I gently, but firmly, pulled the silk of my dress out of her grasping hands. I stepped back, forcing her to look up at me from the floor.
“You’re not apologizing because you realize you hurt me, Claire,” I said quietly, my voice remarkably calm in the face of her hysteria. “You don’t regret calling my ring cheap. You don’t regret making me feel small on my wedding day.”
“That’s not true!” she wailed, shaking her head frantically.
“It is true,” I stated, cutting her off. “You’re only apologizing because you found out I married your boss. You aren’t sorry for your cruelty. You’re just terrified of losing your six-figure salary and your superficial status. Your apology is just as cheap as you thought my ring was.”
“Hannah, please…”
“Enough, Claire.”
I turned away from the mirror. I walked to the door and pulled it open.
Standing in the hallway, hovering nervously near the entrance, were my parents. They looked up, their faces etched with anxiety, waiting to see if I had granted their golden child a pardon.
I stepped out into the hallway, looking at the three of them. The people who were supposed to be my support system, who had instead been my biggest source of pain.
“Ethan won’t fire you on Monday, Claire,” I said, my voice carrying down the quiet hallway.
