The Wife he threw Away (Claire and Lucian) novel Chapter 81

CHAPTERCHAPTER EIGHTY-ONE CLAIRE’S POV

I lowered the phone slowly.

The air around me felt different-not heavier, not lighter. Just… clearer.

Nathaniel was watching me.

“Problem?” he asked.

“Yes.”

A brief pause.

“A transfer was made in my name.”

His expression didn’t change. “And?”

“It was redirected.”

That was all I said.

That was all I needed to say.

Nathaniel studied me for a moment, then asked, “Do you want to trace it?”

The question hung between us.

Simple.

Direct.

I thought about it.

About the money.

About what it meant.

About where it came from.

Lucian.

Of course it was him.

And for a brief second-just a second-I imagined what it would do. How much easier things would be. How quickly problems could disappear with that kind of number attached to them.

Then I let the thought go.

“No.”

Nathaniel’s gaze sharpened slightly, not in disagreement-but in assessment.

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NONE LAIRES POV

“I don’t want anything that still has his name attached to it,” I said.

That felt clearer.

Cleaner.

More honest than anything else I could have said.

He nodded once.

“That’s harder than fighting it.”

Maybe it was.

But it felt right.

Freedom didn’t come in installments.

We didn’t speak about it again.

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The agent returned a few minutes later, her tone bright and efficient as she resumed discussing terms

and timelines.

I listened.

Asked questions.

Clarified details.

And then, without hesitation this time, I agreed.

The apartment was mine.

Not large.

Not extravagant.

But enough.

More than enough.

By evening, I stood inside it again-this time with a set of keys in my hand.

The space was quiet.

Empty in a way that felt… open.

Not hollow.

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ONE CLAIRES POV

Not because I was tired.

But because I wanted to be still.

The silence didn’t press in.

It didn’t demand anything.

It just… existed.

And for the first time in years, so did I.

Not as someone’s wife.

Not as part of something larger than myself.

Just-

Me.

I leaned back slightly, my gaze moving across the room.

For the first time, my life felt like something I was building…

not maintaining.

Margot’s words replayed in my mind.

This case will put you in rooms you weren’t invited into before.

I thought about that.

About what it meant.

About what came next.

Then, quietly-

without hesitation this time-

I made the decision.

“I’ll take it.”

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7/8

gols WO CIAIRES POV

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