Derek looked at his wife standing there in the bright parking lot. He felt absolutely nothing. No anger. No sadness. No longing. Just a flat and total emptiness where all of those heavy emotions used to live. "Hello, Erin," Derek greeted with a very calm and neutral voice, adjusting the duffel bag on his shoulder. "Save the pleasantries, Derek," Erin cut in with a tight and controlled tone, taking a step closer to him. "You disappeared into that wildfire for over a week. You did not answer a single one of my messages. Do you have any idea what I went through?" "You went through my text messages," Derek replied quietly, looking at her with a perfectly still face. "That is what you went through." "I drove all the way to Los Vangees to find you," Erin stated with a stiff posture, lifting her chin slightly as if presenting evidence of her devotion. "I went to that horrible camp. I walked through that terrible morgue area looking at dead bodies to see if one of them was you." "I know,"

Derek put his phone back into his pocket and kept walking. The sun was getting lower in the sky and the air had turned cool against his face. His injured leg ached with every step, but the pain felt distant now, like it belonged to somebody else.Monday morning. The courthouse. The divorce. He would be there. He would sign whatever needed to be signed. And then it would be over.For the first time in weeks, the heavy weight on his chest felt a little bit lighter. Not because he was happy. There was nothing happy about watching a marriage end. But there was something almost peaceful about knowing the divorce was finally moving forward instead of hanging over his head like a threat. He had spent three years trying to breathe life into something that Erin had never wanted to keep alive in the first place. He was tired of performing rescue operations on a relationship that did not want to be saved.He reached into his back pocket and pulled out his worn leather wallet. He opened it slowly

The young woman dropped heavily onto the edge of the bed. The cheap mattress sagged under her weight. She pulled her knees up against her chest and wrapped her thin arms around them tightly."You do not understand," she said with a quiet and broken voice, staring at the scorched black circle on the carpet. "I want it to burn. I want all of it to burn.""What exactly do you want to burn?" Derek asked with a steady but cautious tone, keeping the lighter firmly behind his back."Everything," she whispered with a hollow and empty expression. "This room. This place. Every single thing that reminds me of him."Derek looked at the torn book on the floor. He looked at the scattered clothes and the empty bottles. He understood now. This was not just a drunk woman playing with fire. This was a woman who had been destroyed by someone and had decided to let the wreckage burn.He had seen that look before. He had felt that exact same emptiness inside his own chest just a few hours ago."What is yo

Fae handed Derek a small brass key attached to a faded plastic tag that read room number nine. Then she disappeared down the corridor toward the back of the motel without another word. Derek picked up his duffel bag from the parking lot and let himself into the room. It was small and plain and smelled faintly of cleaning solution. A narrow bed sat against the far wall. A wooden desk with a chipped lamp sat beneath the window. A tiny bathroom with a cracked mirror completed the space.It was the cheapest room Derek had ever stood inside. It was also entirely his.He set his bag down on the thin carpet and sat on the edge of the bed. The mattress squeaked loudly under his weight. He looked around the quiet room and let out a slow and heavy breath. No expensive modern furniture chosen by someone else. No fancy art on the walls that he was not allowed to touch. No rules about which shelf he could use or how loud he could breathe at night. Just four plain walls and a locked door and total

The hours passed and Derek never came.Erin kept checking her phone under the table every few minutes. The bright screen showed nothing. No missed calls. No angry messages. No jealous threats. Just a cold and empty silence that grew louder with every passing minute.Mike refilled her glass without asking. He was laughing with the men and telling loud stories about his business deals. He did not notice the growing tension behind her bright smile. Or maybe he simply did not care.The men around the table grew bolder as the night continued. One of them moved closer on the booth and put his arm along the back of the seat behind Erin. Another kept leaning in to talk directly into her ear, his face much too close to hers. Their voices were getting louder and their eyes were getting heavier with every drink they finished.Erin shifted uncomfortably. This was supposed to be a controlled and glamorous scene for the camera. She was supposed to look powerful and desired and completely happy with