Allison POV:

Gabriel stood frozen, Kaia hovering behind him, her innocent facade wavering. It was a stark contrast to the screaming matches, the hurled accusations, the furious tears that used to define these encounters. My calmness was a weapon, and it unsettled them both.

"Dinner?" Gabriel finally managed, his voice strained. "Allison, what is going on?"

I walked past them, into the kitchen, the scent of fresh bread and simmering stew already filling the air. "What' s going on, Gabriel, is that you' ve finally decided to come home. And Kaia," I glanced over my shoulder, meeting her surprised gaze, "is here. So, we' ll have a meal."

Kaia looked at Gabriel, then back at me, her blonde head tilted. "Mrs. Kaufman, I can just… I can go. I wouldn' t want to intrude."

The politeness was a thin veneer, barely concealing the triumph in her eyes. She thought she had won. They both did.

"Nonsense," I said smoothly, reaching for a third plate. "You' re here now. And Gabriel brought you. He always takes care of his people, doesn' t he, darling?" My eyes flickered to Gabriel. The corner of his mouth twitched, a muscle in his jaw clenching. He was utterly confused. Good.

We sat at the dining table, a bizarre tableau. Gabriel, stiff and silent. Kaia, picking at her food, occasionally glancing at me with a mixture of fear and curiosity. And me, eating with a calm I hadn't felt in years.

"So, Kaia," I said, breaking the strained silence, "Gabriel tells me you' re an incredibly talented junior architect. He' s often praised your eye for detail."

Kaia' s cheeks flushed. "Oh, um, thank you, Mrs. Kaufman. I just try my best."

Gabriel cleared his throat. "Allison, can we talk? Privately?"

I put down my fork. "Is there something you wish to discuss that Kaia shouldn' t hear? Surely, as a valued member of your team, and apparently, your personal life, she should be privy to all important conversations, shouldn' t she?"

His eyes flashed, but he bit back his retort. He was trapped.

"Allison," he said, his voice dropping, a forced tenderness. "About… about everything. I know things have been difficult. And I want to make it right."

"Make what right, Gabriel?" I asked, meeting his gaze. "The years of neglect? The public humiliation? The countless times you chose her over me?"

"I… I didn' t choose her," he stammered. "She' s just… she needed me. And you were so… angry."

Kaia coughed delicately. "Gabriel, maybe we should just leave…"

"No!" Gabriel snapped, then softened his tone for Kaia. "It' s fine, Kaia. Allison just needs to understand." He turned back to me, his gaze pleading. "Allison, you know how much our family means to me. Our shared history. Everything we built."

"Yes, I do," I said, my voice flat. "And what about our future, Gabriel? Is Kaia a part of that too?"

He hesitated, looking from me to Kaia. "Kaia is… she' s an important part of our company' s future. She' s indispensable."

My lips thinned. "I see. Indispensable. So much so that she needs to wear my things now?" My gaze dropped to Kaia' s wrist. She was wearing the delicate pearl bracelet Gabriel had given me on our tenth anniversary. My stomach clenched, but I kept my face impassive.

Kaia' s eyes widened. She quickly tucked her hand under the table. Gabriel' s face went rigid.

"Allison, don' t be ridiculous," he growled. "It' s just a bracelet. Kaia admired it. I offered it to her."

He had offered it to her. The symbol of our decade together. It was a tangible severing.

"Of course," I said, nodding slowly. "How thoughtless of me. She should have it. In fact…" I pushed my chair back and stood up. "There' s a matching necklace. A sentimental piece. Our first Christmas together. Would you like that too, Kaia?" My voice was sweet, but my eyes were ice.

Kaia looked horrified. "No! No, Mrs. Kaufman, I couldn' t possibly…"

"Nonsense," Gabriel cut in, his voice firm, trying to take control. "Allison, if you' re offering, Kaia should accept. It' s a gesture of… goodwill."

I walked to my dresser, opened the top drawer, and pulled out the delicate silver chain, the tiny star pendant glinting under the light. Our first Christmas, when we were struggling, building our first small development. That star represented a promise, a dream we shared. Now, it was just a piece of metal.

