The Last Gift

PART 2 — THE WIFE WHO DISAPPEARED

Dominic returned home at 1:08 a.m.

He expected Claire to be asleep.

Instead, the mansion was strangely silent.

“Claire?”

No answer.

He walked upstairs, loosened his tie, and entered their bedroom.

Her closet was half-empty.

The jewelry he had bought her was untouched. Her favorite photographs were gone, along with her passport, documents, and personal belongings.

Then he noticed something on his desk.

A wedding ring.

A folder.

And the remains of his birthday gift.

Dominic frowned.

“What the hell?”

He picked up the envelope and opened it.

Divorce papers.

His expression darkened.

“She’s lost her mind.”

He immediately called her phone.

It went straight to voicemail.

He called again.

Nothing.

Then he noticed a handwritten note beneath the documents.

For several seconds, he stood completely still.

Claire had never threatened to leave before. Even after their worst arguments, she had always been there the following morning.

He called Margaret, the housekeeper.

“Where is my wife?”

Margaret stood silently.

“Mr. Vale, Mrs. Vale left tonight.”

“Where?”

“I don’t know.”

“You helped her?”

Margaret looked directly at him.

“She asked for a suitcase. I gave her one.”

Dominic’s jaw tightened.

“You work for me.”

Margaret lowered her eyes.

“I know, sir. But she was my family too.”

He ended the conversation.

Then his phone rang.

Vanessa.

“Darling, are you home?”

“Not now.”

“Is something wrong?”

“Claire left.”

There was a brief silence.

Then Vanessa laughed softly.

“Perhaps she’s finally realized she doesn’t belong in your world.”

Dominic said nothing.

Vanessa continued, “You shouldn’t chase her. Women like Claire always come back when they realize what they’ve lost.”

Dominic ended the call.

He wanted to believe her.

But something about the empty bedroom bothered him.

Claire hadn’t taken the expensive things.

She had taken the things that mattered to her.

Meanwhile, across Chicago, Claire sat on Megan Lewis’s sofa, wrapped in a blanket.

Her best friend placed a cup of tea in front of her.

“Are you sure you want to do this?”

Claire nodded.

“I should have done it years ago.”

“Dominic won’t accept this quietly.”

“I know.”

Megan studied her.

“Then what’s your plan?”

Claire looked down at her phone.

“Rachel is filing everything Monday morning. After that, I’m going to start my life again.”

Megan reached across the table and squeezed her hand.

“You don’t have to prove anything to him.”

Claire managed a small smile.

“I know. That’s the point.”

For the first time in seven years, she fell asleep without waiting for the sound of Dominic’s car.

And Dominic, who had spent years believing his wife would never leave, had no idea that her departure was only the beginning.