Greg lay on the ground, his hands clutching his hair as if that would keep his world from falling apart.
“Greg? Is this true?” Marianne’s voice trembled, desperate for an explanation that would erase the truth she had just discovered.
Greg couldn’t answer. His entire body was shaking with guilt and fear.
“Tell me!” Marianne’s voice cracked, her disbelief turning to panic.
“Tell me it’s not true!”
James stepped forward, his voice tight with barely contained anger.
“Greg,” he growled, “is this true?”
Greg still couldn’t answer.
His sobs had subsided, but he remained curled up on the ground, unable to face the truth.
I decided to finish what I had started. “He slept with Sarah the night before our wedding.
He told her he needed ‘one last taste of freedom before he was bound to the same body forever.’”
Marianne let out a strangled sob and collapsed onto the bed, devastated by the betrayal. James’ face hardened, his disgust evident.
“You have dishonored this family,” James spat, his voice shaking with anger.
“How dare you do this to Lilith? How could you betray her like this?”
Greg finally looked up, his gaze wild with panic.
“I’m sorry,” he whispered. “I didn’t mean for this to happen. It was a mistake.”
“A mistake?” I repeated, my voice rising.
“You call cheating on me the night before our wedding a mistake? No, Greg. It wasn’t a mistake.
It was a choice. And now you face the consequences.”
Greg reached out to me, his hands shaking. “Please, Lilith.
I love you. I’ll do anything. Don’t leave me.”
I let out a cold laugh. “Love? You don’t even know what love is.
If you did, you never would have done this.”
He pleaded again, but I backed away, keeping my distance.
“I’m done, Greg. This marriage is over. You destroyed it the moment you went back to Sarah.”
James stepped in then, his voice low and menacing.
“Stand up,” he ordered, his patience wearing thin. “Stand up and face what you’ve done.”
Greg stood slowly, his legs wobbling beneath him, pathetic in his rumpled suit.
I glanced at Marianne, still crying on the bed, then at James, his anger barely contained.
“I’m leaving,” I announced, my voice firm. “You can take care of him.”
“Lilith, please,” Greg pleaded one last time, but I had already made up my mind.
I pulled on my robe, covering the tattoo, and headed for the door.
As I left the room, I heard James’ last words, thick with anger.
“It’s your fault, Greg. You ruined everything.”
I walked down the stairs, feeling lighter with each step.
His pitiful sobs echoed behind me, but they didn’t matter anymore.
I was free—free of the lies, free of the betrayal, and finally free of him.