I walked back to the table, holding it out to Gabriel. His eyes flickered, a hint of something unreadable there. Was it regret? Shame? I watched him take it from my hand. It was an invisible parting, a silent goodbye to a lifetime of memories.

"Thank you, Allison," Gabriel said, his voice surprisingly soft. He handed it to Kaia, who took it as if it were a venomous snake, her face pale.

"You' re… so calm," Gabriel said, his confusion palpable. "I expected… more."

I looked at him, truly looked at him. My past self would have been screaming, crying, begging him to see what he was doing. My past self would have been clawing at him, demanding explanations, tearing down his mistress. But what good had that ever done? It only solidified his narrative that I was the hysterical wife, the inconvenient obstacle.

I remembered the early days. The countless arguments over Kaia. Gabriel' s initial apologies, his promises. "It was a mistake, Allison. A momentary lapse. She means nothing. You' re my wife. My partner." Lies.

He' d slowly, imperceptibly, pulled away. The shared laughter disappeared. The late-night talks became silent voids. He was there, but he wasn' t. He was a ghost, haunting our home, his heart somewhere else. The colder he grew, the harder I fought. I begged, I reasoned, I tried to rekindle the flame that had long since died for him. I became the caricature he painted: the desperate, angry wife.

My mother-in-law, bless her heart, had tried to intervene. She saw through Kaia' s innocent facade. But Kaia was a master manipulator. A few well-timed tears, a story of an overbearing boss, a whispered accusation of my own instability. Gabriel, blinded, always took her side.

My lowest point? The charity gala. I' d walked in, head held high, only to see Gabriel and Kaia on the dance floor, her hand resting on his chest, her eyes adoring. I' d made a scene. A public, humiliating scene. And Gabriel, in a fit of rage, had come home and systematically destroyed my art studio, the one place I found solace. He smashed canvases, ripped paintings, threw my sculptures to the floor.

"This is what you get, Allison!" he' d screamed, his face contorted with fury. "This is what happens when you embarrass me! You think your little hobby matters more than my reputation?"

He called me a selfish bitch, a talentless hack. I' d curled up on the floor amidst the wreckage, shattered more than the pottery. That night, something broke inside me. The fight left. The despair set in.

I retreated, a ghost in my own life. I lost weight. I barely slept. The world became dull, muted. Then, a miracle. A tiny flicker of hope in the darkness. I was pregnant.

A baby. A piece of me, a piece of us. A chance at a new beginning. I clung to that hope, terrified but fiercely protective. I imagined a life where this child would heal us, bring Gabriel back to the man I once loved.

One evening, he brought Kaia home again. She claimed she was feeling unwell, a sudden migraine. Gabriel, ever the White Knight, insisted she stay. I watched them, a silent fury simmering beneath my calm. I brought her tea, a specific blend I knew she preferred. She tasted it, then suddenly clutched her throat, gasping for air.

Panic. Gabriel rushed to her side, his face pale with fear. "What did you do, Allison?!" he yelled, his eyes blazing.

"Nothing!" I cried, genuinely bewildered. "It' s just chamomile tea!"

He didn' t listen. He dragged me to the kitchen, his grip bruising my arm. On the counter was an open packet of peanuts, a snack I sometimes kept for Arnulfo. Kaia was severely allergic to peanuts.

"You tried to poison her!" he accused, his voice shaking with a rage I' d never seen before, even when he destroyed my studio. "You tried to hurt her baby!"

I was stunned. "Her… baby? Gabriel, I swear, I didn' t…"

He didn' t let me finish. He grabbed a handful of peanuts. Before I could react, he shoved them into my mouth, forcing them down my throat. "If she suffers, you suffer too, Allison!" he screamed.

My throat closed. My vision blurred. A searing pain erupted in my abdomen. I collapsed, gasping for air, the world spinning. My last conscious thought was the excruciating cramp, the warm gush between my legs.

When I woke, I was in a hospital bed. The doctor' s face was grim. "I' m so sorry, Mrs. Kaufman. You' ve had a miscarriage."

The words echoed in the sterile room, flat and lifeless. My baby. Our baby. Gone. Because of him. Because of Kaia.

