All Chapters of THE SUBSTITUTE HUSBAND’S RISE TO POWER.: Chapter 1
- Chapter 8
8 chapters
001.
“I want the divorce, and I want it now.” Alexander Thorne’s voice had a hint of finality. He was done, and he doesn’t even have the intention to change his mind.The room fell silent as Alexander sat rigid across the polished mahogany desk, his gaze locked on the city’s top divorce attorney. The man’s face, usually a mask of calculated indifference, twisted with disbelief.The attorney couldn’t believe what Alexander had just said, the last thing he expected was Alexander filing for divorce against his wife, a woman all the men in the country are practically dying for.“Let me get this straight,” the man spoke as he straightened. “You want to file against Elena Max? The Elena Max?” The lawyer leaned forward, voice low.Alexander drew in a sharp breath as he nodded. That was precisely what he wanted, and he wanted it as quickly as possible.Five years. He’d been married to Elena for five years, and even the world called him the luckiest man alive for being the husband of the CEO of Max
002.
The silence in the room hung heavy, it was deafening as Elena stared down at the document that Alex was giving to her. “What is that?” She demanded, her patience wearing thin.Alex forced a smile, the kind that didn’t reach his eyes. “Well, it’s a treatment agreement.” He lied, the words falling smoothly out of his mouth.The last thing he wanted was for Elena to know that he was handing her a divorce agreement because there was a part of him that told him that she wouldn’t sign it if she knew what it really was.Elena looked from the paper to Alex, “but why?” She asked, puzzled. “I mean, what other treatment do you need when you’ve already been discharged from the hospital?” She added.As she spoke, she glanced down at the document, but Alex was quick, he’d already pressed his hand over it to block her from reading the heading.He closed his eyes, there was no denying that he was still in pain, but he swallowed the pain down, forcing a tight smile that felt like shards of glass in hi
003.
Alex froze on the spot. He no longer loved her—that illusion had shattered like brittle glass three days ago—but if Marcus had hurt Elena, basic fucking humanity demanded he move.Old instinct as a doctor, as the man who had once loved her, he put one foot in front of the other. There was no way he could ignore that loud cry of hers.He moved as quickly as he could, bursting into the room, breath ragged, and the scene in front of him slammed into him so hard that he blinked as if trying to convince himself that he wasn’t seeing things correctly.Marcus sat slumped against the marble tub, half-naked, water and blood streaking his toned torso from a nasty gash along his side.Elena crouched beside him, her fingers trembling as she dabbed antiseptic on his skin with a tenderness that clawed straight into Alex’s soul.For the longest moment, Alex couldn’t believe what he was seeing. Elena’s eyes—the same eyes that had looked at him with nothing but indifference—were soft, glistening with
004.
Smiling, Alex was quick to pick up the call, and apologize for leaving them high and dry, but he never got the apology to come out of his mouth before Julian’s voice bursted out in excitement.“Alex? Holy shit, man!” Julian’s voice exploded through the speaker, raw excitement crackling like electricity. “You finally came around! I can’t believe it, I’ve been waiting for this moment for years.” Julian added as he laughed.“Oh god, you have absolutely no idea how I felt when I got your text, Alex. Top of our elite program, rarest talent I’ve ever seen, and you walked away from medicine like it was nothing. I grieved that shit, brother. I grieved it hard. It felt like I lost my own mother.”Alex leaned against the wrought-iron gate, the cold metal biting through his shirt into his bruised back. He couldn’t believe how excited Julian was to hear from him.A bitter laugh scraped from his throat, but warmth flickered in his chest for the first time in days, real, human connection cutting th
005.
A dry, humorless laugh raked his throat as he stood, watching them. Elena raised an eyebrow in irritation. “What are you doing? Did you not hear me tell you to sit?” She spat, the venom in her voice was enough to melt anyone’s skin.Alex balled his fist even tighter, trying to control the raging storm inside of him as he stood, wondering how and when he became a guest in his own home.His body locked up like a rusted hinge at the feeling, every muscle seizing under the weight of their casual cruelty.His bruises throbbed in time with his racing heart, a sharp, grounding pain that reminded him of how he’d almost died for a woman that saw him as nothing but a substitute for a man she was now dining with.Elena’s long, feminine fingers curled around her wine glass, her lips parted in that soft, throaty laugh he once lived for. Marcus leaned in closer, his hand lingering on her arm for a moment, his eyes caught Alex’s and a small smirk played out on his lips.Alex closed his eyes as if by
006.
The shock of the table flipping assailed Elena and Marcus so hard that they froze on the spot, both their eyes widening as they took in the scattered mess before them.Elena’s wine-stained lips parted in a gasp, and Marcus’ face twisted, his arm wrapping around Elena’s waist in a possessive curl that made Alexander’s stomach twist with anger.“What the fuck is wrong with you?!” Elena finally found her voice, her heart racing so hard in her chest that she had to swallow and regulate her breathing.“What kind of madness has possessed you?” She spat, her voice slicing through the wreckage like a whip. “Did I ask you for anything more than a simple apology to Marcus? Since when did you become so incredibly unreasonable?”Her chest heaved with every dragged breath, she still couldn’t believe that Alex was capable of getting so angry that he flipped the table with one single movement.“Oh my god.” Marcus muttered as he pulled Elena against his chest as if shielding her from some wild animal
007.
Taking in a deep breath, Alexander had tried to forget everything that happened between him and Elena yesterday, but no matter how hard he tried, everything still gnawed at him. He had wanted them to have at least one good memory before he left, he had even tried to have a conversation with her, but she was still so hung up on her first love that everything had gone downhill. His attempt at leaving peacefully, and making sure that she knew of his movement had ended in nothing, but his banishment from the house with Elena telling him that he would have to kneel if he wanted to come back. “Very funny.” He scoffed as he tried to get his luggages out of the taxi he had bought. He looked around the open space, and it didn’t take long for him to spot Julian, although Julian hadn’t seen him yet. He smiled to himself, and when he was ready, he hauled his luggages towards Julian, his friend caught sight of him and immediately rushed towards him. Alex moved with a calm resolve that masked
008.
“I have no doubt that you’re going to attain such great heights,” Julian responded with a smile. “You’ve always been the best of us, Alex. Those hands of yours save lives like they were made for it. Just… stay sharp out there.”Alex returned Julian’s smile, and their travel went on as the days blurred into a grueling haze of dusty roads, jolting tires over potholes, and stifling heat that almost caused them to pass out.Five days later, the jeep finally came to a halt at the edge of the first remote village. Alexander stepped out, his boots sinking into the parched earth, and the chaos in front of him almost rendered him speechless.Wow. He had no idea there was a world like this out there.Screams filled the humid air, raw desperate wails from mothers clutching limp children. Families huddled under makeshift shelters of torn tarps and branches, bodies sprawled on mats slick with sweat and vomit. The metallic tang of blood and sickness hung thick in the air, mixing with the smoke fro