Waking up that morning was a struggle. Emily had spent a sleepless night in her cosy, warm bedroom. The previous days row with her husbandharsh and unfairhad left her utterly drained. It had erupted over Davids demands to sell their flat and invest in some dubious business venture.
Emily got up, drank a fortifying cup of coffee, and began packing Davids things into a large travel bag. Only then did she notice his passport was missing.
“Right, so hes left on his own. Good riddance,” she muttered as hot tears spilled uncontrollably down her cheeks.
David had threatened to walk out after every argument before, but things always smoothed over eventually. They carried on, though their paths had divergedshed risen to senior sales assistant at a department store, while he drifted between shady gigs, chasing his big break.
And then hed sprung his latest scheme: investing in a shipment of brandy from Turkey, to be bottled at a local distillery before being sold to independent shops. He swore thered be inspections, that the distillery was on board for a cutbut Emily saw right through it.
Worse, the upfront cost was astronomical, with promises of tripling their money. But they didnt have the cash, so the flat had to go. Thats when the fight exploded.
The flat had been left to Emily by her parents. No way was she selling it only to end up homeless. David called her a penny-pinching miser, they rowed viciously, and he stormed out. She even knew where hed goneto his ex-wife, Claire.
Claire had divorced him years ago, then reappeared out of nowhere after snagging a wealthy new husband, two kids, and a big house. Lately, shed been calling David, luring him over under the guise of old times. Emily always suspected that if not for the kids, hed have moved back in for good.
Now, though, there was no jealousy, no angerjust numb indifference. David had failed as a husband, as a man. All bluster, pretending to bend over backwards while really just chasing the next “quick buck,” as he put it. Well, good riddance. Let Claire bankroll his harebrained scheme.
Emily wiped her tears, took a deep breath, and decided it was time to take control. No more wasting energy on Davids madness. The flat was hers, her future her own. She picked up the phone and called her old friend Charlotte, who worked at a top law firm.
“Lottie, I need help,” Emily said firmly. “Davids gone, and I want a divorce. Plus, I need to check if hes dragged me into any debts or scams.”
Charlotte got right to work. Within days, she uncovered Davids brandy schemehed already signed shady contracts with Turkish partners, trying to use the flat as collateral. Thankfully, without Emilys signature, they were worthless.
Even worse, hed pawned his fathers Jaguar for an advance. How hed talked his stern, unyielding father into it was beyond her. The man, a retired army officer, was notoriously tight-lipped. What smooth talk had David used to get his hands on that car?
Meanwhile, Davidconvinced of his “genius plan”had settled in with Claire. Flattered by his attention, shed agreed to back him, even dipping into the savings shed wrung from her ex. Shed shipped the kids off to her parentstheir doting grandmother could handle them while she played house with David.
He dazzled her with promises of riches, diving headfirst into his scam, borrowing from gullible mates who bought into his get-rich-quick pitch. He paid a hefty sum for the “brandy” and waited.
But no shipment ever came. The Turkish partners vanished, the distillery denied all knowledge, and David was left drowning in debthis fathers car gone, lawsuits piling up from furious “investors,” Claire included.
Furious, she kicked him out. He tried crawling back to Emily, but shed already changed the locks and filed for divorce. Left with nothingno family, no money, his reputation in tattersDavid was soon arrested for fraud and sentenced to prison.
Emily, freed from the toxic marriage, flourished. She took out a small loan against the flatnot for a scam, but to open her own eco-friendly beauty shop. Her retail experience paid off; soon, shed cleared the debt and turned a tidy profit. Charlotte handled the legalities, and for the first time, Emily felt truly independent.
Only one question nagged her: how had she ever fallen for a man like David? Youth? Naivety? Probably.
Theyd met at her mums workplace. At twenty-five, with university friends drifting away and no new prospects, Emily had been lonely. So when her mum invited her to the office Christmas party, shed gone alongunaware of her mothers matchmaking hopes.
David, though, wasnt the cheerful, single colleague her mum had in mind. At thirty-three, divorced and brooding, hed seemed worlds apart. Yet hed captivated Emily entirelytall, polished, handsome. Hed complained about dead-end jobs, craving something grander. “Working for the mans a mugs game,” hed told her when they started dating.
Her mum had pulled her aside for a serious talk.
“Darling, please dont fall for this Manning bloke.”
Emily had flushed, baffled. Her mum never spoke like this.
“You might mistake charm for real feeling, imagine romance where there isnt any.”
“Charm? Davids not charminghes serious. Hes older, yes, but thats what I want. Someone steady.”
“Love, you grew up without your father. Freud would say youre seeking that missing figure in older men.”
Her mumwell-read, sharp, a department headknew what she was talking about. But Emily wouldnt listen. She was already smitten.
“Just promise me you wont rush into anything with Manning. Do you understand?”
“But why, Mum? Has he done something wrong?”
“No, not that. But hes been married before. I just worry for you.”
Her mums calm voice couldnt mask her unease.
And shed been right. Three months later, Emilys mum was gonelikely hiding her illness till the end, trying to shield her daughter from a mistake.
David had been her rock then, moving into her flat, refusing to leave her alone. A year later, they marriedthough by then, hed quit his job to “find himself.” Then came the miscarriage, a devastating blow. Davids cold words”Maybe it wasnt meant to be”stung. Soon, he was vanishing at night. And then, the final collapse.
Now, sitting in her cosy office, Emily gazed out the window and smiled. She thought of all shed endured, of her mums warnings. How right shed been.
But her life was hers now. David, locked away, could stew in regretit meant nothing to her. Her future was bright.
The next day, a warm Sunday, Emily bought a bouquet of red rosesher mums favouriteand visited her grave. Birds chirped in the trees as she stood before the headstone, her mothers youthful portrait smiling back.
Shed failed to steer Emily clear of mistakesbut that wasnt her fault. Only Emilys.
She smiled softly. “Its over, Mum. Dont worry about me.”
The roses swayed in the breeze, their petals nodding as if in reply. A strange warmth filled her chest. She remembered her mums last words:
“My darling girl, Ill always be with youright here in your heart. When things get hard, listen to its beat. Youll feel me near. Just dont grieve too much, please”
Without thinking, Emily pressed a hand to her chest. Her heart thudded steadily, her palm grew warm, and tears streamed down her face. She knew then shed never betray her mums memorynever make another mistake that would hurt her, wherever she was.
