He Built My Cage

On my way back, I ran into Hank, Samuel, and Winona. They were all smiles and laughter, walking together like a happy family.

When they saw me, their smiles froze.

I saw Winona wearing the special necklace Hank gave me and the dress I had made. I just frowned.

Hank could tell I was not happy and tried to explain, "As you know, today's Winona's big day at work. She needed something nice to wear, so she borrowed your dress."

Winona chimed in with a smile, "I really owe Hank for letting me wear this dress. I have no idea what I would've worn for the party without it."

I could not take my eyes off their hands, which were locked together. It was just too much to bear.

Ever since I got out of jail, Hank had not let me go to parties with him or be seen with him in public.

Back then, I thought it was because he was famous and having me around, with my past mistakes, would look bad for him. He told me he was keeping me away from the gossip to protect me, and I believed him. I thought it was really sweet.

However, I saw now that he just did not want to be pulled down by me, the ex-prisoner.

"Since you haven't been to parties in years, you should just give your dresses and jewelry to Winona. She's going to be the new chief financial officer and will need them to look good at company events," he said.

That made me really mad.

I did not have money for a wedding dress when we got married, so I made that dress myself. I had only worn it once on our wedding day and had been keeping it safe in my closet ever since.

Before I could get mad, Hank said, "Today is Winona's big day for her new job. Come with us."

Samuel, holding my hand, said, "Mom, let's go together."

Looking at his sweet face and remembering their talk from last night, I pushed down my negative feelings.

"I don't think it's right for me to go, considering my past," I said.

However, Winona grabbed my hand and said, "What do you mean? You have to come to my party!"

I nodded slowly, and Hank and Samuel seemed relieved.

Hank's car was waiting outside, and he opened the door for Winona like a gentleman.

Since marrying Hank, he had never let me sit in the front passenger seat of his car.

However, when I saw Winona smoothly pull out her makeup from the glove box and start putting it on using the rearview mirror, my heart felt like it was being pricked by a thousand needles.

It turned out that I just was not good enough to sit there.

Winona poked her head out of the car window. "Juliana, I get dizzy in the car, so I have to sit up front. You can have the back seat."

Hank looked at me, kind of stuck in the middle. "Today's Winona's big day, so maybe you could..."

I did not wait for him to finish. I put on my mask and sunglasses and walked away all by myself.

It was so silly. As Mrs. Chapman, I did not even have a car and had to walk everywhere I went.

By the time I arrived, the party had already kicked off.

Right away, I spotted my dad, yucking it up with Hank and Winona. Even from far away, I could hear him saying how perfect they were together. Winona blushed, and Hank looked at her like she was the only person in the world.

I walked up to my dad, and his smile vanished like a popped balloon. "This is Winona's big promotion party. What are you doing here? Looking to make a scene? Your mom passed away because of you. Our family doesn't want a daughter like that. If I were you, I'd just end it all and let Winona take over as Mrs. Chapman."

"Dad, I'm Hank's wife!"

He just snorted, and then I felt a stinging slap on my cheek. That slap turned every head in the room.