Gabriel came in later, his face strained, a performative sorrow in his eyes. "Allison, I' m so sorry. I didn' t mean for this to happen. I thought… I thought you were trying to hurt Kaia. She said you threatened her child…"

I just stared at him, numb. He left me then, in the sterile white room, the tears finally coming, silent and endless. My body was a battlefield, ravaged and empty. He returned hours later, smelling of Kaia' s perfume, holding a bouquet of white lilies. He sat beside my bed, holding my hand, playing the dutiful husband for the nurses.

"It' s going to be okay, Allison," he whispered, patting my hand. "We' ll get through this."

He then got up, walked to the bathroom, and ran a bath for me. "You need to clean up," he said, his voice flat. He helped me into the tub, the warm water a brief comfort against the searing pain in my heart and body. He left me there, the water slowly cooling around my broken body, just as he had left me in every other way that mattered.

Allison POV:

The lukewarm water in the bathtub felt like a shroud, clinging to my skin as if to remind me of the emptiness inside. Gabriel had left me there, just as he had left me in every other way imaginable. Minutes stretched into hours, the silence of the large house pressing down on me. My body throbbed with a dull ache, a constant echo of the life that had been snatched away.

He returned briefly, sometime later. He brought me a glass of water, his face a mask of weary concern. "Are you feeling any better, Allison?"

I just nodded, my voice gone. He lingered for a moment, then his phone buzzed. He glanced at it, and a flicker of something, urgency, crossed his face. "I have to go," he said, his voice clipped. "Kaia… she needs me."

And just like that, he was gone again. The door clicked shut, leaving me in the cold silence of the large, empty bathroom. I lay there, too weak to move, too heartbroken to care. The physical pain was a dull throb, but the emotional agony was a gaping wound. My body grew stiff, my muscles seizing. I couldn' t even lift my hand to call for help.

When the nurse finally found me, hours later, I was shivering uncontrollably, my lips blue. She helped me out, her face etched with concern. She gave me painkillers, wrapped me in warm blankets, and sat by my side.

"Your husband said he' d be back soon," she offered gently.

I just closed my eyes. He wouldn' t. He hadn't bothered to stay even a moment when my body was still reeling from the trauma he caused.

The next morning, the nurses decided I needed more comprehensive care. They transferred me to a different hospital wing, one with better facilities for post-operative recovery.

We were in the elevator, the nurse pushing my wheelchair, when the doors opened on the third floor. And there he was. Gabriel. His arm was around Kaia' s waist, his head bent, murmuring something to her. She giggled, a bright, carefree sound that shredded my last nerve. She was wearing a flimsy silk nightgown, a delicate, pale blue one that I recognized instantly. It was my favorite, a gift from Gabriel on our honeymoon.

My stomach lurched. The pain, physical and emotional, was a tidal wave. They looked up, saw me. Gabriel' s smile faltered. Kaia' s eyes widened, then quickly narrowed as she recognized the nightgown on herself, then on my face.

"Allison," Gabriel said, his voice flat. He pulled Kaia closer, as if to shield her from my gaze.

Kaia leaned into him, her hand touching his chest. It was a public display of ownership, a deliberate barb. My heart, which I thought had nothing left to give, twisted in agony. A sharp, searing pain tore through me, like a thousand tiny needles piercing my flesh. I felt lightheaded, a deep, hollow ache in my chest. It felt like my very essence was being ripped from my body, leaving behind a gaping, bleeding void.

The nurse, seeing my ashen face, quickly pushed the wheelchair past them, muttering, "Excuse us."

"I' m so sorry, Mrs. Kaufman," the nurse whispered, her hand briefly touching my shoulder. "I didn' t know…"

"It' s not your fault," I managed to say, my voice hoarse. My eyes were fixed on the rearview mirror of my soul. I had watched him, the man I loved, choose her, protect her, cherish her, right in front of me, after he had just murdered our child and left me bleeding. He had seen my pain, my humiliation, my brokenness, and chosen to display his infidelity even more brazenly. The last shred of trust, of hope, of any emotional connection, was gone. It was a clean break, brutal and final.

Later that day, Gabriel visited. He still wore the facade of a concerned husband. "Allison, I' m so sorry about… everything," he said, his eyes avoiding mine. "But you need to understand. Kaia… she' s very sensitive. And your behavior… it' s been erratic. You need to focus on getting better."

