And sure enough, Hunter, who had been absent for days, returned that very evening.

Kaylee, who hadn' t seen her father in days, immediately ran into his arms, leaving my hand cold and empty.

They played in the living room, their laughter echoing through the large, empty house. I retreated to the kitchen, pretending to help the housekeeper. There was nothing for me to do, really. I just stood there, occasionally washing a vegetable or handing over a bowl, mostly lost in thought.

The housekeeper sighed. "Mr. Walls really does care about you, you know," she said softly. "He calls every day to check in when he' s away."

She paused, then asked, "Why are you always so afraid of him, ma' am?"

The word "afraid" felt like it was branded onto my very bones.

I remembered my first attempt to escape after we were married. Hunter had made one phone call, and Alan, my college boyfriend, had lost his job.

My second attempt, he fired our long-time housekeeper, a kind woman who had worked for his family for ten years.

The third time, he sabotaged my brother' s wedding.

I had cried, begging him, "Why won' t you just let me go?"

He' d raised his wine glass, a cruel smile playing on his lips, savoring the fear in my eyes. "Everything you care about, Krystal, I care nothing for." He' d laughed. "You can never win against me."

I had learned my lesson. Each time I fought back, someone else suffered. Hunter knew my weaknesses, my attachments. He could always find a leverage point, something to push me back into the abyss.

Suddenly, Hunter was standing in the kitchen doorway, holding Kaylee in his arms. He looked at me, a lazy, calculating smirk on his face.

I quickly composed myself, forcing a tired smile.

"I wasn' t hiding," I said, my voice carefully neutral. "Just helping out." I extended my arms to Kaylee.

He leaned in, brushing his lips against my cheek. His voice, a low rumble, sent a shiver down my spine. "Are you jealous, Krystal?"

I couldn' t believe this was his first question after being gone for days, after our daughter had been so upset. I didn' t answer.

Later, after Kaylee was asleep, I watched Hunter emerge from the bathroom, humming a tune, clearly in a good mood.

"Hunter," I said, my voice steady. "You and Aubrie can be together. I won' t be jealous."

He stopped humming.

"Jealousy is reserved for people I actually love," I continued, my voice unwavering. "And you, Hunter, don' t deserve to be loved."

The tune died on his lips. His eyes, once bright, darkened. His large hand shot out, grabbing my arm, his face a mask of fury. He slammed me against the bed, his grip like iron.

"Do you have no heart, Krystal?" he growled, his voice raw with rage. His fingers dug into my jaw, his eyes blazing red. He seemed to be holding back something monumental.

"I have a mistress, I torment you, I refuse to divorce you," he listed, his voice low, venomous. "Can' t you see what I' m trying to do? If you cared about me even a little, you would have understood by now."

He slammed his other fist into the mattress beside my head. My body jolted.

After a long moment, he loosened his grip, deflating like a punctured balloon. He rolled onto his side, facing away from me, and began to laugh, a chilling, hollow sound.

His phone began to ring, its insistent jingle echoing in the bedroom, mocking the eerie laughter. He ignored it, just kept laughing.

I noticed a glint in his eye, a single tear tracing a path down his temple. It must have been a trick of the light. Hunter? Crying? Impossible.

The phone kept ringing, again and again.

I finally got up. I glanced at the phone he' d knocked off the nightstand. It was Aubrie.

I hesitated, then picked it up.

"Aubrie' s calling you," I said, my voice flat. We both knew who "she" was.

He seemed to snap back to reality. "Give me the phone," he commanded, extending his hand.

As I handed him the phone, he gripped my wrist, refusing to let go.

Aubrie' s voice, tinny and high-pitched, spilled from the speaker. "Hunter, baby, did you forget you were meeting my parents tonight? Why aren' t you here yet?"

I lowered my head, my face burning with humiliation.

"You should go," I said, my voice barely a whisper. "You don' t want to make a bad impression on her parents."

He let out a short, bitter laugh. Then, without a word, he began to change his clothes, right there in front of me.

As he reached the door, he paused, his eyes fixed on me. "Aubrie is my woman now," he said, his voice dangerously low. "And her family is my family."

He took a step closer, his eyes cold and hard. "Did you really think you were more important than her? Remember your place, Krystal. You have no say in my affairs."

The photos were everywhere: Hunter and Aubrie, hand in hand, entering the maternity clinic. It was the first time Hunter had ever made headlines for a scandal. I wondered how many similar incidents had been buried before.

This time, the news was inescapable. It seemed Hunter was ready to introduce Aubrie to the world, to legitimize their relationship. It wasn' t a secret affair anymore; it was an announcement.

A flicker of hope ignited within me. Was this it? Was he finally going to let me go?

Suddenly, Kaylee ran into the room, phone clutched in her hand, her small face streaked with tears.

"Mommy, is Daddy with that lady? Does he not want us anymore?" she sobbed.

"He' s a bad daddy! And she' s a bad lady!" Kaylee cried, her little face red and puffy.

My heart ached. Kaylee had been born from Hunter' s coercion, not my will. And now, she was paying the price for our messed-up adult life.

I tried to comfort her, but her tears wouldn' t stop. She kept calling Hunter, but he didn' t answer. Then she called Aubrie.

Aubrie answered, her voice dripping with artificial sweetness. "Oh, sweetie, why are you calling me?" she purred, her voice loud enough for me to hear.

"Give me back my daddy!" Kaylee screamed, her small body shaking with rage.

"He' s with me," Aubrie said, her voice smug. "And if you come live with me, you can see your daddy every day. You don' t have to stay with your mommy."

Kaylee burst into fresh tears, inconsolable. I snatched the phone from her hand.

"Ma' am, please take Kaylee upstairs," I said to the housekeeper, my voice trembling.

Hunter' s lazy, husky voice came through the phone. "What is it?" he asked, annoyed. Aubrie' s flirtatious giggles echoed in the background.

My hands clenched into fists, wave after wave of anger washing over me. I forced myself to speak.

"Kaylee knows about you and Aubrie," I said, my voice tight. "You need to come home and fix this."

"I' ll be there soon," he said, his voice dismissive.

But instead of Hunter, Aubrie appeared at our doorstep, a triumphant smile on her face.

I had just taken some sleeping pills and was drifting off to sleep. I didn' t know when Kaylee had woken up, or what Aubrie had said to her.

The housekeeper shook me awake, her face pale, tears streaming down her cheeks.

"Ma' am! Kaylee… Kaylee' s gone!" she cried.

And Hunter? He was still with Aubrie, unreachable.