Just before our honeymoon flight, my wife turned. “I forgot my bikini. I’ll buy one. Wait here.” Six hours later, I received a steamy video. It was my wife in a red bikini, making out with a male intern in our ocean-view suite. I called her. “Where exactly did you go shopping?” Her voice was flat. “Work came up. I went back to the office. We’ll honeymoon later.” In the background, I heard the intern’s whistle. “Some arranged husbands really don’t know their place. They think money makes them untouchable?” A cold laugh broke from me. Did money make me untouchable? We were about to find out. I called the airline. “Block Celeste Vance from boarding any flights from Hawaii to New York.” If Celeste didn’t want to see me, then she wouldn’t be coming back. Ever. Ten minutes later, Celeste’s call came in. “Julian, have you lost your mind? The IPO is in three days! Do you have any idea what it will cost if I’m not there? Call them back right now and lift it!” I kept my voice even. “You told me you were at the office. Why would you need a flight?” Before she could answer, Caleb’s voice cut in from the background, tinny and pleading. “Celeste, it’s all my fault. Let me apologize to your husband.” Celeste cut him off, her voice strained. “I brought an intern to meet a client. I forgot to tell you. Stop making a scene.” I couldn’t help but sneer. “How convenient. Then I’ll extend your hotel stay. Indefinitely.” She finally snapped. “What do you want, Julian?” “Him gone, or the company burns. Your choice!” I said, then hung up. Thirty minutes later, Caleb’s termination notice hit my inbox. I called the airline. “Clear Celeste Vance for boarding.” Then, I sent Celeste a photo. It was the termination paperwork for her closest confidantes at the company. “Consider this a reminder of my terms, Celeste. Push me again, and you’ll learn what real consequences look like!” Celeste didn’t reply. I knew she must hate me fiercely right now. But my own rage burned even brighter. She had no idea how much I’d sacrificed for this honeymoon, canceling all my project meetings. I’d genuinely thought this trip would help us rekindle the initial sweetness and joy. After all, she was the one who’d pleaded with my Grandma Eleanor, insisting I marry her, claiming she’d secretly loved me for years. Grandma Eleanor, seeing her apparent sincerity, finally relented and told me to consider it. Otherwise, given her background, she would never have been considered a match for me if she hadn’t been so persistent. In our years of marriage, she kept the house perfectly organized and was always respectful and attentive to my parents. When I came home late from business dinners, no matter the hour, she’d keep the living room light on, and there was always a warm mug of honey water waiting on the table. She even went to every coffee shop in the city to find a specific blend I’d casually mentioned liking. Because of this, I gradually believed her claims of long-term secret admiration were true and slowly began to fall for her. For years, our life together was harmonious; outsiders often said we were a match made in heaven. I never expected she would now shatter that peace for some random guy who meant nothing.
The next day, I made sure to finish work early and drove to the airport to pick Celeste up. I leaned against my car, waiting patiently. I hadn’t received a reply from Celeste on my phone, but I just assumed she hadn’t gotten the message on the flight. Time ticked by. The plane had landed, but Celeste was nowhere in sight. I called, but she hung up after just a few rings. I’d been so certain she’d come home with me, but now doubt crept in, a surge of irritation bubbling up. My housekeeper called, her voice hesitant. “Julian, your wife… she brought someone home.” Sensing something was wrong, I rushed home. As soon as I walked in, I saw it: clothes scattered everywhere, and two people getting intimate on the sofa. The click of the lock startled them. Only then did Celeste see it was me. She frantically pulled down her sleeve, her hair disheveled, and blurted. “This is an accident.” I scoffed. “An accident? Then why haven’t I seen you accidentally streaking down the street?” Celeste’s face flushed with anger, but before she could react, Caleb behind her frantically grabbed for his scattered clothes. “I’m so sorry. I shouldn’t be here. I’ll leave right away.” His voice was hoarse, still catching his breath. He clearly hadn’t recovered from their recent passion. But as he picked up his clothes, I saw it: the lucky charm around his neck. My heart leaped. When Celeste and I married, she’d complain about the late nights, how her work was wearing her to the bone. Worried, I traveled for days to a remote chapel, all to find a lucky charm for her. She’d hugged me then, beaming, and promised she’d never take it off. Now, I held my fury in a vise. My eyes fixed on him, my voice dropped to ice. “Take it off. Now.” But he just looked at Celeste, his face a picture of feigned innocence. I walked straight over, grabbing his neck, trying to pull off that lucky charm. Celeste shoved me away, glaring. “Julian, are you insane? Are you trying to hurt him?!” Unprepared, I slammed into the corner of the coffee table, a searing pain shooting through my shin. I stared at my wife, disbelief clouding my vision. “Tell me, why is my lucky charm on him?!” Her eyes darted away. She instinctively snapped back, “Why are you being so aggressive? Caleb hasn’t been feeling well, what’s wrong with letting him wear the lucky charm for a bit?” She glanced at me, her tone dismissive. “It’s just a trinket, right? Is it really worth getting so worked up over?” “A trinket?” I laughed, a bitter sound. “I endured a difficult pilgrimage for that! And you just gave it to some outsider?” “He stole it! I’m calling the police right now and reporting him for theft!” Celeste’s voice shot up. She ripped the lucky charm off and threw it hard at my face. “Are you insane? It’s just a damn piece of cloth! Who needs it?!” The rough edge of the charm grazed my cheek, a sharp sting. I touched it, and my fingertips came away with a smear of blood. I looked down at the tiny bead of blood welling up, and all I felt was a bitter laugh. Celeste saw the red, a flicker of panic in her eyes, but she quickly composed herself. She turned her face away, her voice icy. “Just stay here and cool off.” With that, she dragged Caleb out, not looking back.