I just stared at him. He was still spinning the narrative. Still blaming me. Still protecting her.

"By the way," he continued, his tone shifting, "that person downstairs, the one you hired… Leo. What was that all about? I saw him leaving your room the other night."

I almost smiled. "Oh, Leo. Yes. He' s a professional stand-in. I needed someone to… fill a certain role."

Gabriel' s jaw tightened. "A role? What kind of role, Allison?"

"Your role, Gabriel. The one you' d abandoned." I said it calmly, matter-of-factly, watching his face. There was no jealousy, no anger this time. Just a vacant look. He didn' t care. Not about who I brought into our home, not about what I did to cope.

He nodded slowly. "I see." He paused, then stood. "I have to go. Kaia needs me at the office."

He left. Just like that. The perfect husband facade dropped the moment he realized I was no longer a threat, no longer clinging to him.

I later learned he' d whisked Kaia away to an extravagant retreat, parading her as his partner, introducing her to his high-society contacts. He was investing heavily in her, grooming her to be the face of their future, not just professionally, but personally. He was pouring money into her career, her wardrobe, her social standing. He was building her up, just as he'd torn me down.

But he didn't know. He didn't know about the quiet transfers I' d made over the years. The hidden accounts. The assets I' d meticulously secured, piece by piece, under the radar. My mind, sharp and strategic, had been working long before my heart finally broke.

Kaia, for a while, reveled in her new-found glory. She was everywhere, draped in designer clothes, her face plastered across society pages. She was the rising star, the new darling of the real estate development scene. Until the whispers started. Whispers about her lavish spending. Whispers about the company' s mysteriously dwindling funds. Whispers that turned into shouts when a major charity event she was fronting collapsed due to a colossal financial miscalculation. She was publicly humiliated, exposed as a social climber with no real business acumen, just a pretty face and Gabriel' s money.

She ran to Gabriel, sobbing, pleading. He was furious, not at her incompetence, but at the public scandal. He blamed me, of course. For not being there to "guide" him. For making him vulnerable.

His retaliation was swift and brutal. He used his connections to have me involuntarily committed to a psychiatric facility. "For observation," he said, his voice devoid of emotion. "For your own good, Allison. You' re clearly unstable."

They drugged me. They isolated me. They tried to break me. But in the quiet, padded room, my mind, sharp and clear, plotted.

When he finally came to "visit" me, after weeks of forced isolation and a cocktail of sedatives, he looked triumphant. "Feeling better, Allison?" he asked, a cruel smirk playing on his lips. "Maybe now you' ll learn your lesson. Kaia needed my protection. You tried to ruin her."

"You threw away our child," I said, my voice raspy, but steady. "You tried to destroy me. All for her."

He shrugged. "She' s young. She makes mistakes. You… you' re just bitter."

"Bitter?" A cold, hard laugh escaped my lips. "Gabriel, she tried to replace me. She attacked Bea. She' s a manipulative, venomous snake."

His eyes narrowed. "Don' t you dare, Allison. Kaia is a good person. She' s just… misunderstood. And you' re just jealous." He leaned in, his voice dropping to a dangerous whisper. "If you ever try to hurt her again, I will make sure you disappear. Permanently."

"Why, Gabriel?" I asked, my voice flat. "Why her? Why did you throw away everything we built? Everything we were?"

He sighed, running a hand through his hair. "Allison, you were… comfortable. Predictable. Kaia… she' s exciting. She makes me feel alive."

It was the oldest cliché, spoken with practiced ease. My heart, or what was left of it, felt nothing. No pain, no anger. Just a profound weariness. His words were just noise now. Empty, meaningless noise.

"I want a divorce," I said, the words cutting through the sterile air. "I want to separate our assets. Officially."

He looked startled. "A divorce? Allison, don' t be foolish. We have too much tied up together. Our company. Our reputation."

"I don' t care about any of that anymore, Gabriel," I said, my voice gaining strength. "I want out. And I want what' s mine."

The game was over. The rules had changed. And he had no idea what was coming.

