They're not spending my money anymore," I wrote."What?""I froze the cards and changed my return flight. At this point, Vanessa's probably putting the trip on credit."He responded with a flood of laughing emojis."About damn time! You've finally stopped letting them walk all over you."I set my phone down and sipped my coffee.A new message came in from Lucas."Mr. Byrne, that buyer I mentioned can pay cash. He has an

Chapter 5

I blocked the inn's number too.Then I went to a restaurant I used to visit with Vanessa and ordered the dinner for two.Every time we'd come here together, she'd pick out the shrimp and set them aside for Tyler. The tenderest slices of beef went to Diane.By the time she was done, I'd have a few leaves of lettuce and a bowl of plain rice."You're trying to lose weight," she'd say. "Vegetables are good for you."This time, I tipped every shrimp on the platter into my bowl.I ate every last one.***For the next three days, the Clarke family acted as though they were determined to win a war of attrition.Messages poured into group chats through every relative they could recruit.Margaret left a long, indignant voice recording."Young people these days have no respect. So what if his mother-in-law wants a vacation? Cutting off her card? Does he want her to go hungry?"Rachel joined in."Exactly! Vanessa is the sweetest person I know. Look how badly he's treating her!"Vanes

Chapter 6

Vanessa stared past the stranger into the nearly empty living room.The wall where our wedding portrait had hung was now covered by a huge painting of a stern, sword-bearing warrior.The couch was gone. So was the coffee table.There wasn't a trace of the home she remembered.***"Come on, man. Don't joke about this," Vanessa said, her voice trembling. "This is my husband's condo. We only went away for our honeymoon..."The man spat onto the floor, snatched a sheet of paper off the entryway table, and flung it in her face."I don't care who your husband is. The sale closed, and the title transferred.""Read it. Copy of the recorded deed.""Now get lost before I call the cops and report you for trespassing!"He slammed the door in their faces.Diane collapsed onto the hallway floor, slapping the tiles and wailing."This is a disaster! That man sold our family home!""Where are we supposed to live now?""What did I do to deserve a daughter who married such a stingy monster?

Chapter 7

Vanessa stopped dead."That's impossible! He makes eight thousand dollars a month. Why would he just quit?"She ignored the receptionist's protests and shamelessly planted herself outside the offices until she managed to grab the arm of my former department head."Where did he go? Did he steal my money and run off?"My former manager, a brisk, no-nonsense woman named Dana, yanked her arm away."Steal your money? Vanessa, have you got no shame?""Elliot worked here for five years. His annual bonuses alone were in the tens of thousands.""You bring home twenty-five hundred a month and you're still paying off your car. What could he possibly steal from you?"Vanessa's cheeks burned."We're married! His money is marital property!"Dana gave a cold laugh and called security."Escort her out. She's disrupting the workplace."Two guards moved in and took Vanessa by the arms.Dana pointed at the coat Vanessa was wearing."Isn't that the designer coat Elliot bought you last month?

Chapter 8

Vanessa lunged forward and snatched the bags from Tyler's hands.Inside were pairs of expensive designer sneakers."Where did you get the money?" Her voice rose almost to a shriek."I... I took some of the cash you left in the drawer," he muttered."That was the last money I had for food!"Vanessa finally broke. She slapped Tyler across the face, and the two began fighting in the cramped room.Their mother cried out in alarm but couldn't get up to separate them.Her chronic back pain had flared again. She rolled helplessly on the mattress."Stop fighting! Take me to the hospital! A private hospital!" she screamed.Panting, Vanessa let go of her brother, hauled her mother up, and half carried her to the nearest county hospital.In the emergency department hallway, a nurse approached with paperwork."You're here with Diane Clarke? There's an outstanding charge of seven hundred and fifty dollars for the visit and preions."Vanessa crouched against the wall and emptied her pock

Chapter 9

I gave a small nod.I looked rested, confident, completely at ease.It was hard to believe I was the same man who'd once stood sweating over dinner in the Clarke family's kitchen, cooking for people who treated me like a servant.Vanessa started forward instinctively."Honey!" was already on the tip of her tongue.Then she looked down at herself.Her collar was yellowed. The toes of her shoes were worn through. She hadn't been able to shower properly in days.She stopped.Shame held her in place. She couldn't bring herself to come any closer.I reached the curb, where Marcus, my driver, was opening the door of a black executive car.Desperation overpowered her embarrassment.If she let me leave now, she might never find me again.She ran into the crosswalk without waiting for the light."ELLIOT!"Marcus slammed on the brakes. Tires shrieked against the pavement.Vanessa pounded on the hood with both hands, sprawling across the front of the car."Elliot! Come out! Look a

Chapter 10

The executive car pulled away smoothly and disappeared around the corner.In the rearview mirror, Vanessa was still lying on the pavement, clutching the envelope as though it were the last thing she owned.***A heavy rain was falling over Riverton on the day the final divorce decree arrived.Vanessa was working as a day laborer at a construction site, a hard hat strapped over her head.A courier in a raincoat approached and handed her a waterproof envelope."Vanessa Clarke? Certified court delivery. Sign here, please."She scrawled her signature with a hand smeared in mud and tore the envelope open.There it was, printed on a single thin sheet of paper: her marriage to me had been legally dissolved.Dizziness swept through her.She lost hold of the loaded wheelbarrow beside her. It tipped over, spilling a pile of bricks onto her foot.Later, in the hospital's emergency waiting area, Vanessa sat on a bench with one leg stretched out stiffly.She couldn't afford the addition

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