Chapter 3 - The Escape
The next morning, I did not wait for Vanessa to arrive with her excessive designer luggage.
I went straight to the downtown office of my old college friend, Maya Collins.
Maya was now one of Chicago’s most ruthless and highly successful divorce attorneys.
I sat across from her massive mahogany desk and told her I wanted out of my marriage immediately.
She instantly grabbed a legal pad and asked about dividing the massive Morgan property.
I firmly told her I only wanted what was already mine.
I insisted that my business stays mine, and I wanted absolutely nothing from Luke’s massive criminal empire.
That statement made her look up from her notes in sheer, unhidden surprise.
My family, Luke’s family, and almost everyone in Chicago naturally assumed I lived off my husband’s dirty money.
They were entirely wrong.
The boutique interior-design studio I had built before our marriage had quietly grown into a highly profitable firm.
I had luxury clients scattered across several different wealthy states.
I had never actually needed Luke’s money to survive or thrive.
I had only ever wanted Luke.
And after three agonizing years, I finally understood that wanting a man and needing him were two very different things.
Maya quickly drafted the paperwork within the hour, warning me that men like Luke did not handle losing very well.
That afternoon, I returned to the massive estate to grab my essential things.
I walked into the house and found Luke’s mother, Isabella, sitting comfortably with Vanessa in the main living room.
They looked perfectly natural together, sharing expensive tea and laughing softly.
It felt like the house remembered Vanessa far better than it had ever known me.
I didn't say a single word to either of them.
I walked quietly upstairs to the master suite and began to meticulously pack.
I only took basic jeans, comfortable sweaters, my work laptop, and my favorite books.
I purposely left the designer dresses, expensive jewelry, Birkin handbags, and mink coats exactly where they were hanging.
Three entire years of marriage fit perfectly into one single suitcase.
Isabella suddenly appeared in the doorway before I could zip it shut.
She angrily demanded to know what I was doing with the luggage.
I looked her directly in the eye and told her I was leaving Luke.
Her perfectly lifted face tightened into a harsh scowl as she called my actions ridiculous.
I calmly informed her that I had already filed the legal paperwork this morning.
She stared at me in absolute, horrified disbelief.
She asked if I seriously planned to tell Luke Morgan to his face that I was divorcing him.
I placed the thick, signed envelope carefully on his side of the expensive nightstand.
I picked up the handle of my heavy suitcase and shook my head.
I told her that my lawyer would be the one telling him the news.
For the first time since I married into the terrifying Morgan family, Isabella looked genuinely afraid.
But none of them knew that the divorce papers were only half the secret.
Luke still didn’t know I was carrying his unborn child.
As I drove away from the estate, my phone rang with an urgent call from Elena.
I answered it, expecting her to apologize for breaking my medical trust.
May you like
Instead, her voice was completely frantic as she told me not to go anywhere near my design studio.
She said Luke had found out about the hospital visit, and his armed men were already waiting for me.
