Love’s Empty Echo

Time flew by, and soon it was the last day of the divorce cooling-off period.

Coincidentally, it was also my birthday.

Callum flew back from abroad early in the morning and came straight to me with a bouquet of roses.

"Happy birthday, Darling."

He looked disheveled. His shirt was wrinkled against his body, and his tie was undone.

He was clearly exhausted and his eyes were bloodshot.

His assistant, Paul Mason helped with the luggage with a smile on his face.

"Mr. Kipling finished three days' worth of work in one day just to make it back to celebrate your birthday, Mrs. Kipling"

"Oh, don’t give away my secret, Paul," Callum said playfully.

He extended the bouquet to me.

"Here. I'll freshen up. Later, I’ll take you out to celebrate your birthday.

“And you can’t refuse. I’ve been planning this for a long time."

Fine, let’s part on good terms. It was time to put a perfect end to the relationship.

I waited in my room for a long time, and as the sun began to set, Callum still hadn't come to get me.

I took out my phone, ready to tell him that we no longer needed to celebrate my birthday and that I wouldn't wait any longer.

But then I saw a notification for a news broadcast I followed.

[Breaking news: The Kipling family's adoptive daughter, Hannah Kipling, has been accused of inappropriate involvement with her own step-brother, Callum Kipling forcing his wife to divorce him.]

I clicked on it, and there were various intimate photos of Hannah and Callum, along with a signed divorce agreement.

There was a sound outside my door before Callum kicked it open.

He was beyond furious as he marched up to me.

"How could you be so vicious, Eloise?

"You’re a woman yourself. Don’t you think it’s disgusting to ruin a girl’s life this way?"

"It wasn’t me!" I protested.

I had no interest in using such clumsy tactics.

I stared directly into Callum’s eyes. “Look, we’re getting a divorce. Who you like has nothing to do with me.”

“Who else would make such an accusation about me and my brother, if not you?” Hannah yelled as she pushed herself into Callum’s arms.

“Everyone knows that your so-called divorce is just a threat to make my brother abandon me.

“If this kind of news spreads, how will people view the Kiplings? How will they view my brother?”

“Call the police, ” I said as I pulled out my phone.

“Since you want to know who the real culprit is, let the police investigate it.”

“Shut up!”

Callum swiped the vase filled with roses from the vanity and knocked it to the floor.

He looked at me with utter contempt.

“You have no shame, Eloise. My family still has a reputation to protect. You’re so disgusting.”

Two years of intimacy, three years of sharing a bed, and in the end, he had only that to say about me.

“You’re no better,” I scoffed, then handed him the divorce agreement once again.

“Since we’re both tired of each other, it’s better to just get this divorce over and done with.”

“Fine. I’d be a fool not to sign it now,” he said haughtily as he quickly signed the papers before tossing them to Paul.

Then he kicked the door open and left with Hannah in his arms.

I stared at the disarray in the room, then slowly removed my wedding band and placed it on the table.

Then I grabbed the suitcase I had packed earlier and headed toward the airport.

Before boarding the plane, I sent him one last message.

[Let’s part ways, and never meet again.]

After sending it, I turned off my phone and boarded the flight to Azure City.