Chapter 2 Author: Cherryblossom I went straight back to the villa after leaving the café. Big, cold, and quiet as always. Sometimes I wondered why we even needed all these people around, the bodyguards, the maids, the housekeepers. What were they protecting, cleaning, or serving? I was the only one who actually lived here. Occasionally Henry, when he wasn't at school. And Finn? Finn showed up maybe seven days out of the whole damn year. If that. I wandered through the halls, heels echoing against marble floors. I passed the garden I once designed myself, every flower chosen to match Finn's taste. I peeked into his room. The one where I set everything up to make him stay. The room where I tried to trap him with a child. Memories hit me like a punch to the chest. The woman I used to be would've clung to them. But not anymore. I'd already signed the divorce. I had no business staying here. It was time to prepare for leaving. I started packing. Quietly. Until the housekeeper suddenly popped into the room, acting like I was some maid breaking the rules. "What are you doing in here?" he asked, frowning. "You know you're not allowed in Mr. Gallagher's room without his permission." He knew how little I mattered in this household. He'd always taken advantage of that, talking down to me when Finn wasn't around. I turned, sharp. "Do yourself a favor and leave me alone." When he didn't back off, I dropped everything and walked into Henry's room instead. It still smelled like him. Still had that boyish mess everywhere, books, shoes, scattered Legos. And on his bed sat the teddy bear I bought for him last year. I still remembered that day. He looked at the bear, then frowned and said, "That's not the one I wanted." He didn't even touch it. But then Finn said, "Madeline picked that out."