Ten Years of Proof

The day I asked for a divorce, I slapped the evidence of my husband's ten-year affair with his business partner on the table.
Evan stared at the file, his face a mask of shock. So you knew? Ten years ago, you already knew about Zoey and me?
Yes.
A long silence stretched between us. Then why now? he finally asked. "Why wait until now to divorce me?"
"Because I no longer have to endure it."
Our daughters final exams were over.
I was done pretending.
1
I ignored the swirling confusion and shock in Evan's eyes, pushing the divorce agreement across the table toward him.
"The company shares in your name, we split them fifty-fifty. Everything elseall other assetscomes to me."
Evans eyes scanned the document, his brow lowering with each line. He slammed the papers down.
"Impossible!" he roared. "How is that any different from leaving me with nothing? I will not agree to this divorce!"
He leaned forward, his voice rising. "And besides, you've been a housewife all these years! You haven't touched the business. I was the one out there, grinding, closing deals, drinking until I was sick to build this company. What right do you have to half the shares?"
I didn't get angry. I simply leaned back in my chair, crossing my arms, my tone as casual as if I were discussing the weather.
"Fine. Let's take it to court."
"But I should remind you," I continued, "with the evidence I have, I can easily file for an asset freeze. All our marital property will be locked down, including your shares. And while we're at it, I can also sue Zoey to claw back every penny of our marital funds you spent on her over the years. If I freeze her assets, that will certainly include her shares in the company."
I let that sink in. "The company is about to go public. With the shares of the two largest stakeholders frozen simultaneously you can forget the IPO. The entire company's operations will be paralyzed."
Evan's hand, resting on the table, clenched into a tight fist, the veins bulging on his forearm. He spoke through gritted teeth. "So you planned this. You deliberately chose this exact moment to bring this up."
I held his gaze, my expression unreadable. "Do you remember what yesterday was?"
He looked utterly lost, his eyes blank.
"Yesterday," I prompted, "was the last day of Chloe's final exams."
Watching his eyes widen in dawning horror, a bitter laugh escaped my lips.
He'd forgotten. Of course, he had.
How many important dates had he forgotten over the years? My birthday. Our anniversary. And now, he had forgotten the single most important milestone in his daughter's life.
I closed my eyes and let out a long, slow breath. When I opened them again, they were clear.
"Our daughter has graduated. Divorcing now won't affect her anymore."
2
Under Evan's stunned gaze, I slid the agreement back in front of him. "Fifty-fifty on the shares. You have two options. One, you transfer the equity to me, which will require a shareholder vote. Or two, you buy me out."
He exploded. "Are you insane? You're taking everything else! Where am I supposed to get the money to buy you out?"
I shrugged. "Then give me the shares. Or we go to court. Your choice."
"You" He was seething, a vein throbbing in his temple. But my face remained a mask of cool indifference.
He finally choked out his decision through clenched teeth. "Fine. I'll buy you out."
It was just as I'd expected. The IPO was everything to him. If we divorced and I took half the shares, his control over the company he'd built would be threatened. After all this work, he would never allow that to happen.
He scrawled his name on the signature line, then threw the document at me before storming toward the door.
He yanked it open, only to find Chloe standing there.
She froze, clearly startled.
My heart leaped into my throat. My plan had been to finalize the divorce and then gently break the news to her. I had waited until she was out celebrating with her friends to have this confrontation with Evan. I never thought shed be home so soon.
What should I do? How much had she heard?
"Chloe" I started, stepping toward her.
But her eyes, red-rimmed and furious, were fixed on her father. "Is it true, Dad?" she demanded, her voice trembling. "What Mom said? Have you been with another woman for the last ten years?"
Evan's mouth opened and closed, but no words came out. He just lowered his head in silence.
Chloe's eyes welled with tears. She bit her lip, turned, and ran.
"Chloe!"
I started after her, but a hand clamped around my wrist. I spun around to face Evan's furious glare.
"Sienna, did you have to do this? Did you have to get a divorce and hurt our daughter like this?"
I stared at him, my own anger flaring. "Let's be very clear, Evan. You hurt her when you betrayed our marriage. When you betrayed this family!"
Ignoring his stunned expression, I wrenched my arm free and ran out the door after my daughter.
I searched everywhere, finally finding her in the small park near our neighborhood. She was sitting on a bench, staring blankly into the distance.
I sat down beside her. Her voice, when she spoke, was a ragged whisper.
"Mom I'm so sorry."
3
Tears streamed down Chloe's face. Panicked, I pulled her into my arms, stroking her back.
"You have nothing to be sorry for, sweetie. You didn't do anything wrong."
She let out a choked sob. "But you knew! You knew Dad was cheating all this time, and you endured it for ten years for me."
My hand stilled on her back. A familiar ache spread through my chest. She wasn't apologizing for a mistake.
She was apologizing for my pain.
"Oh, honey," I whispered. "It wasn't endurance. It was a choice. A calculated decision that adults have to make."
"I made that choice because I wanted you to grow up happy and healthy, in a whole family."
