The Sisters Who Walked Away

I caught my sister’s husband in bed with another woman. I greeted him with exactly what he deserved—a hard slap across the face. My softhearted sister whispered, “Claire, maybe we should just let it go.” “Not a chance. Let me show you how to tear a cheating bastard apart.” And that included the man sleeping in my own bed. When the door opened, the man and woman on the bed were still tangled together. I clicked my tongue and covered my sister’s eyes. “Don’t look. It’s disgusting.” Lily pulled my hand away, her eyes rimmed red. I looked at my sister, then at the two people still going at it, completely oblivious to our presence. Perfect. I strode forward. Before Ryan could react, I swung my arm and brought my palm down hard across his face. I put every ounce of strength I had into that slap. “Caught you in the act, Ryan. You really outdid yourself with this shitshow.” His face reddened and swelled before my eyes. My right hand throbbed. The bastard really did have a thick hide. The woman finally noticed us and snatched up the lightweight comforter to cover herself. Terror filled her face. Ryan recognized me. “Claire, what the fuck is wrong with you?” He scrambled out of bed and fumbled for his clothes. Then he saw Lily behind me. He froze before blurting, “Lily, you’ve got it all wrong. This isn’t what it looks like. Please, believe me.” His excuses were so pathetic they were almost funny. I rolled my eyes. Ryan practically crawled over to her. “Lily, let me explain. I was entertaining a client last night. I had a few drinks. I don’t even know this woman. I swear. You have to believe me.” I couldn’t listen to another word. “So you’re saying you were drunk, you have no idea how she got into your bed, and you certainly don’t know how you ended up having sex with her. Is that it?” I turned and stared at the woman. “Is that what happened?” My glare could have burned a hole straight through her. She clearly had never faced anything like this. Her face went white. “Did you know he had a wife and child? Did you or didn’t you?” “Well? Answer me!” Her answer would determine what happened next. If she’d known he was married and gone after him anyway, I would deal with both of them. Neither one would get away with it. But if she hadn’t known, Ryan had deceived them both. He was the one to blame, and she was another victim. My tone must have terrified her. Her shoulders trembled. “I didn’t know. He told me he was single. He pursued me for ages before I finally agreed to date him.” “You… you lying bitch! You were the one who—” Ryan started. One look from me shut him up. I picked up her clothes and handed them to her. “Be more careful next time. Don’t let another man fool you.” She hurriedly dressed, watching me with a complicated expression. Once she was gone, it was time to deal with that ungrateful bastard, Ryan.Ryan had married into our family and moved into our home. My parents and I had fought the marriage, but Lily had gone down on her knees and begged us. I still remembered what she’d said. “I won’t marry anyone but Ryan. Mom, Dad, Claire, please trust me. I’m going to be happy.” My parents finally gave in. But there was one condition. Most of the family business would go to me. Ryan had to prove himself and build a career through his own hard work. Only then would my parents and I truly accept him. It wasn’t that we were determined to distrust him. Lily had grown up sheltered and adored. She was far too innocent. She had started dating Ryan not long after beginning college. Ryan was the golden boy from a poor rural town. He’d gotten into a top university with his entire family’s hopes riding on his shoulders. We had no objection to him personally. It was his family that worried us. His father was a gambling addict, and his mother was chronically ill. Afraid Lily would suffer if she moved in with them, we’d suggested that Ryan join our household instead. His parents had even shown up to make a scene. They claimed that having their prestigious university graduate of a son move in with his wife’s family would disgrace the Cole name. I had never seen my father so angry. After that, he refused to approve the marriage at all. What finally changed his mind? Lily got pregnant. A wedding with a baby on the way. Ryan could barely stop grinning. I could still picture the happiness on my sister’s face at her wedding. Just five years later, that supposed love had become a joke. Every vow had crumbled. If a man’s promises were worth anything, pigs really would fly. Ryan still refused to give up. He grabbed Lily’s hand. “Lily, I was