I slept poorly. The chaotic images of the wedding replayed in my head. The next morning I woke up with dark circles under my eyes. I decided not to listen to any more news from Jessica. Their story, for me, was over. I needed to focus on my own life. I spent all of Sunday sketching. Work helped me forget the disaster in New York.
But at night, when I turned off the computer, my phone buzzed. It was Jessica. I sighed, thinking about not answering, but the ringing was insistent.
«What now, Jessica? I’m tired. I don’t want to know anymore.»
«Wait, wait,» Jessica’s voice was pure excitement again, «just this once. It’s the finale of yesterday’s episode. I promise that after this, you’ll sleep like a baby.»
«Fine,» I grumbled. «Listen.»
«She insisted,» Jessica said. «My husband just told me. He said that when he went down to the parking garage to get the car, he witnessed a scene even better than the one in the ballroom.»
I gave in. «Okay, five minutes.»
«My husband saw Ethan and Ashley screaming at each other in the parking garage,» Jessica said. «Her parents were next to them, looking like they were at a funeral, trying to get her to leave.»
«She didn’t go to the hospital?» I was surprised. «After that fall?»
«Not a chance,» Jessica laughed scornfully. «It was all an act. My husband hid behind a pillar and heard everything. Ashley wasn’t pretending to be a sweet victim anymore. She was standing with her hands on her hips, screaming in Ethan’s face.»
Jessica cleared her throat, imitating Ashley. «‘You’re insane. You’ve embarrassed me in front of everyone, you ruined my wedding!'»
«Ethan, with his hand wrapped in a handkerchief, blood seeping through the fabric, yelled back,» Jessica continued. «‘You’re the one who ruined me. You’re a liar, you’ve been stealing from me.'»
«And then Ashley started to laugh,» Jessica said with contempt. «A laugh that made my husband’s skin crawl. ‘Steal from you? Do you even have money to be stolen from? Who paid for this wedding, huh? Tell me! My $5,000 wasn’t even enough to get started, and my parents had to mortgage their house to pay for this sham so you could look good, you useless man, you’re useless!'»
I was frozen. So Ethan had not only borrowed money from her but had also squeezed her parents dry. He had sunk too deep into the mire of his own ego.
«My husband says,» Jessica continued, «that when Ethan heard that, he was speechless. He didn’t expect her to throw it in his face so directly. The battle in the parking garage, with no audience or cameras, was where their true natures came out. There was no love left, only money, lies, and hatred.»
Ashley’s parents, seeing their daughter had let the cat out of the bag, tried to cover her mouth. «Honey, please, be quiet. Let’s go home.»
But she couldn’t stop. She pushed her parents away and pointed at Ethan. «I’ll tell you one thing. I married you for your money, for your director position, and for this wedding. And now you’ve destroyed everything.»
Ethan, recovering from the shock, gritted his teeth. «You dare?»
And then, Jessica lowered her voice. «Ashley launched her final attack. She put her hand on her stomach, but this time not with pride but as a threat. And she said: ‘Listen to me carefully, this child is yours. Do you want it to live or die? Put the downtown apartment in my name right now and give me $500,000 in cash. If you don’t, I’m getting an abortion tomorrow, and then I’m going to your company and telling all your partners what kind of man you are.'»
My blood ran cold. Using her own child to blackmail him. It was too cruel.
«And what did Ethan do?» I asked.
«My husband says Ethan stood still for a moment, and then started to laugh. A laugh even more terrifying than his screams. He laughed hysterically. When he stopped, he looked at Ashley and roared: ‘Keep dreaming!'»
He pulled out his keys, ran to his car, and even though Ashley tried to block his way, he sped off, almost hitting her, leaving her and her parents alone in the parking garage, amidst the wreckage of a luxury wedding.
«My husband ran off too,» Jessica said. «He didn’t want to get caught in the crossfire.»
We were silent for a moment.
«Jessica, I have a doubt about the pregnancy.»
«I suspect it too,» she interrupted. «My husband says the fall looked bad. But a little while later she was in the parking garage, screaming with incredible energy. I suspect the pregnancy is fake, or she just used a pharmacy test to trick Ethan. She used it to force the wedding, and now to extort money.»
I let out a long sigh. Fake or not, that child was a victim.
«Well, Sarah?» Jessica said with a tired voice. «Let’s call it a night for this drama. Too greedy. Lying people who destroyed each other. Birds of a feather flock together.»
«Go to sleep, I need it too. So much drama is exhausting,» I said.
I hung up. I looked out at the night. Willow Creek was calm. The sound of crickets filled the garden. I realized the storm in New York had passed, and it had nothing to do with me anymore.
I asked Jessica not to tell me anything more about them. I didn’t want the garbage of the past to dirty my present. I threw myself into my work, into the hotel project. But a month later, during one of our calls, Jessica couldn’t hold back.
«Sarah, I have to tell you,» her voice was serious this time. «The situation with Ethan has really blown up.»
«What else?»
«His career is over. My husband says that after the scandal, the videos of him trashing the wedding and screaming at Ashley went viral. Even though they were taken down quickly, all his important partners saw them. And what did they do? Cancelled contracts en masse. His most important partner, a Japanese group, sent him a letter immediately terminating their collaboration. They said they couldn’t work with someone of questionable morality who can’t control his emotions and who treats his family so cruelly.»
