Chapter 2 - THE WAR BEGINSThe silence in the kitchen felt heavier than thunder.
Diane folded her arms.
"Prove it."
Ryan's hands trembled.
"I watched you forge my signature on a check last year."
"That was different."
"How?"
"It was for the family."
Ryan laughed bitterly.
"For the family?"
He looked at me.
Then back at his mother.
"You forced my pregnant wife to sign divorce papers while I was away."
Diane's eyes narrowed.
"She's not right for you."
"That's not your decision."
"Your father agrees with me."
Ryan flinched.
I knew that wound.
His father had always been the invisible weapon Diane used whenever she wanted control.
"You're choosing her over your own mother?" Diane whispered.
Ryan's voice became cold.
"I'm choosing my wife and my child over someone who just attacked them."
The mask slipped from Diane's face.
For half a second, there was something almost predatory in her eyes.
Then tears appeared.
Instantly.
Perfectly.
She covered her face.
"After everything I've sacrificed for you..."
Ryan didn't move.
I had seen this before.
The tears.
The guilt.
The emotional blackmail.
The sudden victimhood.
But today was different.
Today he had finally seen it.
"Pack a bag," Ryan said.
Diane looked up.
"What?"
"You're staying with Aunt Margaret."
"This is my house."
"Then we'll leave."
Her expression turned deadly.
"If you walk out that door with her, I will make sure you lose everything."
Ryan reached for my hand.
"Try."
We walked outside.
The Carolina heat hit us like a wall.
Ryan helped me into the truck.
Before he started the engine, I looked back.
Diane stood on the porch.
She wasn't crying anymore.
She was smiling.
That smile followed us all the way home.
And somewhere deep inside, I knew.
May you like
This wasn't the end.
It was the beginning.
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