Chapter 5 - The Reconstruction
Divorce proceedings were messy, but Elena was relentless. She didn't want his money; she wanted his absence. She secured sole custody, proving that Prestonâs erratic behavior and professional negligence made him a danger to their son.
The months that followed were a blur of physical therapy and late-night feedings. Elena learned to be a single mother, relying on the support of her colleaguesâthe ones who had actually respected her all along.
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She wasn't the same woman who had walked into that delivery room. She was harder, yes, but she was also softer in the places that mattered. She found a joy in her sonâs laughter that she had never found in Prestonâs approval. She realized that for seven years, she had been starving, and she hadn't even realized it.
Preston, meanwhile, had been stripped of everything. He attempted to reach out, to "explain," but Elena had blocked him on every platform. He became a cautionary tale in the hospital, a ghost of what happens when ego replaces ethics.
