Chapter 10 - The Quiet StudioThe silence that returned to the penthouse was different this time. It wasn't the tense, suffocating quiet of a hostage situation. It was the peaceful, clean silence of a sanctuary.
Six months later, the divorce was finalized. Because of the ironclad prenuptial agreement and the extensive forensic audit that proved Marcus had embezzled nearly half a million dollars of corporate funds, he walked away with absolutely nothing. He was currently serving a probation sentence and was ordered to pay full restitution—a debt he would be paying off for the rest of his natural life while working a low-level job in another state.
I stood in my private writing studio. The soundproof walls were intact, the large oak desk spotless, and the custom bookshelf filled with translated editions of my books.
The demolition crew never arrived. The sledgehammers never touched my walls.
I sat down in my leather chair, looking out over the city skyline. The sky was a beautiful, clear blue, the sun warming the glass window beside me. I pulled my laptop closer, opened a blank document, and placed my fingers on the keys.
May you like
For years, Marcus had tried to convince me that I was weak, that I was just a dreamer who couldn't survive without his "we" speeches. But as I wrote the first words of my next bestselling novel, I smiled.
He thought he could sledgehammer my walls, but he forgot a very simple truth: I was the one who built them.
