Chapter 192
Stewart’s hand clenched into a fist at his side, as if her words had struck something deep inside
him.
“It’s a pity–you’re wrong,” he said quietly.
Briony stared at him, her eyes brimming with scorn.
“If you truly understood the legend behind the Ghanaian divorce ritual, you’d realize just how absurd this little ceremony you’ve arranged really is.”
His voice was low and heavier than she’d ever heard. “I just… wanted us to have something to remember. A way to mark what we had.”
He searched her face, desperate, his gaze taking on a wild glint. “Briony, after five years of marriage, you can’t tell me there’s nothing left between us.”
“Something between us?” Briony gave a sharp, bitter laugh, her eyes flashing with unshed tears. “Stewart, now that you realize you can’t use my bond with Irwin to sway me, you want to play the ‘husband and wife‘ card instead?”
Stewart’s jaw tightened, his eyes fixed on hers.
She continued, voice cold and unwavering: “But when was there ever love between us, Stewart?”
He stopped breathing for a moment.
“The real Ghanaian divorce ritual is for couples who once loved each other. After their feelings have faded, they return together–dressed as they were on their wedding day–to the place where they began their marriage. The ritual is about going back to where you first fell in love, letting go, and ending things with dignity.”
She stepped back, putting distance between them. “But Stewart, we never loved each other. We never even had a real wedding. So this whole charade of a divorce ritual? It’s nothing but a joke.” Stewart opened his mouth as if to protest, but nothing came out. In the end, he could only stand there in silence.
“I’ve said everything I need to say. Five years of marriage–five years of pretending to be a mother to Irwin–it all ends today.” Briony’s words were icy, final. “From now on, Stewart, you’re nothing to me but the man who indirectly caused my mother’s death. We’re better off never seeing each other again. As for Irwin…”
She glanced at the young boy sitting off to the side. One look was all she gave him before turning back to Stewart, her face unreadable.
“His birth mother is Rosita. I can’t keep pretending he’s my son. So from now on, please–take care of your own child.”
1/2
Chapter 192
With that, Briony turned away and strode toward the church doors.
Behind her, Stewart reached out instinctively, but he was a moment too late.
Her soft hair slipped through his fingers, leaving his hand empty–and his heart emptier still.
“Mom!” Irwin’s tearful cry echoed through the church. “Mom, where are you going? I’m sorry, I promise I’ll be good! Please don’t leave me and Dad–please…”
Briony didn’t pause, didn’t look back. Her steps were resolute, her resolve unbreakable.
At the church doors, Stella was waiting for her, nodding in silent support.
Briony took the lighter Stella offered.
Together, they walked to the edge of the beach, where her wedding dress lay abandoned on the
sand.
Stella doused the dress with gasoline. Briony flicked the lighter, sending a small arc of flame through the air.
The fire caught immediately, devouring the delicate fabric in a rush of heat and light.
Briony watched the flames rise, as if she could see her past five years burning with it–all her blind hope, her endurance, her heartbreak, reduced to ash.
She turned away at last, not sparing a single glance for the smoldering remains.
Stella caught up to her and slipped an arm through hers. “Bryn, let’s go straight to the airport. Mr. Delaney’s private jet is waiting.”
Briony nodded. “Let’s go.”
By the time Stewart rushed outside, Irwin sobbing in his arms, the dress was nothing but a pile of ashes. The sea breeze swept them away, scattering the last traces of what once was.
And in the end, there was nothing left at all.
212