wrong. Please forgive me. I promise it’ll never happen again. Just give me one more chance. Please?” Tears streamed down her face and neck, landing on her silver necklace. Ryan had given it to her for her birthday. I’d thought it was cheap. She treasured it. She couldn’t believe—didn’t want to believe—that the man standing in front of her was the same man she had loved for seven years. Lily shook off his hand. Her voice trembled. “Claire, let’s go home.” Ryan grabbed the hem of her shirt, then dropped to his knees on the expensive carpet. Looking at that carpet nearly made me see red. Even his affair was being funded with Bennett money. Fuck him. Then Ryan started slapping himself with both hands like a madman, apparently hoping to soften my sister’s heart. Pathetic. The sound echoed through the silent room. What was that supposed to be? A light scratch? “Harder. Are you swatting mosquitoes? Haven’t you eaten? You seemed to have plenty of energy in bed.” I glared down at him, my voice dripping with contempt. His face cycled through red and pale. Quite a show. That evening, at the Bennett house. “Ryan, what did you promise us when you married her? How could you do this to Lily?” Dad was furious. He was getting older and had high blood pressure, so I sent the household staff out while Mom fetched his medication. “Dad, I’m sorry. It was my fault. I lost my head. Please give me another chance.” “Don’t call me Dad. You’ve lost that right!” I rubbed my father’s back. “Calm down. He isn’t worth risking your health.”Dad looked at me and sighed deeply. Lily sat off to one side, her eyes vacant. She looked like a doll with all the stuffing pulled out. “Get a divorce,” I told her. “No! Absolutely not!” Before Lily could answer, Ryan jumped up as though someone had stepped on his tail and glared at me. As if I were the one who had destroyed their marriage. Was I? No. He had done that all by himself. There was no point wasting words on a man like him. “I already have a lawyer drafting the divorce agreement. Nothing in heaven or hell changes the fact that you’re a cheating piece of shit, Ryan. What could you possibly have left to say?” Beside us, Mom ran her fingers over her prayer beads, her eyes shut. “What a terrible thing.” At the word divorce, Lily finally stirred. Ryan seized on her reaction like a lifeline. He knew that as long as Lily refused, there was still a chance to stop it. He was also the one who had told her years ago that her parents would agree to the marriage if she got pregnant. Yes, as long as Lily refused, he still had a chance. After all those years of biding his time, he couldn’t get divorced. He’d be left with nothing. “Lily, I swear, I just lost my head. After all these years, you know how much I love you. You know, don’t you? Please don’t divorce me. I’m begging you.” “Ryan, you bastard!” At last, Lily slapped him. His face was already swollen beyond recognition. That slap only made it worse. So what? My only concern was whether my sister’s hand hurt. “Yes. I’m a bastard. I’m scum. Honey, I swear, just give me one more chance. Just one, okay? “I’ll change. I’ll never do it again. Honey, I promise. Please give me another chance.” Ryan knelt at Lily’s feet, shedding fat tears on command. Anyone who didn’t know better might have thought our family was bullying him. What a pitiful sight. If he was so sorry now, he shouldn’t have done it in the first place. Dad had no patience left for him. “I told you when you married her. As long as you treated Lily well, you would have a share in the Bennett assets someday. “But you’ve disappointed us beyond words. Divorce! You’re getting divorced, and you’re leaving with nothing!” Panic overtook Ryan’s face. Then he seemed to find another lifeline. He grabbed Lily’s pant leg. “Oliver! That’s right, Oliver needs his dad. Honey, you know that, don’t you? I’m Oliver’s father. He’s only three. He can’t grow up without a dad. Lily, please talk to your parents.” Shameless bastard. Why hadn’t he thought about his child needing a father while he was cheating? “Did you forget? Oliver’s last name is Bennett. He’s a child of this family. You don’t deserve to be his father. “Don’t worry. I’ll tell him you’re dead. He doesn’t need to hear the ugly truth.” I was only offering a friendly reminder. Ryan lost his mind and lunged at me. “You vicious bitch! No wonder Nathan can’t stand you either! You’re a sick freak! Nobody loves you, so you have to tear us apart!” He really had gone insane. What did Nathan have to do with any of this? Even now, he still thought he hadn’t done anything wrong. Where did he get the nerve?