Chloe pulled away, her tear-filled eyes locking on mine. She blinked, and fresh tears spilled down her cheeks. "But a person only has so many decades. If it wasn't for me, you wouldn't have had to carry the pain of his betrayal alone for ten years."
Ten years. It was a long time.
I sighed softly, my expression softening. I smiled, tucking a stray piece of hair behind her ear and gently wiping the tears from her face.
"Who said this family only brought me pain?" I said, playfully pinching her cheek. "You've brought me so much joy over the years."
"Besides," I added, "it's not too late for me. I'm only in my forties. The best is yet to come."
A small laugh escaped Chloe's lips. She nodded, her expression firming.
Then I remembered something, and my own face grew serious. "But I didn't ask you. I just went ahead and asked your dad for a divorce. Are you are you angry with me?"
Chloe's head snapped up. There were still tears clinging to her lashes, but her gaze was resolute. "Mom, we are all independent individuals. You have the right to pursue your own freedom and happiness. You don't need my permission for that."
"And I will always, always support your decisions. Just like you've always supported my dreams."
I stared at her, my own eyes filling with hot tears.
In that moment, I knew. My daughter was truly grown up.
4
When Chloe and I got back to the house, Evan was still there. Chloe shot him a cold look, huffed, and walked straight to her room without a word.
I turned to him. "Let's go sign the papers tomorrow." Then, ignoring the lost look on his face, I went to join Chloe.
That night, we lay in her bed and talked for hours, sharing old memories. We laughed until our sides hurt, and we cried together.
As the night wore on, we made a decision. It was time for a road trip.
The day after the divorce was official, Chloe and I left.
Ever since she was a little girl, Chloe had dreamed of building rockets. Aerospace was her passion. She was planning to apply to MIT, so we started our trip there, touring the campus. Then, we drove three thousand miles across the country to a beach town in the south.
I was lounging on a beach chair, sipping a cold coconut water and watching Chloe play volleyball with some other tourists, when my phone started buzzing. It was Evan. Again and again.
I ignored it. But he was relentless.
Finally, I sighed, put down my drink, and answered.
"Sienna, where did you put my blue striped tie?"
A tie. He was ruining my vacation over a tie. If I wasn't halfway across the country, I would have slapped him.
"You've lived in that house for over a decade, and you can't find your own things," I said, my voice dripping with sarcasm. "It's clear you never saw it as your home anyway. Why don't you just hurry up and move out? Move into a home where you can actually find your own ties."
I hung up.
Until the divorce was legally finalized, I couldn't completely block him. I just silenced his calls and muted his messages and tried to forget he existed.
When we finally returned home, Evan's pent-up frustration exploded.
"Sienna, you're finally back!" he yelled. "Look at this place! You just run off without a word, and the house is a disaster! I can't find anything!"
"And my suits! No one's been ironing them. They're all wrinkled! How am I supposed to see clients like this? You're in your forties! Can't you stop being so selfish and just abandoning your family?"
I almost laughed. Had he lost his memory? We were divorced. He wasn't my problem anymore.
I was about to tell him so when Chloe's door opened.
"You have no right to talk to Mom that way!" she shouted.
5
Evan looked as if hed been struck, utterly dumbfounded that Chloe would yell at him.
Her voice, strong and clear, echoed through the large house. "For as long as I can remember, Mom has been the first one up and the last one to bed. She handled every single thing in this house, all by herself. She never even let herself get sick."
"And you? What did you ever do? All you did was show up for meals and expect your clothes to be clean!"
"The only reason you're a 'big shot boss' now is because Mom was here, ironing every one of your suits, polishing every pair of your shoes, so you could look brilliant when you went out to impress those clients."
"Don't think you're so great just because you make some money. If Mom had a career, she'd probably earn more than you!"
Before Evan could even process it, SLAM. Chloe shut her door.
His face was beet red with fury. He couldn't argue with Chloe, so he turned his anger on me.
"Sienna, did you teach her to say those things? Is this how you raise a daughter? To disrespect her own father?"
I was about to slap him when the door creaked open again.
Chloe stood in the doorway, her eyes blazing. "Mom didn't have to teach me. I have eyes. I have a brain."
"And I can tell you what she did teach me. She taught me to have a sense of responsibility. To have integrity. To have a moral compass."
"And you? What did you teach me? I look at you and all I see is a liar who betrayed his family, a coward with no integrity and no morals!"
SLAM. The door shut again.
Evan's face was ashen. He stood there, trembling, as if he'd been physically assaulted.
I slowly lowered my hand. To be so thoroughly condemned by your own child it was a humiliation far worse than any slap I could deliver.
He stormed back to his room, slamming the door behind him. When he emerged, he was dragging two large suitcases.
Chloe and I were in the kitchen, laughing and talking as we made dumplings. We didn't even look at him.
The front door slammed shut, rattling the windows.
Neither of us looked back.
When the exam results were released, Chloe's score was more than high enough for MIT. We hugged, jumping up and down with excitement. I couldn't stop crying. In that moment, the last ten years of pain and sacrifice felt worth it.
After we submitted her application, it was as if a massive weight had been lifted from my shoulders.
I never expected that Zoey would come looking for me.
And I certainly never expected that she would be coming to convince me not to get the divorce.

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