After being unable to reach her husband for the third time, Cynthia Radcliffe sighed and put her phone down. It was already eight o’clock on the night of their fifth wedding anniversary, and her husband, Kane Radcliffe, was nowhere to be seen.
Cynthia looked at the dishes covering the dining table. She had already reheated the food twice. It seemed she’d have to do it again.
Her footsteps echoed through the large penthouse as she headed to the microwave with a plate in hand. She stopped midway when her phone rang. Thinking it was her husband, she turned back and picked the call. The person on the other side was her husband’s Beta.
“Luna Cynthia, Alpha Kane and the twins had a car accident. They need you at the police station right away!”
The plate crashed to the floor, splattering food everywhere. “Are they alright? Is anyone hurt?”
“They are all fine,” he replied. “But there’s a matter you need to attend to at the station. Come as quickly as possible.”
Cynthia did not stop to clean the food that had splattered on her feet. She left the house and rushed to the police station. A sense of relief washed over her when she spotted her husband with their two sons next to him, looking safe and sound.
That relief shattered when a woman moved into the frame and put her arm around Kane. Kane reciprocated the gesture and held the woman close to his chest.
Cynthia’s heart stuttered as a single word slipped past her lips… “Aurelia.”
She stopped cold in her steps, not sure what to do. Something she had been trying to ignore for five years was suddenly thrust in her face, and in such a public face.
Kane noticed his wife and walked to her. He grabbed her arm and pulled her to a corner. “Aurelia hit someone. We have compensated the victim, but Aurelia was speeding and we need a driver on the record. Tell the police it was you.”
His words pulled Cynthia from her stupor. …what? He wanted her to take the blame for her sister’s crime? “Why would I do that?”
His jaw tightened, the way it did when he was running out of patience. “Aurelia’s dance career has just reached its peak. Next week, she has her biggest performance yet. What do you think a scandal like this would do to her career?”
Cynthia wished she could say she didn’t believe what her husband was saying. Unfortunately, this was exactly how he would act. When it came to his precious Aurelia, there’s nothing he wouldn’t do.
“Her career? What about mine? Did it ever matter?” Deep inside, she knew her words could not move his stone-cold heart, but she said it anyway. “I’m your luna!”
He sneered. “You know exactly how and why we got mated.”
His voice was cold, sharp, accusing her without saying so much. Right. The misunderstanding from five years ago was still very rife, standing between them like a wall of thorns that pricked Cynthia every day of her life. Kane never let her forget it.
Aurelia walked over then, her eyes shining with tears. She put her hand on Kane’s arm, as if it was the most natural thing to her. “Kane, it’s okay. It was my fault. I’m the one who wanted to take the boys out. I should have paid more attention to the road. I’ll face the consequences myself.”
Kane frowned, his face softening as he switched his gaze from his wife to the woman hanging onto him. “I won’t let you. This could ruin your career. It’s just a small mistake, let her take care of it.” He looked back at Cynthia. “Just do it. I’ll pay you back with whatever you want.”
Whatever she wants? Could anything make up for this level of humiliation and disrespect?
The two little boys joined the three adults. They each grabbed Aurelia’s hand while looking up at their mother. Harry, the younger one, had tears streaming down his face. “It was not Aunt Aurelia’s fault. Mother, don’t let the police punish her. Tell them you did it.”
“Yes, you do it,” Justin, the older twin, said. “You are our mother. Aunt Aurelia should not go to jail because of us.”
“If you don’t do it, I won’t call you mommy anymore!” Harry sobbed.
Her own children telling her to take the blame was like a physical blow to Cynthia’s heart. To them, they did not care to see her suffer; they only wanted to protect their aunt!
The worry, then relief, she had felt upon receiving the call about the accident gave way to a calmness she hadn’t felt in years. This blatant betrayal from husband and sons was the final straw.
They had always treated her with coldness, no matter how good a mother and wife she tried to be. In their eyes, she was worthless compared to Aurelia. They disregarded her, treating her like she was not worth any dignity or respect.
And now, she no longer wanted to try. They had finally crossed a line she couldn’t ignore.
“What are you thinking about?” Kane demanded. “This is a fraction of what you owe her. You should be glad to have an opportunity to make up for your sins against her.”
Hadn’t she already paid the price for what happened five years ago a hundred times over? She had given up her career and married a man who hated her. She had acted ignorant of his affair with her sister. She dutifully raised sons who hated her and adored the woman their father cheated with.
Her entire life was ruined because of that one mistake. How come that wasn’t enough?
Silently, Cynthia turned and walked to the desk. “Officer, I’d like to make a statement about the car accident.”
The police officer looked at her. “Ah, you’re here. Are you the driver? How dare you try to run away? Do you know this could worsen the charges against you?”
“Sir, it was not me,” she said, her voice firm and clear. She put her phone on the desk. “You can check my location details at the time of the incident and also review my home security feed. This will ascertain that I was nowhere near the crime scene. The driver was Aurelia Ramsdale, my sister.”
She looked up then, to catch the shocked expression on Kane and Aurelia’s faces. The storm brewing on her husband’s face looked damn near to blow the station’s roof off. Her sons' mouths were agape; they could not believe it. And her sister? Her face was ashen, as if she had realised that her goose was truly cooked.
Cynthia smiled. They had thought they could bury her while she was still alive. She was choosing to breathe again.
Her eyes rested on her husband. “Kane, let’s get divorced.”
