Chapter 9 She Wont Divorce Me
After days apart, Elsa and Alexander looked at each other in silence.
One glance was all she could bear.
Elsa turned away.
For the past few days, she'd hidden in an anonymous little hotel.
She cried until she fell asleep, woke and forced herself to eat, vomited, slept again, then woke up crying all over again.
During all that time, Alexander had not called once.
Not one message.
After days of feeling as though she were dying and coming back to life again, Elsa had thought she was finally getting better.
But seeing Alexander holding Serena so intimately in the elevator still made her heart hurt beyond words.
At least her mother was being discharged today.
Now Elsa could divorce Alexander without holding anything back.
Alexander's eyes tightened as he stared at Elsa's thin figure.
How had she become so pale and wasted in only a few days?
More people entered the elevator.
Alexander withdrew his gaze and pulled Serena slightly closer to protect her.
Elsa stopped her parents from stepping inside, saying it was too crowded.
She went home with them and did not leave immediately.
Harold went out to buy groceries for dinner.
Margaret took her daughter into the bedroom for a private conversation.
"Elsa, tell me the truth. Did you and Alexander have a fight?"
No one knew a daughter better than her mother.
Margaret had watched Elsa grow thinner and more exhausted by the day.
Elsa's tears suddenly began to fall.
Margaret's face changed. "Elsa... did Alexander do something to hurt you?"
She understood her daughter too well.
Elsa had always loved Alexander more than she loved herself.
Margaret could think of only one thing capable of destroying her this badly.
Infidelity.
Elsa didn't answer.
She threw herself into her mother's arms and cried as hard as she needed to.
They were both women.
Margaret understood without another word.
Elsa cried.
Margaret cried with her.
By the time Elsa's tears finally ran out, exhaustion had replaced them.
She gathered what little strength she had left and said, "Mom... the woman he loves is back. I want a divorce."
Margaret wiped her tears with trembling fingers. "Whatever you decide, your father and I will support you."
When they left the bedroom, Elsa saw Harold standing outside the door with red-rimmed eyes.
The grocery bag in his hand shook.
He had always been a strong, proud man.
Now he looked at his daughter with helplessness and said, "It's my fault. Your father wasn't capable enough."
If the Winters family had never collapsed, he would never have allowed his daughter to suffer this kind of humiliation.
But for years, their family had depended on Alexander's help.
There was an old saying: once you've accepted someone's help, it's hard to stand tall in front of them.
Harold felt he no longer even had the dignity to demand an explanation for his own daughter.
Elsa stayed with her parents that night.
When Alexander returned to their house and found she hadn't come home, he was not surprised.
Elsa had always been devoted to her parents.
Her mother had only just been discharged. Of course she would stay and keep them company.
Alexander called the family residence and told everyone Elsa had returned safely so they could stop worrying.
The moment Eleanor and Violet heard she was back, they rushed to Alexander's house—only to discover Elsa wasn't there.
Alexander explained, "Her mother was discharged today. Elsa stayed with her parents."
Eleanor raised her hand as though she wanted to slap him.
In the end, the blow did not fall.
"Alexander, your mother-in-law was discharged today. Shouldn't you, as her son-in-law, have gone to help?"
Alexander saw no need. "Mom, Elsa's parents are reasonable people. They won't blame me."
The Winters family could no longer offer him any business advantage, but Elsa's parents were kind, loving, and sensible. They rarely caused trouble or made demands.
From Alexander's perspective, that made them easy enough to accept.
Violet nearly exploded. "How can you be like this? Elsa disappeared for days and just came back. You should at least go see her and explain what happened. What kind of husband acts this way?"
"Relax. She'll come home by herself."
Eleanor's anger deepened. "Alexander, you are exactly like your father. Cold. Heartless. I stayed married to him because I couldn't bear to leave you and your sister. I've regretted that decision for decades."
Her voice hardened. "But you may not be as lucky as your father was. You and Elsa don't have children. If one day she stops loving you, there will be nothing tying her to you. Keep treating her this coldly and she will leave."
Alexander remained certain. "Mom, you're making this sound much worse than it is. Elsa won't divorce me."
He still remembered her wedding vows clearly.
She had said she could give up her life, but she would never give up Alexander Horton.
Violet rolled her eyes so hard it was almost impressive.
After leaving her son's house, Eleanor personally went to the Winters home to bring Elsa back.
Margaret and Harold received her politely but refused to let Elsa leave with her.
Violet held Elsa's hand and pleaded, "Elsa, my brother knows he was wrong. Come home with us. I'll let Mom slap him for you if that's what it takes."
Elsa had originally intended to divorce Alexander without involving the Horton elders.
But since Eleanor had come in person, Elsa decided to make everything clear.
She pulled Violet down beside her and spoke calmly.
"Mom, I've made my decision. I'm going to divorce Alexander."
Eleanor's face changed instantly.
Violet jumped up. "Elsa, I know my brother is a bastard, but you've had feelings for each other for so many years. Please don't make a decision while you're angry."
A bitter ache filled Elsa's chest.
Yes, there had been many years of feelings.
But they had always belonged to her alone.
"I've thought it through. You don't need to persuade me."
Margaret's eyes were swollen from crying, but she did not make things difficult for Eleanor.
"We will always remember everything the Horton family has done for us over the years. But if Alexander already has someone else in his heart, then they should divorce while they still don't have children."
Eleanor left the Winters home without saying a word.
When she was young, she too had endured a husband's betrayal.
She understood better than anyone what it felt like to live through that kind of pain.
For the sake of her two children and the interests of both families, she'd forced herself to stay.
Once Charles's affair was discovered, he immediately broke things off with the other woman. He didn't even dare acknowledge the illegitimate child she'd had, and he returned completely to the marriage.
But the coldness in his bones had never changed.
The men of the Horton family were calculating by nature. Power and self-interest mattered more than emotion. They were always calm, always strategic.
Old Mr. Horton was like that.
Charles was like that.
And the son Eleanor had raised had become the same.
Elsa had grown up in front of her eyes.
She was still so young. Eleanor wanted to see her happy.
As a woman, she knew she should let Elsa go.
As a mother, she couldn't bear to watch her son's marriage fail.
In the end, Eleanor went back to Alexander's house.
Seeing that he was still awake, she decided there might still be hope.
"Tomorrow is the weekend. Bring gifts and come with me to the Winters house. Apologize to Elsa's parents, explain everything clearly, and bring your wife home."
Alexander had suffered from insomnia for several nights in a row and looked exhausted.
"Mom, I'll handle things between Elsa and me. Don't worry so much."
Violet stamped her foot. "Alexander, Elsa said she's divorcing you!"
For a moment, every expression disappeared from Alexander's face.
Then he recovered.
He looked at his sister coolly. "Violet, you're not a child anymore. Stop saying ridiculous things that could never happen."