A Widow's Poison, A Wife's Rebellion novel Chapter 624

Back then, even Darleen and Harriet had shown Brinley sympathy because of how fiercely Fairfax was protecting her. He wasn't blind to it.

But even knowing how it looked... every time Brinley had the slightest issue, he still rushed over to the main estate at the drop of a hat.

Caden had even asked him once: *[If you're going to sideline Starla like this, what exactly do you plan to do with her? She might seem sweet, but she's never going to compromise on something like this!]*

Caden had always been perceptive. Despite being unmarried himself, he saw the fatal cracks in their marriage clearer than anyone else. He knew Starla wasn't the type to just sit back and take it.

And now... she was throwing Caden's exact words back in his face. She was telling him he had cared for Brinley so much that he had abandoned his own home.

Fairfax took a deep, shaky breath. "Did I abandon our home? No, you did!"

"Yes, I gave up on it."

Compared to Fairfax's constant deflections, Starla owned it with chilling ease. A simple, airy 'I gave up' confirmed her total emotional detachment from their marriage.

"I'm the one who doesn't want it anymore," she said.

Fairfax stared at her, speechless.

*She doesn't want it anymore.*

Hearing her dismiss their life together with such cold, unwavering finality made his blood run cold. His hands clenched into tight fists.

Meeting his angry, resentful glare, she said, "You haven't lived through the agony and despair I have. What gives you the right to think I'd ever tolerate you?"

Agony and despair.

If Fairfax had been completely in the dark, she might have forgiven his ignorance. But after everything that had been exposed recently, he knew exactly what his family was capable of. The fact that he could still say something so profoundly stupid was beyond belief.

Fairfax swallowed hard, his heart sinking yet again. Her rebuttal crushed him like a physical weight.

She was right. They had done far too much to her. The only thing they hadn't managed to do was actually kill her. And knowing all that, how could he have just told her to 'live quietly'?

Starla gave him one last glacial look before turning away and walking toward the sofa.

"I imagine your family has been putting you under a lot of pressure over the last couple of days," she said casually as she walked. "So, when are you planning to sign the divorce papers?"

He had just been yelling that they weren't divorced yet. Well, here was her answer.

As for pressure? The Yelchin family was practically ready to tear Fairfax limb from limb. His father, Harley, and his grandmother, Annika, had spent the previous night sleeping on the streets.