08
As soon as the thought struck him, Ryder grabbed his bike and pedaled furiously toward the school. His heart pounded against his ribs, a mixture of unease and desperation clawing at him. He had to find her.
But when he arrived, there was no sign of Amber.
Just as he was about to leave, the school’s elderly janitor called out to him.
“Mr. Calloway, there’s a package here. Your wife sent it.”
Could it be Amber?
Relief flooded Ryder’s chest. He knew it–she loved him too much to stay angry. Maybe this was her way of making peace. A letter, an apology, some kind of reassurance that everything was still okay between them. With shaking hands, he tore open the package. But instead of a letter, he found official documents staring back at him.
His breath hitched.
A school admission record.
He dug deeper, his fingers pulling out another. And another.
Three years‘ worth of neatly filed acceptance letters, all confirming Amber had been admitted to the school. Each one stamped and official.
His hands trembled. How long had she known?
The janitor seemed to hesitate before speaking.
That day when your parents visited she stood outside for a long time I don’t know what happened but
No Longer Yours. Dear Husband
“That day, when your parents visited, she stood outside for a long time. I don’t know what happened, but suddenly, her eyes turned red… like she’d just had her heart ripped out.”
Ryder’s mind exploded with realization.
The last sheet of paper slipped from the package, fluttering to the ground. He bent down, picking it up with stiff fingers. His pulse roared in his ears as his gaze landed on the words at the top.
His breath caught in his throat as his eyes darted to the words–Miscarriage due to physical trauma.
And then, in the patient’s name field: Amber Calloway.
His knees buckled. The weight of it crashed down on him, stealing the air from his lungs. His vision blurred. Pregnant. She had been pregnant. With his child. Ryder clenched the paper so hard his knuckles turned white. He felt sick, remembering the way he had lashed out, the way his fists had landed on her fragile body, the way she had crumpled beneath his anger.
Ryder staggered to his feet, panic flooding his system. He had to find her. Now.
But before he could move, a frantic voice rang out.
“Ryder!”
It was Sage. She rushed toward him, tears streaming down her face. “My school records–someone erased them! I won’t be able to graduate!” she wailed, clutching at his arm. “It has to be that bitch Amber! She’s always been jealous of me! First, she fought me for your attention when we were kids, then she tried to steal my education!”
Ryder barely heard her. His mind was spinning, drowning in the weight of what he had just learned.
“What am I supposed to do now? Without my diploma, I can’t get a job,” Sage continued, oblivious to his turmoil. “I don’t want to rot in this backwater town like you! I deserve better than this. I don’t want to be some lowly nobody!”
Ryder’s stomach twisted.
A backwater town.
A lowly nobody.
That was how she saw him?
He had given everything for her. Worked himself to the bone, sacrificed his own happiness, destroyed the one woman who had ever truly loved him. And now, standing here, hearing the disgust in her voice, he realized the bitter truth.
Sage had never seen him as family. Only as a tool.
A sharp pain tore through his chest and before he could stop himself, a mouthful of blood spilled past his lips. His body wavered, his knees threatening to give out.
Sage recoiled. She actually stepped back. As if he were something dirty. Something repulsive.
And in that moment, Ryder finally saw her for what she truly was.
Sage wasn’t worth for all the sacrifices he made.
Without another word, he turned and walked away.
Sage wasn’t having it. She ran after him, yanking at his arm.
“Say something! You know Amber did this! That bitch ruined my future! Find her and make her fix it!” “Bitch,” she spat again, her face twisted in rage, nothing like the delicate girl she pretended to be.
Ryder clenched his jaw.
Amber had never once insulted Sage. Even after she had stolen her university admission, even after she had taken her fiancé, Amber had never said a single cruel word about her.
And yet, here was Sage–ripping into her without hesitation.
How had he been so blind?
Ryder yanked his arm free and met her gaze, cold and unyielding. “Amber is gone.”
Sage faltered for just a second before seeffing “Please She’ejuet hiding because she knows she screwed me
D
7:46 AM
No Longer Yours, Dear Husband
Sage faltered for just a second before scoffing. “Please. She’s just hiding because she knows she screwed me
over! You need to find her, Ryder! If she doesn’t fix my school records, my whole life is ruined!”
Ryder stared at her, the last shreds of his old loyalty disintegrating like ash in the wind.
Sage–the sister he had protected. The girl he had once sworn to always put first. The person he had thrown
everything away for. A person who, even now, had no idea what she had cost him. What she had cost Amber.
A bitter chuckle escaped his lips. He had been a fool.
“She’s your sister, Sage. More than that–she’s your sister–in–law.” His voice was sharp as a blade. “If I hear you call her that word again, I will make you regret it.”
Sage’s mouth fell open, disbelief flashing across her face. But Ryder wasn’t finished.
“And as for your school records?” He scoffed. “They were never yours to begin with. If they’re gone, then they’re
gone.”
Without another word, he turned and walked away, leaving Sage behind.
For the first time in his life, he knew exactly who he needed to find.
