Chapter 5

His body went stiff.

He looked down at me in utter disbelief:

"Maya, when are you going to stop this childish drama?"

Right.

To him, every time I mentioned divorce, it was just a dramatic show.

The suicide attempts, the screaming—it was always loud, but in the end, I would always listen to Chloe and go back to him.

But only I knew that this time was different.

The bodyguards let go of me, and I slowly stood up:

"The jewelry, the cars, the house... I don't want any of it. Just sign the papers."

Ethan’s hand, which was wrapping around Lily’s waist, froze:

"I’m not signing. What kind of reverse psychology is this?"

Lily had stopped crying by now, looking anxious:

"Ethan, you promised me you’d give me a real family."

Ethan was silent for a long moment before whispering to her:

"Sweetheart, I also promised her that I would give you my love, but keep her as my legal wife."

Lily turned her head away, looking incredibly hurt and angry.

Seeing Ethan's suspicious gaze, my heart felt a sharp prick.

I had expected this reaction. I pulled a share transfer agreement out of my bag:

"You've been wanting me to give back my shares in Sterling Group, right? Sign the divorce papers, and these are yours."

Chloe grabbed my arm tightly:

"Are you insane?! You got those shares when we first founded the company!"

"You can give up anything else, but if you lose those shares, you'll literally have nothing!"

I ignored her, keeping my eyes fixed on Ethan:

"I know you're currently bidding against Julian Hayes. With these shares, you'll have absolute control over the company."

Ethan stayed silent for a long time, his eyes narrowing:

"Maya, I can agree to the divorce. But you better not be playing any games with me."

I looked him straight in the eyes:

"Ethan, let me go, and let yourself go. I'm just so tired."

As if triggered by my words, he snatched the papers from my hand and quickly signed them:

"Fine! Let's see how many days you can survive out there without the protection of the Sterling Group!"

"I’ll be waiting for the day you come crawling back, begging me to remarry you!"

I didn't say a word. I just stared at his signature on the paper.

"It's signed. Now get the hell out of here!"

He threw the papers right at my face.

I didn't cry. I didn't yell. I just turned around and walked away.

Behind me, Chloe was screaming my name:

"Maya! Are you crazy? How are you going to survive without Ethan?"

"Just because I didn't stop you this one time, you actually went through with it?!"

She tried to run after me.

But Ethan’s cold voice stopped her:

"Let her go. We've protected her too well all these years."

"It's time she faces the harsh reality of the world. Only then will she realize how good she had it with us."

My footsteps paused for a fraction of a second.

He didn't know. My world didn't have any storms.

All the pain and disasters in my life were brought to me by them.

I went back to the house and began packing.

The high school photos, the college postcards.

I left behind every single memory of the three of us.

Just a few clothes and my ID documents.

In this house, which was already taken over by Lily's things, my belongings were pathetic.

But at least it made packing quick.

As I dragged my suitcase into the airport, a man in a black suit was already waiting for me:

"Miss Miller, you did Mr. Hayes a huge favor this time. He has arranged everything for your trip."

"Don't worry. As long as you don't want to be found, Ethan Sterling will never find you."

I nodded to the man, turned off my phone, and boarded Julian Hayes’s private jet.

Two hours later, the plane landed.

A flood of text messages and missed calls popped up the moment I turned my phone back on.