Revenge After Divorce by Black Rose

Chapter 288

OLIVIA

When I stepped out of my therapy session, my husband was nowhere to be found. The weight of the session still lingered in my chest, but there was a subtle sense of relief, lightness I hadn’t felt in weeks. I took a seat on the chair outside, the cool air on my face a stark contrast to the heat that had been building inside me for so long. I reached for my phone and dialled his number, my thumb hesitating as I pressed the call button.

It didn’t take long before he picked up. “Hey, babe,” his voice crackled through the speaker, a mix of concern and uncertainty. “You finished?”

“Yeah,” I said softly, trying to mask the exhaustion that was creeping in. “Just waiting for you now.”

I didn’t mind the wait. I had come to terms with the fact that healing wasn’t a quick fix. The session had helped, well, it was a start. We hadn’t covered everything that had happened, of course. There was still so much left unsaid, but at least 1 had started the process. My emotions had gotten the best of me, and I had spent most of the time crying, leaving less space for words. I had talked about what I could, though, about the fears, the pain, the scars that Xander had left, even if they were mostly buried deep inside.

I didn’t want Marcus, or anyone else, to know the full extent of what had happened at Xander’s hands. I couldn’t let them see the fragility that had been embedded in my soul. After the whole imprisonment ordeal, they already treated me with a kind of gentle caution, like I was made of glass, waiting to shatter at any moment. It wasn’t that I didn’t appreciate their concern, but I hated feeling fragile. I hated the idea of being seen as weak. I wanted to be strong. I wanted to move forward, to carry on as if nothing bad happened, as if I hadn’t been trapped on an island, fighting for my life, for days on end.

I wanted to forget it all, forget Xander, forget the island, forget everything. But most of all, I wanted to forget the fear that had gnawed at me during those dark hours, the terror of wondering if I would ever see my children again. The thought alone was enough to send a shiver down my spine.

see them again had plagued me during those days on the island. The graveyard, the dark corners of that place, the overwhelming sense of impending doom. Xander

in the middle of the night, drenched in sweat, my heart pounding in my chest as I relived it all. The nightmares were relentless, haunting me every time I closed my eyes. But I refused to let them destroy me. I refused to let fear dictate who I was. I had endured too much, survived too much to let it break me now. Instead, I planned to use it. I would turn that pain into strength.

fragile, that

wrong.

by the familiar sound of my husband’s voice. I lifted my

clenched, his eyes a little too guarded. The expression was a stark contrast to the warmth

I greeted him softly, but there was a hesitation in

at

like he was deciding whether or not to tell m was really going on. Then he exhaled, shaking his head as if to brush off whatever it was that had

+25 BONUS

Chapter 288

to see Lupita

to ask him what was wrong, but I held back. There were times when I knew that if I pushed too hard, I would only make things worse. And right now, I couldn’t afford for either of us to break down at the same time. I had just started to get a grip on my emotions, and I wasn’t about to lose it again, not when he