Chapter 2 Breaking Point

She turned away, her steps faltering yet determined.

Back at the Coleman Estate, the emptiness of the grand foyer struck her with bitter irony.

This place had never held the warmth of a home—only endless coldness and solitude.

Keira looked down at her palms, seeing the crescent-shaped marks where her nails had dug in, tiny spots of blood forming beneath the surface.

In that moment, her thoughts crystallized.

'Leave now,' she repeated silently to herself.

Leave Aiden. Leave this painful marriage.

Otherwise, she would eventually die in this hopeless quagmire.

Keira wiped the tears from her face and made her way to the study.

She opened the laptop and began typing, one letter at a time—divorce agreement.

The content was simple. In less than thirty minutes, she had drafted it.

She would take nothing.

Surely this was the outcome Aiden wanted as well.

Perhaps due to her distracted state, when printing the document, Keira mistakenly listed the Lynn Mansion as the address.

So the first person to see the divorce agreement wasn't Aiden, but Martha.

The next morning, just after dawn, someone pounded on the door of the Coleman Estate.

Keira, who hadn't slept all night, opened it with a haggard face.

She was immediately greeted with a stinging slap across her cheek.

"Keira! You ungrateful wretch! Explain this to me right now! What is this?" Martha furiously threw the divorce agreement at Keira, the papers scattering across the floor.

Keira froze in shock, looking at the divorce agreement. Her heart sank.

"Mom..."

Martha cut her off, jabbing a finger at Keira's face, her tirade continuing without pause.

"Who gave you the audacity to file for divorce? Do you realize that if you divorce, our entire family will be begging on the streets? The Colemans wanting you is the greatest stroke of luck in your miserable life! Besides that pretty face of yours, what do you have to offer? A bastard child with no legitimate standing—and you still think you're someone special?"

These words burned into Keira's heart.

Years of suppressed anguish and rage finally erupted.

She lifted her head, meeting Martha's gaze with cold eyes for the first time.

"Lucky? You mean the luck of lying on an operating table being cut open? Or the luck of being publicly humiliated by my husband? Or perhaps the luck of being called a whore to my face? This kind of luck—I don't want it!"

Martha stepped back in shock, then recovered with even greater fury.

"You've lost your mind! How dare you speak to me this way! If the Lynn family hadn't raised you, you would have..."

"Would have what? Died? That would be better than living like this!" Keira interrupted, her emotions boiling over.

Suddenly, a sharp pain shot through her eyes, accompanied by intense dizziness.

She cried out, clutching her eyes as she stumbled backward, crashing into the entryway table.

The crystal vase there shattered on impact, pieces scattering across the marble floor.

"Stop your theatrics! Get up!" Martha snapped.

But she quickly realized something was wrong.

Keira was covered in cold sweat, her eyes tightly shut in obvious pain.

Martha panicked momentarily, but rather than offering comfort, her voice grew even colder.

"This is divine punishment for your disobedience! Listen to me, Keira—if you dare divorce Aiden, your life will be a thousand times worse than it is now! When your eyes go completely blind, when you're dying in some gutter, no one will even glance your way!"

Keira heard every word, each one chilling her to the core.

The stabbing pain in her eyes gradually subsided, her vision slowly returning.

She pulled herself up, leaning against the wall, breathing heavily.

"Are you finished?" Her voice was hoarse. "If you are, please leave."

Martha wanted to continue her tirade, but something in Keira's hollow gaze disturbed her.

Finally, with a muttered "You'll regret this," she stormed out, slamming the door behind her.

The mansion fell into complete silence.

Keira felt her way around, gathering the divorce papers from the floor and clutching them to her chest.

On the way to the hospital, she took out her phone and dialed the number she knew by heart.

The phone rang for a long time before being answered.

Aiden's cold, impatient voice came through. "What is it? I'm busy."

Keira took a deep breath.

"Aiden, I want a divorce. I've prepared the agreement. I'm not asking for anything."

Silence on the other end for several seconds, followed by a cold, mocking laugh.

"Playing hard to get again? Or has the Lynn family concocted some new scheme? You think this will make me pay more attention to you? Since you're so eager to leave, fine. I'll grant your wish. Don't come crying back later."

The call ended abruptly.

Keira slowly lowered her phone, her face devoid of expression.

She only regretted not leaving sooner.

The divorce seemed to be settled with unexpected haste.

Keira informed Martha of her decision, ignoring the woman's fury.

She had expected Martha to cause a scene, but surprisingly, two days later, she received a call from her mother.

Her tone was unusually gentle, even conciliatory.

"Keira, dear, I was wrong before. I was confused and overlooked your feelings. If you're unhappy and want a divorce, I support you. Pack your things and come home. Let's have dinner tonight. I have so many things I want to tell you."

Keira pressed her lips together, an uneasy feeling settling in her stomach.

Yet the lifelong yearning for familial warmth made her cling to a faint hope.

Perhaps after the divorce, their mother-daughter relationship could improve?

After a long silence, she finally agreed. "Okay."

Hanging up, Keira held her slightly warm phone, looking around the immaculately clean house.

Beside her stood a small suitcase.

Having decided on divorce, she couldn't stay here any longer.

Suppressing the dull ache in her chest, Keira sighed softly, pulled her suitcase, and closed the heavy door behind her.

Several hours passed, and night fell.

The front door of the Coleman Estate opened again as Aiden returned.

He rubbed his throbbing temples, only to notice the house eerily empty and quiet.

On the rare occasions when he came home, he would usually find Keira busy in the kitchen, wearing an apron, the house filled with warm light and the comforting scent of home-cooked meals.

But today, with her divorce theatrics, she had apparently decided to play the runaway wife!