Allison POV:

For weeks, I tried to reach Gabriel. Calls went unanswered. Emails bounced back. He was avoiding me, burying his head in the sand, hoping I'd just disappear or fall back into my prescribed role of the hysterical wife. But the old Allison was gone, replaced by a colder, sharper version. The one who understood that silence was not weakness, but strategy.

I found him at the annual Developers' Gala, a glittering affair held in the city's grandest ballroom. He was there with Kaia, of course, both of them radiating an artificial glow, surrounded by their sycophants. Kaia, surprisingly, had managed to claw her way back into some semblance of social standing, thanks to Gabriel' s relentless PR efforts.

I walked in, a ghost in my own life, but a force in theirs. My simple black gown was understated, elegant. I carried a sleek leather portfolio. My eyes were fixed on Gabriel, across the crowded room.

He saw me. His smile faltered. Kaia, following his gaze, stiffened. A hush fell over their table.

I walked directly towards them, my heels clicking on the marble floor, each step a hammer blow to their carefully constructed illusion.

"Gabriel," I said, my voice calm, polite, when I reached their table. "I' ve been trying to reach you."

He recovered quickly, a practiced charm sliding into place. "Allison, what a surprise. You' re looking… well." His eyes flickered to the portfolio in my hand. He knew.

"Thank you," I said, extending the portfolio. "I believe you' ll find this useful."

He hesitated, then took it, his fingers brushing mine. A shiver, not of recognition but of revulsion, ran through me. He opened it, his eyes scanning the documents. The color slowly drained from his face as he read. It was the asset division agreement, meticulously detailed, leaving nothing to chance.

He scoffed, a harsh, humorless sound. "Is this some kind of joke, Allison? You think you can just… walk away and take half of everything? After everything I' ve built?"

Kaia leaned in, her voice a whisper, but loud enough for me to hear. "Gabriel, what is it?"

He closed the portfolio, his eyes blazing at me. "She thinks she' s entitled to a fortune, Kaia. Our fortune." He turned to me, his voice dripping with disdain. "You know, Allison, Kaia will never be a threat to your position as my wife. This marriage is purely… a business arrangement now. A necessary evil, really."

I met his gaze, a strange sense of peace settling over me. "You' re right, Gabriel," I said, surprising him. "She' s not a threat. Because I' m giving you back your position. And your 'necessary evil.' You can have it all."

His eyes narrowed in suspicion. "What are you talking about?"

"This marriage," I replied, gesturing between us, "has become a cage. A burden I no longer wish to carry. I' m tired of being the hysterical wife, the inconvenient truth. I want out."

A few curious glances were thrown our way from nearby tables. Gabriel' s face hardened. "You want out? After all these years? And you think you can just demand half of everything because of some fabricated emotional distress?"

"Oh, it' s far from fabricated, Gabriel," I said, my voice cold. "And it' s not just emotional distress. It' s infidelity. Repeated, blatant infidelity. With an employee. And in our state, that carries a significant penalty in asset division. Not to mention the company' s declining value since you started focusing more on… other priorities." My gaze flickered to Kaia, who visibly flinched.

Gabriel' s face went from pale to a dangerous shade of red. He gripped the portfolio so tightly his knuckles were white. "You think you can extort me?"

"Extort?" I smiled, a chilling, humorless smile. "No. I' m just taking what' s legally, ethically, and morally mine. And a little extra, for pain and suffering. For the miscarriage you caused. For the abuse you inflicted. For the public humiliation."

He opened his mouth, then closed it. He looked around, suddenly aware of the eyes on him. His perfect image was crumbling. He knew the laws. He knew the cost of scandal. He knew I had him cornered.

He let out a short, sharp laugh, a desperate attempt to regain control. "This is a performance, Allison. A pathetic attempt to get my attention."

He still thinks I want his attention. The thought was a bitter, metallic taste in my mouth. He was a coward. A narcissist. A man so utterly devoid of empathy that he couldn't comprehend a quiet, dignified exit.

He snatched a pen from the table, his hand shaking. "Fine!" he spat, his voice barely controlled. "You want your money? Take it! But you' ll regret this, Allison. You' ll come crawling back. I' ll give you exactly one week to reconsider. After that, this agreement is final." He scrawled his signature across the bottom.

"There' s no reconsideration, Gabriel," I said, taking the signed papers. "This is final."

