The Husband I Married The Man I Lost Novel by Silas Darke _ Novel




The Husband I Married The Man I Lost Chapter 01

My son, Cedric Farrell, was hit by a new transfer at the private kindergarten we ran.
When I rushed over, he was standing outside the office door with puffy red eyes, whispering, "Mom, he said his dad's the one in charge of the kindergarten..."
The boy who had hit him held his chin high and complained into the phone, "Dad, I don't want to stay at this new school! My classmate bullies me!"
The voice on the other end sounded anxious. "How dare he? Wait there. I'm coming over."
Twenty minutes later, I heard familiar footsteps coming down the hallway.
My husband, Nathaniel Farrell—who was supposedly on a business trip overseas—pushed open the office door with a young woman by his side.
The boy who had beaten my son ran straight toward them. "Mom! Dad!"
It would've been such a warm, happy moment—if only I could block out the truth that the man standing there was my husband.
I stared at Nathaniel.
"Dad..." Cedric called out timidly.
He avoided my gaze and cleared his throat awkwardly.
I slung an arm around my son's shoulder and said, "Just tell me—who's your real family?"
***
Nathaniel froze at once.
The boy in his arms yanked a photo out of his backpack at once, his little face full of cockiness.
"Don't even think about stealing my dad!"
In the photo, the three of them were watching fireworks at Disneyland. Nathaniel had the boy perched on his shoulders, while Alicia Ellis leaned affectionately against him.
The date stamped in the bottom right corner read January 1st—New Year's Day.
It was like those fireworks had exploded in my chest, tearing a gaping hole in my heart.
When Cedric saw the photo, he burst into tears. "That's not true. He's my dad!"
When he saw Cedric crying, Nathaniel moved closer, trying to calm him down. "You're a big boy now—no more tears."
Alicia quickly lowered her eyes and said, "Brady has been spoiled silly by Nathan. I apologize on his behalf."
As she spoke, she nodded her head in a deep apology to Cedric and me.
Nathaniel frowned. "They were just messing around. Besides, it takes two to start a fight—Ceddy must've done something, too."
I looked at him in disbelief, then took out my phone and played the surveillance video.
"Look carefully. Brady deliberately walked behind Ceddy and pushed him down the stairs. A child like that should be expelled immediately."
Nathaniel shot me a glare. "Why do you have to paint the kid in the worst light?"
Meanwhile, Alicia suddenly dropped to her knees. "Not long after Brady enrolled here, he told me Ceddy had been leveraging his status to turn the other children against him. He only pushed him because he couldn't take it anymore..."
Cedric tugged at Nathaniel's sleeve. "Dad, I didn't bully him!"
Nathaniel glanced at Alicia kneeling on the floor, then shook Cedric's hand off. "If so, why would he push you? I don't want a bully to be my son!"
He quickly helped Alicia up before barking sternly, "Ceddy, apologize to Brady!"
I pulled Cedric behind me, my voice filled with disappointment. "Nathaniel, Ceddy has bruises on the corner of his eye. If it had been just a little closer, it would've injured his eye. And he's got scrapes all over his body. Did you even care at all?
"Since you're so determined to take their side, you can go be their family. Ceddy and I don't need you."
With that, I took Cedric's hand and walked away.
When Nathaniel finally noticed the dark bruise spreading across Cedric's cheek, guilt flickered across his face.
After glancing back at Alicia and Brady, he hurried after us. "Vanessa, don't say things like that out of anger."
He crouched down and lifted Cedric into his arms. "Ceddy, does it hurt? I'll take you to the hospital."
Ceddy sniffed and nodded.
I let out a sigh and got into the car with them.
On the way, Nathaniel's phone kept ringing. After rejecting the call several times, he grew increasingly distracted.
Heavy snow began to fall outside, and the roads turned slick with ice.
At a nearby street corner, a mother holding a child slipped. The fruit in her hands scattered across the ground.
Nathaniel slammed on the brakes. The seatbelt pressed painfully against Cedric's wounds. Meanwhile, I frowned and instinctively covered my lower abdomen.
Nathaniel paid neither of us any attention. Instead, he returned the call.
"Daddy Nathan, do you not want me anymore? Mom's kneeling in the snow, begging the teachers not to expel me. I think she's about to faint..."
Nathaniel lifted his eyes and looked at me coldly. "Seriously? Targeting a widow and her child?"
The iciness in his gaze caught me off guard. I opened my mouth to speak, but no words came out.
"You and Ceddy can go. I'll have my assistant take you to the hospital."
I reached out and grabbed his arm. "On New Year's Day, you said you couldn't come back because of a business trip overseas. Were you actually spending the holiday with them?"
There wasn't a hint of guilt on his face. "Alice is my secretary. She has to bring her child along on business trips. It hasn't been easy for her. They couldn't go home for the New Year and had to stay with me abroad. What's wrong with watching some fireworks together?"
I gave a bitter smile.
That day, the three of us had planned to go skiing together, but he never showed up. Worse, we were caught in a snowstorm.
By the time I regained consciousness, I saw dried tears at the corners of Cedric's eyes as he slept curled up beside my hospital bed. Nathaniel's phone had been unreachable the entire time.
Later, I found out they had bought tickets to Disneyland before leaving the country. He hadn't been held up by business at all.
I pulled my hand back. My eyes were slightly red, but my voice was calm. "Nathaniel, let's get a divorce."

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