I remained silent. It was inevitable. For a businessman, reputation is more important than money.
«When he lost the big contract, the company went under,» Jessica continued. «The key employees, the good ones who worked with you, left in a group. They said they couldn’t work for a crazy boss who also owed them money. They left and took the clients with them.»
«So quickly?» I was surprised.
«Yes, now he’s desperate. My husband says he spends his nights taking small clients out to dinner, trying to salvage what’s left. He’s drinking so much that last week he was admitted to the ER for a stomach hemorrhage. He was there for two days and then escaped to keep drinking. But it’s useless. No one wants to board a sinking ship with a captain with that kind of reputation.»
I shook my head. The career Ethan was so proud of, the one he used to humiliate me, was crumbling because of his ego and bad decisions.
«I’m going to hang up, Jessica,» I said. «I have a meeting with Michael.»
«Yeah, you’re right,» she agreed. «Those people don’t deserve another minute of your time, you just live well.»
I hung up. I looked at the 3D design of the hotel lobby on my screen. I had chosen a rustic and cozy style with local ceramics and oak wood. I felt proud of my work, it was real. It created value, unlike Ethan’s house of cards career.
Several months passed. I finished the hotel design and began supervising the construction. The work was intense but exciting. One night, Jessica called. Her voice sounded strange, almost compassionate.
«Sarah. Today, my husband saw Ethan.»
«Where?»
«Not at a bar,» she said softly. «At a street market in the afternoon. My husband went to buy a few things and saw a thin man, looking like a homeless person, hastily eating a sandwich in a corner. He was curious, took a closer look, and realized it was Ethan.»
«Thin and looking homeless? Is he that bad?»
«My husband was stunned. He says Ethan was skeletal, with several days worth of beard, dirty hair, and wrinkled, stained clothes. He was eating the sandwich anxiously, looking around fearfully. He looks ten years older. His company is completely bankrupt. He’s drowning in debt. Do you know where he got the money for the wedding? From loan sharks. He thought he would pay it back with Ashley’s parents’ money or with new contracts. But everything fell apart. Now the loan sharks are after him. And our apartment… he mortgaged it for the wedding. The bank has already foreclosed and auctioned it off.»
«My husband says he’s living in hiding,» Jessica added, «that he doesn’t dare go to his parents’ house so as not to involve them. He’s sleeping on the couch of his sealed-off office. Last week, some thugs found him and beat him up in front of the building.»
Hearing that, I no longer felt satisfaction, only a bitter sadness. After all, he was the man I had loved for eight years.
«My husband hesitated,» Jessica said. «He was going to approach him, but Ethan realized he was being watched, got scared, threw down his sandwich, and ran off like a true fugitive.»
«And Ashley?»
«After the scandal, the pregnancy turned out to be fake, just as we suspected. No one wants to hire her. Her parents, ashamed, sold their house to pay off the wedding debts and took her with them. They say they’re having a very hard time.»
The two people who had reveled in my pain were paying a very high price for their greed.
«Life is fair sometimes,» I whispered.
I hung up, my heart heavy, but that sadness was fleeting. I looked at my garden, where the lavender bloomed in a sea of violet. I took a deep breath. Their life, as tragic as it was, was no longer mine.
A week later, I presented the final hotel project to the investor, a very demanding Swiss man. I had prepared everything in detail. When I finished, the investor, who according to Michael never smiled, stood up and applauded.
«Marvelous, Miss Hayes,» he said with admiration. «This is exactly the soul I was looking for. You have done an excellent job.»
Michael, beside me, smiled proudly. The project was approved without a single change.
Back at the studio, Michael told me, «Sarah, you’ve amazed me. The client is delighted. He’s going to recommend us for a much larger resort in Provence.»
«It was a team effort, Michael.»
«But the vision was yours. To celebrate, the company has decided to give you a 30% raise, effective this month, and you deserve a week of paid vacation. Go wherever you want and recharge, because the Provence project is waiting for you.»
I was so happy I wanted to jump in the middle of the street. A raise, a vacation, and most importantly, my work was recognized. I realized that by leaving Ethan, I hadn’t lost anything. I had found myself, and so much more.
I decided to use my vacation to travel down the California coast. I rented a small car and drove on back roads, staying in rustic inns, eating goat cheese and toast with olive oil. I met new people. We talked about wine, art, and the beauty of life. I realized my value wasn’t in being someone’s wife or in the money I had, but in my independence, in my ability to create my own happiness.
When I returned to Willow Creek, my garden was even more beautiful. I signed up for advanced French classes and a pottery workshop. I wanted to keep learning.
One afternoon while reading in the garden, Jessica called. We talked often, but only about my life, her work, her kids. We never mentioned Ethan or Ashley again. They had disappeared from my life like a nightmare that fades at dawn.
I watched the sun dance on the leaves. I understood that those eight years of marriage, though painful, had taught me a lesson. And the divorce wasn’t an end; it was a beginning. The door to a new path, a path filled with sunshine.
I smiled. I knew my future on that path would only get better.