The door slammed shut, leaving only a chilling silence in the room. I sat frozen on the sofa. Three years of marriage, and I had genuinely loved Celeste. But her? For an intern she’d known for less than a month, she’d trampled my sincerity again and again. This time, I wouldn’t forgive her. I wouldn’t look back. I contacted my lawyer and met him at a nearby coffee shop to draft the divorce papers. “Have you discussed the asset division beforehand?” the lawyer asked, handing me a form. My gaze lingered on the ‘Joint Savings’ column, a flicker of hesitation in my heart. Suddenly, a piercing alarm blared from my phone. It was the motion sensor from my pet monitor at home. I fumbled to open the surveillance feed, a rush of blood pounding in my ears. On the screen, Caleb stood in the middle of the living room, one hand clutching a bleeding arm, his face contorted in fury. He was cursing, “You damn cat, how dare you scratch me!” He grabbed a rope and tightly strung up Jasper, my cat. Jasper dangled, kicking futilely, a desperate, wheezing cry tearing from his throat. He was clearly suffocating. He seemed to notice the camera lens shift slightly and deliberately spoke up. “Celeste, I think it’s stopped breathing. What do we do? Julian won’t blame you, right?” Celeste, carefully bandaging his wound, didn’t even look up at his words. “As long as you’re okay. That little beast scratched you, it’s better off dead anyway.” I grabbed my car keys and stormed out, the lawyer’s shouts fading behind me. Jasper, wait for me, please wait for me. My hand was still trembling as I slid the key into the lock. The door swung open, revealing a terrifying silence in the living room. Caleb was gone. Jasper was curled into a tiny ball, his body already cold. His once fluffy, soft golden fur was matted and tangled, his body covered in dried bloodstains. Even his usually nimble paws were eerily twisted. I sank to my knees, my trembling hands reaching for Jasper’s stiff, cold fur. Tears fell freely. I couldn’t bear to imagine the torture he’d endured while I was on my way back. “You’re back?” Celeste’s voice drifted from the bedroom. She stood in the doorway, taking in my tear-streaked face without a flicker of feeling. “I know you’re upset about the cat. But he clawed Caleb. Caleb’s in the ER right now, getting it cleaned.” She then glanced at the cat’s lifeless body on the floor, her brow furrowed in disgust. “Clean it up. There’s blood all over the floor, it’s so dirty.” “Dirty?” My voice trembled. “That’s Jasper! You found her abandoned in an alleyway, and you said we’d treat her like our own child!” She just pursed her lips. “It’s just an animal, isn’t it? If it dies, we can just get another one.” Watching her cold indifference, my heart sank into a bottomless abyss. Suddenly, she handed me a stack of papers. “Sign these.” I glanced up, realizing it was a letter of recommendation. For Caleb. Seeing I ignored her, she spoke again, her tone flat. “You got Caleb fired, and he’s quite pathetic. Your main company’s General Manager position is open, so just let him have it!” I felt nothing but absurdity and a chilling disgust. I shoved the papers away, barely suppressing my rage. “I’m telling you, Celeste! As long as I’m a board member of this company, he will never get into the main office!”
With that, I stopped looking at her, scooped up Jasper, and quickly walked out the door. I found a secluded spot in the garden, Jasper’s favorite place to play, placed her favorite toy, and buried her myself. Staring at the small, slightly raised mound of earth, the tears I’d held back finally fell. My relationship with Celeste, like Jasper, was slowly, painfully, dying. Before I could even process the grief of losing Jasper, I opened my phone to a flood of breaking news. Celeste had actually used the company’s official account to release a statement, accusing me of abuse of power, mistreating employees, and even tax evasion. Every single accusation was baseless, yet they were written so convincingly. Instantly, the company’s stock plummeted, and a tidal wave of accusations and insults crashed down online. “A company this big dares to evade taxes? They must pay!” “I always knew the CEO of a major corporation like this couldn’t be good news. Thank God justice is being served; he needs to be locked up now!” Then came a message from Celeste. “Just agree to my previous demand, let Caleb into the main office, and I’ll suppress all these stories immediately.” I didn’t reply. She sent another message: “You have one night to think this through.” I stared at the words, my chest feeling as though it had been crushed by a massive boulder, suffocating me. For Caleb, she was willing to go this far, to destroy me, to destroy our company. If that’s how she wanted to play, then she couldn’t blame me for showing no mercy. She wanted to burn everything down? I’d oblige. But the cost… let’s see if she and Caleb could afford it! The next day, the company’s going-public ceremony was held as scheduled. I knew she’d be there, waiting for my answer. I took a deep breath, adjusted my suit, and drove to the ceremony. From a distance, I saw her, arm-in-arm with Caleb, standing at the podium. They looked intimately close, like they were soulmates. Caleb saw me too, his eyes filled with a provocative, arrogant glint, as if proclaiming his victory. Her gaze swept over me, and a confident, knowing smile touched her lips. She probably thought I’d finally come to my senses, ready to compromise. Celeste cleared her throat, a triumphant smile spreading across her face. “Distinguished media friends! Now, I have a very important announcement to make: Caleb will be taking over as General Manager of the company!” I walked toward them and stopped just out of reach. Reporters around me aimed their cameras, flashbulbs popping incessantly. “Julian, are the rumors true? That you abuse your authority?” “Is it over between you and Celeste? She’s holding his hand right now.” I ignored the whispers, the hungry stares. I looked only at Celeste. My voice, when it came through the microphone, was cold and absolute as a verdict. “Let’s get a divorce.” Her smile froze. Her pupils dilated. She was stunned. I didn’t wait. “Also, fabricating and spreading defamatory lies is a crime. I’ve filed a report with the police. All evidence has been submitted.” “All investments in Vance Holdings are now suspended. We’ll settle this in court.”
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