As he walked past her, he said calmly, “A deposit has been made for you, so do not claim I left you with nothing at all.”
The door closed behind him without hesitation, leaving Adeline alone inside a silence that felt heavier than any argument she had ever survived.
Outside the tower, rain covered Stonebridge Coastal City in sheets of silver water, and Adeline stepped into it without an umbrella while holding her stomach protectively as if she could shield her unborn children from betrayal itself.
Her bank access failed moments later, and the screen confirmed that only a few hundred dollars remained in her account after years of marriage and promises.
She laughed once in disbelief before realizing the sound was closer to breaking than humor, because five years had collapsed into a number too small to survive on.
With no car and no help, she boarded a public bus that smelled of wet fabric and exhaustion, sitting near a fogged window while strangers avoided her eyes.
Inside her body a sudden pain arrived without warning, sharp enough to make her grip the seat and whisper, “Not now, please not now,” while fear tightened every breath.
The bus crossed an elevated bridge when the next contraction hit harder, forcing her voice into a cry that silenced nearby passengers.
A man sitting several rows behind stood up at that exact moment, someone she had not noticed until that second because he had blended into the background of tired commuters.
He wore a dark coat and moved with controlled certainty, walking directly toward her while everyone else instinctively made space without understanding why.
