Chapter 443
Chapter 443:
The smell of fresh paint hit her first. It wasn’t the clean, crisp scent of renovation. It was cloying, chemical, and cheap.
She had come here for one reason only: to sever the final tether binding her to this family. The space had once been a reflection of Kensington tradition—mahogany and leather. Now it looked like a jewelry box had exploded.
Gold. Everything was gold.
Tacky, gilded frames lined the walls, replacing the historical maps. The sleek, ergonomic chairs were gone, swapped for velvet monstrosities that looked like they belonged in a Victorian brothel.
And there, in the center of it all, stood Sienna Quinn.
She was directing two workmen to hang a chandelier far too large for the room. She pointed with a manicured finger, the diamond on her hand catching the light. It wasn’t the engagement ring Liam had worn on the news. It was just another bauble she had likely expensed to the company account.
She turned and saw Skye.
For a second, her face faltered. The ghost of the fear she’d shown when Skye humiliated her at the charity gala flickered in her eyes. Then she remembered where she was. This was her turf now.
She smirked. It was an ugly expression, twisting her heavy makeup.
“Here to beg for a severance package?” she asked, her voice high and grating. “I was thinking we could give you a gift card to a discount clothing store. You know, to help you start over p>
Skye didn’t answer. She didn’t even look at her.
Her eyes were fixed on the figure emerging from the shadowed corridor adjacent to the private elevator.
Liam Kensington.
He did not walk. There was no rhythmic thud of footsteps, only the faint, high-pitched whine of an electric motor. He rolled into the room in a sleek, high-tech wheelchair, his shattered leg elevated and encased in a rigid black brace. His hands rested limply on the joystick controller, his knuckles white—not from grip strength, but from the tension of holding himself upright against gravity.
He stopped three feet away from her.
Skye looked into his eyes. They were the same shade of blue she had once thought she loved, the same blue she had stared into while she bled out in a past life. But there was no light behind them. No anger. No regret. Just a flat, glazed surface. He didn’t blink. He didn’t seem to recognize the woman standing in front of him as the wife he’d once sworn to cherish, or even the enemy he’d tried to destroy.
𝗢𝖿𝘧𝗶сі𝖺𝗹 𝗌𝘰𝘶𝗿𝘤𝗲 о𝖿 𝘁𝗁𝘪𝘀 𝗻𝗈𝗏e𝗹 𝗼𝘯 bеl𝘯𝘰vе𝘭𝘀.𝗰оm
He raised his hand.
He held a thick manila envelope. The movement was stiff, his elbow locking before his arm extended fully.
“Take it,” he said.
His voice sounded like it was coming from a speaker underwater—distorted, hollow.
Skye reached out. Her fingers brushed the rough paper of the envelope. For a fraction of a second, her skin touched his.
He didn’t flinch. His hand was cold, clammy. It felt like touching a corpse that hadn’t quite realized it was dead yet.
She took the envelope. It was heavy.
Skye slid her thumb under the seal and ripped it open. The sound of tearing paper was the only noise in the room. Even Sienna had stopped giggling to watch.
She pulled out the document.
Marital Settlement Agreement.
It was signed by Liam. His signature was shaky, barely resembling the bold autograph she remembered, but it was legally binding.
This was it. He was waiving his right to contest.