So she bottled up the feelings and forced them deep, deep down. Then she stood back up, and she washed her face. As good as Martha’s advice had been, she simply wasn’t afforded the luxury tofeel. But she would take the evening to process. To plan. And to write.
And beginning tomorrow . . .Eliana would handle it.
5
MAKE IT HURT
Lawyer up and take them down.
She needs proof.
How does he lie so easily?
Go for the jugular.
Once she’d wasted the mandatory forty minutes of her life in the school car line the next morning, Eliana hit the road, traveling half an hour to the nearest big city for the sake of cautious anonymity. She glanced at her purse and the hint of blue peeking through the gap.
Fourteen years ago, on her high school graduation day, Eliana’s father had given her two thousand dollars in cash from a savings account he’d been secretly building her entire life. It had been a shocking amount ofmoney for their way of life, and she’d tried to give it back—but he’d insisted. However, ever the worry-wart, she’d wrapped it up in a sock, decorated with miniature sunshines, and shoved it into the back of her sock drawer. Her own private rainy day fund, if it were evertrulyneeded.
She smiled as she pulled the sock out of her purse, counting out the bills and storing them in her wallet. Her dad, despite Eliana’s efforts, had never warmed to Jesse, and she knew he would bethrilledat the idea of how she’d chosen to spend the money. In all honesty, he’d probably host a neighborhood barbeque at the news.
Shaking her head, Eliana pulled into the lot of a popular tech store and got to work. She selected cameras, a GPS tracker, and an automatic recording device. The total was much cheaper than she’d anticipated—only a couple hundred dollars, SD cards included. Next, she stopped at a hardware store for two birdhouse-making kits, only twenty-five bucks each. A hell of a find. And then, finally, she stepped through the doors of the law firm she’d driven so far to visit.
The lawyer’s consultation fee wasn’t cheap, but neither was his reputation. She will have blown through a third of her limited funds in a single day, but she took solace in knowing it was a step in the right direction.
There was a pep in Eliana’s step when she entered Richard Mitchell’s office. Until she glanced around and realized just how far outside her element she truly was. Everything in that room exuded wealth. She was scared to touch the pristine leather furniture and chose to perch herself precariously on the edge of the wide lounge chair he had opposite his mahogany monstrosity of a desk.
“How can I help you, Mrs. Ma–”
“Eliana. Please,” she said. “Just Eliana.”
“Alright, Eliana,” Richard nodded, settling back in his seat. She couldn’t pin his age, with only the crinkling of laugh lines lending credit to the wisdom in his eyes. His hair was dark and combed, with strays of silver threaded throughout. His beard was trimmed close to his jaw, and a pair of black-framed glasses sat atop a crooked nose that looked like it had been broken at least once before. His expression was serious when he spoke, though his eyes were kind, “Tell me what’s going on.”
“I–I’m not ready to act yet. To file . . . for divorce,” she blurted, her cheeks flushing hot as she stared at thedivorce lawyer, feeling foolish and out of place when he simply lifted his brows. “But I need to, well . . . get ready. I have no job. No assets in my name. And two young daughters. I need you to tell me what to do so that when Idofile, I’m prepared. I need to make sure he can’t keep the girls from me, which means knowing what’s legal for me to do and what evidence I should gather.” She sucked in a steadying breath. “I need to know what the rules are.”
“Okay, slow down, we’ll do all that,” Richard said. “But let’s start with you explaining to me what brought you here in the first place.”
“He’s cheating.” She said, shrugging helplessly despite the words tasting like acid on her tongue. “If I told youhowI knew, you’d say I was crazy. It’s been a series of convenient half-truths, behavior changes, and inconsistencies. A death by papercuts, if you will. Hell, he’s trying to gaslight me so hard, he’s had me thinking Iamcrazy a few times.” She huffed a laugh, then glanced up quickly. “But I’m not.”
The side of Richard’s lip pulled up slightly in his first sign of human emotion, and then he braced his elbow onthe armrest, his cheek in his hand, and simply said, “Tell me everything.”
So Eliana did. She spoke of their childhood relationship. Their young marriage and years of financial struggles. She spoke of the twins, giving up her dreams of college and a career. The way Jesse convinced her to stay home. How trapped she felt in the situation. She told him about the hotel, the phone, and the flowers. The lies and the secrets. She even talked about Bea. And then she laid out her plans. And through it all, Richard held the same pose.
“Alright.” He nodded when she ran out of steam and slumped back into the seat. “The most important thing we need to discuss is the fallout for when all of this comes to light. Setting aside Jesse, do you have anyone to rely on? Family or friends that will support you?”
“My parents would let me stay with them, but they only have one spare room and are barely scraping by as it is. They’d never admit it, but we would be a burden. Then there’s my friend Clem—she would always help me, but she’s involved in some, uh . . .” Eliana squinted, wondering how much she should trust this man . . . “Iffythings. She has to travel a lot for her, uh, job. So, there are times when it’s hard to get in touch.”
Richard frowned as he eyed her. “I have some questions. But for the sake of utilizing your remaining time in the most efficient manner, let’s move forward for now. Based on your description, none of those sound like reasonable options. So that leads us back to the obvious solution. You need a job.”
Eliana opened her mouth, but he cut her off. “Do you want a job?”
“Yes,” she answered, straightening at how earnest her voice sounded to her own ears.
“Then why don’t you have one?”
Eliana opened her mouth again and then shut it. She’d been about to say “I’ve tried”, but when the words formed, she couldn’t get them past her lips.Why didn’t she have a job?She’d always wanted to work and contribute. Even if it wasn’t her dream job, she had never felt like she was meant for the stay-at-home life. Especially in the girls’ earlier years, she’d often thought that having a job would be easier. A mental break from the workload that came with two little humans. And yet, she’d let Jesse talk her in circles until she was convinced thatnotworking was the best option for their family. For their marriage. But had she ever agreed with that conclusion? Or was she simply agreeing to keep the peace?
Eliana was abruptly shaken from her thoughts when Richard continued, “Regardless of how things may feel, it’s important to remember that your husband is not the boss. You are not his employee, you’re hiswife.Marriage is about equality. Partnership . . .” Richard sighed. “Now this isn’t really legal advice, but I’m going to be very upfront with you here. You said that you’re here because he’s cheating, but the only actual proof you have is a flower delivery. That is circumstantial evidence at best. Now, I do believe in your intuition, Eliana, but we need to be honest— cheating is not why you’re here. What you’ve described to me is not a healthy marriage, and it sounds like this betrayal is what’s finally woken you up to the truth.” He paused, his gaze discerning when he asked, “Are you in any danger? Has he ever hurt you or your daughters?”
