Chapter 6: The Man Who Couldn’t Believe It
Ethan stood in the middle of the empty kitchen for a long time.
His parents and sister remained near the entrance, unsure whether to come inside or stay where they were. The silence in the house was so complete that every small sound — the creak of a floorboard, the distant hum of the air conditioner — felt amplified.
Finally, Ethan’s mother spoke.
“Ethan… where is everything? Where is Claire?”
He didn’t answer right away. Instead, he opened the folder on the kitchen island and began flipping through the pages with shaking hands.
The deed.
The wire transfer confirmations.
The bank statements showing his unauthorized withdrawals.
The letter from Claire’s attorney.
His face grew paler with every document he read.
Lily stepped forward hesitantly.
“Ethan, what’s going on? Why is the house empty?”
Ethan finally looked up. His expression was no longer confident. It was something closer to disbelief mixed with rising panic.
“She took everything,” he said, almost to himself. “She actually took everything.”
His father frowned.
“What do you mean she took everything? This is your house. You told us—”
“I know what I told you,” Ethan snapped. He ran a hand through his hair, something he only did when he was truly losing control. “I thought… I thought she wouldn’t do this. I thought she would understand.”
His mother’s voice sharpened.
“Understand what, exactly? That you brought us here without telling her? That you spent money that wasn’t yours?”
Ethan didn’t answer.
Because the truth was becoming painfully clear, even to him.
He had assumed Claire would eventually give in. He had assumed that because they were married, she wouldn’t fight back. He had assumed that his family’s presence would force her to accept the situation.
He had been wrong about everything.
Ethan pulled out his phone and called Claire again.
It went straight to voicemail.
He tried texting.
No reply.
After several failed attempts, he slammed his phone down on the counter.
“She’s not answering,” he muttered.
His sister crossed her arms.
“Maybe because you told her the house belongs to you and tried to move your entire family in without asking. What did you expect her to do, Ethan?”
Ethan shot her a glare, but Lily didn’t back down.
“You really messed this up,” she said quietly.
May you like
For the first time, Ethan looked like he was starting to understand the full extent of what he had done.
But it was already too late.
