Chapter 10 - The Wedding Ring
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Derek arrived at the Biscayne Bay apartment exactly ten minutes before his sister. He unlocked the door with his key, expecting to find Skylar sulking on the couch.
"Skylar!" he shouted, throwing his briefcase onto the armchair.
Silence greeted him. The apartment felt different—hollowed out, stripped of a specific energy. He walked down the hallway and immediately noticed the empty spaces in the master closet where her clothes used to hang. Her jewelry box was gone from the dresser.
Panic, sharp and unfamiliar, began to claw at his chest.
The front door chimed as Suzanne walked in, tossing her purse on the floor.
"Is she here?" Suzanne demanded, marching into the living room. "Because I have a few choice words for her about my credit limit."
"She's packed," Derek said, walking out of the bedroom, his face pale. "Half her clothes are gone."
Suzanne rolled her eyes. "Oh, please. She's just being dramatic. She wants you to chase her and apologize for throwing the coffee. Typical manipulation."
Derek walked into the kitchen, his mind racing. Why would she lock the bank accounts if she was just trying to make a point?
That was when he saw it.
Sitting in the exact center of the kitchen island, right next to the dried, sticky puddle of spilled coffee, was a thick manila envelope. And resting precisely on top of the sealed flap was Skylar’s diamond wedding ring.
Derek stopped in his tracks. The sight of the ring, discarded so casually, hit him harder than the empty closet.
Suzanne peered over his shoulder. "Is that her ring? Wow. She is really taking this temper tantrum to the next level."
Derek reached out and picked up the ring. It felt heavy and cold in his palm. He looked down at the envelope. There was no handwritten note, no tear-stained letter begging for his attention. There was only a crisp, white label printed with bold, black letters.
Derek Foster - Legal Service Enclosed.
May you like
His hands began to shake slightly as he tore open the top of the envelope. He pulled out a thick stack of stapled documents, his eyes scanning the aggressive legal jargon on the first page.
Emergency Ex Parte Injunction for Protection Against Domestic Violence.
