Chapter 4 Her Ashes
1204 Words
I returned home with the divorce papers in hand, thinking everything was finally coming to an end. But the moment I stepped inside, I found Sebastian sitting on the couch, his expression dark and unreadable.
"Where have you been? You were gone all night! Do you even remember that you're married?" His voice was sharp, filled with irritation.
I stared at him for a moment, then let out a laugh. He had spent the entire day with another woman and her child, yet he had the audacity to question me?
"What's so funny?" His frown deepened before he demanded, "And where's Lillian? Where did you take her?"
The disgust on his face was unmistakable—he looked at me as if I were something filthy.
"So you do remember we're married, Sebastian. Did that cross your mind last night while you were spending the night with another woman and her child?"
I gently placed the urn on the table.
"Lillian is right here."
I lowered my gaze, my fingers softly tracing the smooth surface of the urn. For a split second, confusion flickered in his eyes, but it was quickly replaced by disdain.
"Juliana, I don't care if you want to fight with Isabella over petty jealousy, but a child is innocent. How could you say something so cruel?"
I felt a moment of daze as I looked at him. There was a time when he had treated us well, when we were a family. But the moment Isabella came back, everything changed.
"I'll ask you one last time—where is she?"
He grabbed my shoulders, his grip painfully tight, his fingers digging into my skin. I almost felt like my bones would snap under the pressure.
But after losing my daughter, what was a little pain?
"She's right here," I said, raising the urn in my hands, my voice calm and steady.
For the briefest moment, horror flashed in his eyes. It was almost laughable. Sebastian Prescott, are you actually afraid?
But in the next second, he knocked the urn from my hands.
The ashes spilled out, scattering across the floor.
"Stop this act, Juliana. Drop your sick games," he said coldly.
And then—he stepped on them.
"No!!!"
I dropped to my knees, frantically trying to gather what remained of my daughter.
Sebastian let out a mocking laugh. "You're really putting on a show, huh?" Then, as if to push me further into despair, he kicked at the ashes, scattering them even more.
"I'm warning you, Juliana. If you try a stunt like this again, you can forget about being Mrs. Prescott."
My heart shattered all over again. That was all that was left of my child, and he destroyed it like it was nothing.
I looked up at him, my eyes burning red with rage and grief. His face remained indifferent, full of nothing but contempt.
Then, I laughed. A hollow, broken sound.
This is my husband. This is the father of my child.
How had I ever married a man like this?
But at least, it wasn't too late.
I pulled out the divorce papers I had prepared in advance and held them out to him.
"Fine. I never wanted to be Mrs. Prescott anyway."
I looked down at the remains of Lillian's ashes, unwilling to look at his face anymore. But I imagined he must have been happy.
After all, once I was out of the picture, he could finally marry Isabella. He could finally make Ethan his son in name as well.
But instead of taking the papers, he suddenly grabbed my wrist and yanked me up so forcefully that I almost lost my grip on the urn.
"What the hell are you doing?" I shoved him away, holding the urn close, protecting it like my life depended on it. This is my Lillian. I won't let her be hurt again.
Sebastian seemed momentarily stunned. Maybe he hadn't expected the woman he once controlled so easily to push him away.
"Juliana, what kind of stunt are you pulling now?" he snapped, quickly regaining his usual cold demeanor. "I told you, I see Isabella as a sister. Stop making baseless accusations. And now you're hiding our daughter from me just to force a divorce? You think that'll make me care about you?"
I had already decided to leave him, but his words still felt like needles stabbing into my heart.
‘It's okay, Juliana. This is the last time.'
I repeated the words in my head, forcing myself to stay numb. ‘This is the last time I'll ever let him hurt me.'
I bent down and picked up the divorce papers from the floor. They were dusted with the remnants of my daughter's ashes. My gaze darkened, but I calmly handed them to him again.
"It's work hours right now. Just sign it, and we're done."
He took the thin stack of paper from me, and for a moment, I thought this nightmare was finally over.
But then—he tore them apart.
The shredded pieces of paper floated through the air like falling snow.
Before I could react, he grabbed my chin, forcing me to meet his furious gaze.
"Juliana, I told you—stop making a scene."
His grip was crushing, pain shooting through my jaw. I opened my mouth to say something, but before I could, he shoved me onto the couch.
"Don't think you can manipulate me by keeping our daughter away. The next time I come back, you better have her here. And stop making yourself look so pathetic. You're Mrs. Prescott—start acting like it."
With that, he turned and walked out the door. I didn't need to guess where he was going. Isabella.
I curled up on the couch, holding the urn close to my chest. My phone buzzed with a new message.
It was a photo from Isabella. She was out shopping with Sebastian and Ethan.
In the picture, Sebastian was holding Ethan in his arms, his expression gentle. He even had the boy sitting on his shoulders—something he had never done for Lillian.
Tears welled in my eyes as I stared at the screen.
‘I'm sorry, Lillian.'
I ran my fingers over the urn, whispering an apology to the child I had failed to protect.
If I had divorced him sooner… If I had fought harder… Would she still be alive?
My vision blurred with tears, but the messages kept coming.
Isabella: Juliana, Sebastian adores Ethan. He even wants to make him his godson! This toy set came with a cheap little trinket. I told Sebastian to bring it back for Lillian. Didn't she always love getting those worthless little things?
Her words dripped with mockery, one message after another.
If this were before, I would have been livid. I would have lost control.
But now?
I held Lillian's urn, my heart empty, devoid of emotion.
Slowly, I reached down and picked up the torn divorce papers, piecing them back together as best I could.
Then, I snapped a picture and sent it to Isabella.
Juliana: Your dear Sebastian refuses to sign. Looks like he doesn't love you as much as you think.
- Writer
