Chapter 7
Amara froze.
A flicker of something passed through Serena's eyes before she arranged her face into an expression of shock.
"Divorce?" Amara looked at Theodric. "Theodric, what's going on?"
Theodric set down his teacup, expression indifferent. "We already signed the papers. We're finalizing everything next Monday."
Camilla lifted her head, her gaze eerily calm. "I don't want anything else. But everything that belonged to my parents—I'm taking all of it."
"Well..." Amara's face cycled through several emotions. She didn't know what to say. She looked at Camilla, then at Theodric, disbelief written all over her face.
Footsteps sounded from the staircase. Heath came down from upstairs, his expression dark. "What's all this noise?"
He'd been in his study and vaguely heard a commotion from the living room. Coming down, he found everyone either standing or sitting, the atmosphere stiff as stone.
"Dad." Theodric stood.
Heath waved him off, his gaze landing on Camilla. "What's going on?"
Camilla looked at him—the elder who had taken her in after her parents died.
"Dad," she began, "Theodric and I are getting divorced."
Heath's brow furrowed.
Just then, a clear child's voice rang out.
"Really?"
Ollie jumped down from the sofa, his eyes bright, his face full of delight.
He ran to Theodric's side, tilting his head up. "Daddy, are you really divorcing Mommy? Does that mean Serena can be my mommy now?"
Children speak without filter, but those words—they were like a knife plunging straight into Camilla's chest.
She stood there, looking at her son. That little face she'd kissed and cherished for four years now gazed expectantly at Theodric, waiting for him to nod.
Theodric said nothing.
Serena quickly stood, walked over, and crouched down, taking Ollie's small hand. "Ollie, don't talk nonsense. Your mother is right here."
Though Serena held his hand, Ollie couldn't help mumbling under his breath, "But I want Serena to be my mommy..."
Camilla closed her eyes. The cold had reached such an extreme that she felt nothing at all.
Finally, Heath spoke.
"If you're divorcing, divorce then." His voice was flat, as if discussing something trivial. "You can't force a square peg into a round hole. You two shouldn't have been put together in the first place."
Camilla opened her eyes and looked at him.
Heath didn't look at her, only at Theodric. "Since you're divorcing, handle it cleanly. Who gets the child?"
"Me." Theodric's tone was firm.
Heath nodded, then asked Camilla, "You agree?"
Camilla's voice was soft. "I agree."
Amara, listening on the side, now spoke up. "What about the property split? We can't let her walk away with Clifford family assets."
As she spoke, she glanced at Camilla with scrutiny and wariness.
Meeting that look, Camilla suddenly wanted to laugh.
This was the place she'd lived for fifteen years. These were the people she'd called "Mom and Dad" for fifteen years.
Hearing she wanted a divorce, not one word of persuasion, not one word of concern. All they asked was who gets the child, how to divide the assets—as if finally shedding a burden.
"I don't want money," she said. "I only want my mother's belongings."
Amara's face stiffened.
The belongings again.
"Camilla," Heath frowned, "your mother's things have mostly been scattered over the years. What do you need them for?"
"They're what my mother left me." Camilla looked at him. "I don't want anything else. Just those."
Heath was silent for a moment, then waved his hand. "Fine. Take whatever can be found."
"Honey!" Amara protested. "Those things—"
"Enough." Heath cut her off. "They were hers to begin with."
Camilla's gaze fell once more on Serena's wrist. "Give me back the bracelet."
Serena instinctively pulled her hand back, looking troubled. She glanced at Theodric, seeking help.
Theodric's brow furrowed as he looked at Camilla. "It's just a bracelet. Do you have to make such a scene?"
Camilla looked at him. Said nothing.
Theodric felt uncomfortable under that gaze.
"The gift has already been given," he said. "There's no reason to take it back."
Camilla's lips twitched slightly. "A gift that was given?"
She looked at the bracelet on Serena's wrist, at that faint brownish mark. "This is my mother's heirloom."
Her voice was soft, but every word landed with weight. "When my mother died, I wasn't even ten. Her things were taken and given away, worn by someone else. I want them back, and you call me unreasonable?"
Theodric's frown deepened. "Camilla!"
"Theodric." Camilla cut him off, looking straight at him. "Has the Clifford family really fallen so low that you have to steal from the dead?"
Theodric's expression darkened.
He opened his mouth, wanting to say something, but found he had no words.
Seeing this, Serena quickly stepped forward and began removing the bracelet from her wrist. "Ms. Lavien, please don't be upset. I didn't know this was your mother's heirloom. If I'd known, I never would have worn it."
As she slipped it off, her face showed both apology and grievance. "Theodric didn't know either. He didn't mean it that way. Don't blame him."
Ollie watched from the side, his little face scrunched up.
Seeing Serena about to return the bracelet to his mother, a strange emotion surged through him.
Why?
Mommy didn't love him. She wouldn't even go with him to see the doctor. Why should Serena have to give back the bracelet?
He rushed forward and threw his arms around Serena's leg, his little face full of defiance. "Don't give it back! It's Serena's! Mommy's being mean! She's taking everything!"
He hugged too hard and bumped into Serena. She stumbled, her hand loosened, and the bracelet slipped to the floor.
A clear crack. The bracelet broke in two.
The living room fell instantly silent. Camilla froze completely.
She looked down at the two pieces of broken bracelet on the floor.
Split in half, the break fresh and raw.
That faint brownish mark remained, extending from one piece to the other—like a wound torn open.
Camilla's eyes reddened instantly. Her body began to tremble. She opened her mouth, wanting to say something, but nothing came out.
That was her mother's bracelet.
Serena was the first to react. She crouched down to pick it up. "How did it break—"
"Don't touch it!" Camilla's voice came out sharp and hoarse, startling everyone.
Serena's hand froze mid-air.
Camilla walked over and crouched down. She reached out, her fingertips trembling. Gently, she picked up one piece, then the other. She pressed them together. The crack remained.
Tears streamed down Camilla's face.
Ollie stood nearby, watching her. Panic suddenly rose in his chest.
But he didn't know why he felt panicked.
He hadn't done anything wrong.
"I... I didn't mean to..." he said quietly.
No one paid attention to him. Ollie bit his lip, his voice growing louder. "Mommy's just being mean! It's just an old bracelet! It broke, so what!"
Camilla didn't move. She kept staring at the two pieces in her hands.
The more Ollie spoke, the more convinced he became he was right. "It's just a stupid bracelet! It broke, so what! What's the big deal! Mommy's so mean! She wants everything! She takes everything..."
"Shut up." Camilla's voice wasn't loud, but it was cold.
So cold that Ollie froze instantly. He stared at Camilla blankly, his mouth still open, unable to say another word.
Mommy had never spoken to him in that tone before.
Tears unknowingly began falling from Ollie's eyes. He didn't know what to say. He just clung tightly to Serena's leg.
Serena quickly crouched down to comfort him. "Ollie, don't cry. It's okay. It's not your fault. I didn't hold it properly..."
Camilla looked at them in silence, her tone ice-cold.
"I'll make a list of the rest. Whatever can be found, I'll take. Whatever can't—forget it." She paused. "Next Monday, we finalize the divorce. After that, the Clifford family and I will have nothing to do with each other."
With that, she turned and walked out. Behind her, Ollie's crying grew louder—as if he'd suffered the greatest injustice in the world. Camilla didn't look back.
