I turned to leave.
“Evelyn.”
I stopped.
“I did love you,” he whispered.
I looked back at the man who had almost destroyed me because love had not been enough to satisfy his envy.
“Maybe,” I said. “But you loved winning more.”
I never visited him again.
The divorce was finalized quietly six months later.
I kept full custody.
Adrian received supervised visitation after completing every condition the court imposed. He lost Vale Capital, his reputation, and most of what he had built on lies. But he survived, and survival became his punishment: every month, he saw the sons he had tried to turn into keys, and every month, they grew without needing his power.
Nathaniel moved into the west wing of Ashford House.
At first, he slept with lights on.
Sometimes I found him in the nursery at 3 a.m., watching the triplets breathe.
“Still checking?” I asked one night.
