The Altar, The Lies, His Penance

Emery Houston POV:

"Emery? Your next client is here." My assistant's voice, calm and efficient, gently pulled me from the suffocating grip of memory. My hands, which had been resting on the cold steel table, felt clammy.

"Thank you, Sarah. I' ll be right there." I took a deep breath, pushing the past back into the dark corners of my mind.

I moved through the back rooms of my animal mortuary, a sanctuary of quiet dignity. I changed into my sterile scrubs, pulling on gloves and a mask. The crisp fabric was a familiar comfort, a barrier between my inner turmoil and the somber reality of my work.

In the viewing room, a small, still form lay on the table. A tiny terrier, its fur matted, a small, sad wound on its head. Its owner, a woman in her late sixties, sat hunched in a chair, her shoulders trembling.

"Please," the woman whispered, her voice cracking, "Can you… can you make him look like himself again? Just like he was before?"

I nodded, my voice soft. "I'll do my best."

As I worked, my movements precise and gentle, a bleak thought flickered in my mind. We spend our lives trying to put the pieces back together, to make things beautiful again. But some breaks are too deep. Some scars never truly fade. Like a broken heirloom, only outwardly restored, but forever fragile at its core.

A buzz vibrated against my hip. My phone. Leo. I glanced at the caller ID, then at the clock. School was out.

"Mom! Dad said he'd call me! Why hasn't he called yet?" Leo's voice, usually a cheerful chirp, was laced with impatience.

I smiled, a genuine, unburdened smile. "He's probably busy, sweetie. Let me call him, okay?"

Just then, my phone rang again. It was Joel. I answered on speaker.

"Hey, buddy! Sorry, I just got back from a dive. Amazing coral reefs, you wouldn't believe it." Joel's voice boomed through the small room, accompanied by the distant sound of crashing waves and muffled laughter. He sounded relaxed, carefree, every inch the "bad boy heir" he was rumored to be.

"Dad! I won a trophy today!" Leo shouted, thrilled to finally connect with his father.

"That's my boy! Knew you had it in you!" Joel laughed, but then his tone shifted, a hint of exasperation creeping in. "Emery, you never call me back. I swear, you could be kidnapped and I wouldn't know."

Suddenly, a woman's voice, husky and teasing, cut in. "Joel, darling, who are you talking to? Your secret family?" A burst of giggles followed.

My heart sank. My grip tightened on the tiny terrier's paw.

Joel's voice, strained now, cut through the laughter. "Just a friend, babe. And my son." He tried to sound casual, but I heard the edge.

More giggles. "Your son? Oh, Joel, you crack me up!"

Leo's bright face fell. He looked at me, his lower lip trembling. He doesn't like them, Mom. His unspoken thought hung in the air.

"Joel," I stated, my voice flat, "I'm going to hang up now."

There was a sudden silence on his end. The laughter stopped. Joel' s voice, when he spoke again, was softer, devoid of its earlier bravado. He sounded like he' d moved away from the others. "Emery, I' m sorry. I didn't mean for that to happen." He hesitated. "I'm on a business trip. I'll be back tonight. Can I pick Leo up from your place around seven?"

"No need, I can pick him up," I said, my voice clipped. I didn' t want him near me, not now.

"No, I want to," he insisted. There was a raw earnestness in his voice that surprised me. "I want to see him. And you."

"Fine," I said, my voice devoid of emotion. "Seven it is."

"Emery," he started, then stopped. I could almost feel his hesitation through the phone. Finally, he asked, "Did… did Carter come back too?"

My blood ran cold. "Yes," I said, my voice barely a whisper. "He's back."

Another silence, longer this time. Then, Joel' s voice, low and strained. "Emery, if… if he wants to fix things, and you… if you want to marry him, I' ll clear the way. We can get our divorce finalized. Just say the word."

I blinked. Divorce? We weren't married. My mind reeled. What was he talking about?

Joel sighed, a sound heavy with resignation. He dropped his gaze, avoiding the webcam that he'd somehow activated. In the corner of the small screen, I could see a woman in a tiny bikini sidle up to him, whispering something in his ear. Was this why he was offering me a divorce? To be free of our messy arrangement, free to pursue his "business trip" companion?

A cold wave washed over me. "If you need it, Joel, we can do it now. I'll sign the papers." My voice was sharper than I intended.

He looked up, his eyes suddenly burning with an intensity that startled me. "No!" he practically roared. The woman beside him jumped back. He lowered his voice, forcing it to be calm, but it vibrated with suppressed emotion. "No, I don't need it. I'm a confirmed bachelor, remember? Can't tie a wild thing like me down." He laughed, a hollow, brittle sound. "Besides, don' t go rushing back to Carter just because he' s back in town. You deserve better than that."

My jaw tightened. "I wouldn't go back to him if he were the last man on earth," I snapped, my voice laced with venom. The thought alone made my stomach churn.

Joel flinched, then fell silent. I could hear him breathing, short, sharp gasps.

"I am not some desperate, pathetic woman who chases after men who discard her," I said, my voice trembling with a fury I rarely allowed myself to feel. "I am not that person anymore."

I hit the "end call" button before he could speak, cutting off his mumbled apologies. My hands were shaking. I closed my eyes, forcing myself to breathe deeply. My fingers, still stained with antiseptics, curled into tight fists.

Five years ago, Carter had abandoned me at the altar. The humiliation, the public shame orchestrated by his powerful family, the whispers, the glares, they had all been a blur. I remember screaming, tearing at my wedding dress, a hysterical mess trapped in a gilded cage. Everyone thought it was grief, a heartbroken woman unable to let go of her love. They were wrong. It wasn' t love that made me fall apart that day. It was hate.