When Love Burned to Nothing

Back when Ken was still struggling to get his business off the ground, he got targeted by rivals looking for payback.

That day was my first day out of college, my first day at work. I couldn't stand watching it happen. I called the police, hurled my backpack at the bad guys, and grabbed Ken before sprinting away.

Still, there were too many of them. Before the cops arrived, I took three knife wounds for him.

I was rushed to the hospital. Ken was hurt even worse, but he still stayed by my side and took care of me for a full month.

We were young, caught up in everything at once. We fell in love before we even realized it. When his startup finally took off, we got married.

Not long after, my eldest, Carly Bowen, was born. Ken was even more excited than I was. He kept saying he would give me and our child the best life possible.

He loved his career, so I stayed behind him, supporting his work and holding everything together at home.

People mocked me for getting married before I had even seen the real world, saying divorce would be my inevitable ending.

When Ken heard about it, he was furious. He cut those people off and even wanted to transfer all the family assets into my name.

Whenever he had time, he would rush home early to be with me and Carly. Even after Trista and Queenie were born, our relationship stayed just as close.

But two years ago, he started coming home later and later, constantly flying out of town for business.

Our relationship cooled fast.

I could feel it. Ken's heart had changed.

I secretly followed him a few times. Every time he claimed he was working late, he was actually with his first love, who had just come back from overseas.

Those so-called business trips were really vacations he took with her.

After digging deeper, I found out she was his business partner's younger sister. She had divorced her foreign husband and returned home to restart her career.

I had actually met Bianca Pena once, right after she came back. That day, I went to Ken's office to bring him lunch.

His stomach issues had flared up then, so I cooked light, easy-to-digest meals every day and brought them over myself.

Bianca was sitting in his office.

Ken introduced her casually. "This is my old friend, Bianca. She just got back from abroad. She'll be our executive director from now on."

I didn't think much of it. I had a lot of trust in Ken.

In the end, though, he betrayed both my trust and my feelings. Eight years of marriage couldn't stand up to the pull of his first love.

Our first explosive fight was because of Bianca.

That night was our wedding anniversary. Ken had promised to come home for dinner.

I cooked a full spread myself. Our three daughters wore their prettiest dresses and waited at the table. We waited until it was fully dark. Ken never came home.

I called him on video. He took a long time to answer, then snapped the moment he did.

"Why are you rushing me? It's just some dumb anniversary. What's there to celebrate? I told you I'm working late."

But his crooked shirt buttons and the lipstick mark on his neck gave him away.

I hung up and rushed straight to his office, catching the two of them together inside. I grabbed Bianca by the collar, my hand already swinging.

Ken caught my wrist and stopped me, his voice cold as he threatened me, "Linette, if you so much as touch a hair on Bianca's head, don't even think about seeing the three girls again. And you can figure out how to pay for your sister's surgery yourself."

With Bianca looking at me in open provocation and smug satisfaction, I swallowed the humiliation and pulled my hand back.

Our parents had passed early. My sister, Whitney Carline, was my only family.

All these years, Ken was the one making the money. If he refused to pay, there was no way I could afford Whitney's surgery.

After that, working late became his normal routine. When I demanded to know why, he looked at me with indifference and disgust.

"Because Bianca and I actually have things to talk about. She's smart and knowledgeable. You're just a housewife. Besides taking care of kids, what else can you do?"

What he forgot was that he had been the one who begged me to stop working and take care of the entire household.