He glared at me, his eyes filled with hatred. He still thought I was bluffing, playing a game. He still thought he held all the power.

I turned and walked away, not looking back. The ballroom, once a symbol of our shared ambition, now felt like a tomb. I walked out, into the cool night air, and didn't look back at the life I was leaving behind.

I moved into my brother Arnulfo' s small but cozy house by the beach. It was a stark contrast to the mansion I' d shared with Gabriel, but the salty air and the sound of waves were a balm to my raw soul. Arnulfo, my fiercely loyal older brother, and his bright ten-year-old daughter, Bea, welcomed me with open arms.

The day Bea came home from school, she was buzzing with excitement. "Aunt Allison! You won' t believe who I saw!"

"Who, sweet pea?" I asked, smiling, enjoying her childlike energy.

"Kaia!" she chirped. "She was at the school, talking to the principal. She said she' s joining the parent-teacher association!"

My blood ran cold. Kaia? Here? I had moved to Arnulfo's house, a quiet, unassuming neighborhood, far from Gabriel's world. This couldn't be a coincidence.

Then, the worst happened. A few days later, I was in the kitchen, preparing dinner, while Bea was playing in the living room. I heard a sudden, sharp cry, followed by a sickening thud. My blood ran cold.

I rushed into the living room. Kaia was standing over Bea, her face twisted in a sneer I' d never seen before, a stark contrast to her public persona. Bea was on the floor, clutching her head, tears streaming down her face. A porcelain vase lay shattered beside her, remnants of what looked like a struggle.

"What have you done?!" I shrieked, my calm shattering instantly. My niece, my little Bea, was hurt. All the icy control I had cultivated vanished in a primal surge of fury.

I lunged towards Kaia, pushing her back, my hands already shaking with a rage so potent it scared me. "Get out! Get out of my house, you psychopath!"

Kaia stumbled back, her face morphing into an innocent pout. "Mrs. Kaufman! I… I just tripped! And Bea… she pushed me! She' s always been so rude to me!"

Bea, still sobbing, looked up, her little face streaked with tears and fear. "No, Aunt Allison! She… she called you a bad name! She said you deserved everything that happened! And when I told her to stop, she… she threw the vase at me! And then she pushed me down!"

My blood ran cold. The sheer malice. The blatant lie.

Just then, the front door burst open. Gabriel stood there, looking from Kaia to Bea on the floor, to me, trembling with rage.

"What the hell is going on here?!" he roared, his eyes instantly locking onto Bea.

Kaia rushed to him, clinging to his arm. "Gabriel! She… she attacked me! And Bea is always so aggressive! She started it!"

Gabriel didn't even hesitate. He looked at Bea, who was still crying, clutching her ear. Without a word, he strode over to her, his hand raised. He brought it down with a sickening crack against the side of her head.

A collective gasp escaped my throat. Bea' s cries stopped abruptly, replaced by a choked whimper. Her eyes, wide with terror, stared at Gabriel, then slowly rolled back. She collapsed, unconscious.

"Gabriel!" I screamed, a raw, animal sound tearing from my throat. "What have you done?!"

He stood over Bea, his chest heaving, his eyes still burning with rage. "She deserved it! For hurting Kaia! For causing trouble!"

My heart stopped. My own child, our child, he had let die. And now, my niece. My precious Bea.

I dropped to my knees, cradling Bea' s limp body. Her small ear was already swelling, red and bruised. A thin trickle of blood emerged from her ear canal. She wasn' t responding. My world tilted.

I looked up at Gabriel, a deep, guttural sound tearing from my throat. "You monster! You absolute monster!"

I scooped Bea into my arms, heedless of the pain in my own body. I ran towards the door, pushing past Gabriel, who stood there dumbfounded.

"Allison! Where are you going?!" he yelled, reaching for me.

"Don' t you dare touch me!" I shrieked, kicking out at him, my heel connecting with his shin. He stumbled back, clutching his leg. "If anything happens to her, Gabriel, I swear to God, I will make you pay! I will ruin you! I will kill you!"

I ran out of the house, Bea clutched tightly against my chest, her stillness a chilling weight. I wasn' t just leaving him this time. I was leaving the old me behind. And the new me… the new me was coming for him.