The Almighty God of Law

The lies he believed

Ezekiel turned toward the sound. Grace stood at the doorway. She looked beautiful. Even more beautiful than he remembered. His heart swelled. Five years. Five long years. And here she was.

He ran. He didn't care about anything else. He ran toward her. His arms opened wide. He wrapped them around her. He pulled her close. He buried his face in her hair. She smelled the same. Like flowers. Like home.

"Grace," he whispered. "I'm home. I'm finally home."

She didn't move. She didn't hug him back. Her body was stiff. Cold.

Then she pushed him. Hard. He stumbled back. Confusion flooded his face.

"Grace? What's wrong?"

She looked at him. Her eyes were cold. No warmth. No love. Nothing.

"You have gotten your nonsense stench on me now," she said. Her voice was flat. Empty. "Gotten out? Isn't that too early? How?"

Ezekiel blinked. His mind couldn't process her words. This wasn't the Grace he remembered. This wasn't the woman he loved. This wasn't the woman who cried in his arms and promised to wait.

"Grace, I thought to surprise you. I wanted to see you. To see Luke. I missed you both so much."

She didn't respond. Her eyes moved past him. Toward the house.

Ezekiel followed her gaze. His blood ran cold.

Eden Palmer was running out of the house. His cousin. His rival. The man everyone wanted Grace to marry. He was chasing after a boy. A tall boy. Nine years old. Luke.

Ezekiel's heart stopped.

"Luke!" he shouted.

The boy turned. His eyes met Ezekiel's. There was no recognition. No warmth. Just fear. The boy screamed and ran toward Eden. He grabbed Eden's leg. He hid behind him.

"Luke, it's me. It's Daddy. Come here."

The boy shook his head. He clung tighter to Eden.

Ezekiel's world tilted.

He looked at Grace. His eyes burned with anger. His hands clenched into fists.

"What is Eden doing in our home? How are you involved with him?"

Everyone knew the rivalry between the two cousins. Everyone knew how much Eden wanted Grace. Everyone knew how much Eden hated Ezekiel for taking her.

Grace didn't flinch.

Eden stepped forward. A smug grin spread across his face. He looked at Grace. His eyes gleamed with triumph.

"You want to tell him," Eden said, "or need me to?"

Grace looked at Eden. Then back at Ezekiel. Her face was stone.

"I'll tell him. Take Luke upstairs."

"No!" Ezekiel shouted. "He doesn't get to go near my son. Luke, come to Daddy. Now!"

Luke shrieked. His small voice cut through the air like a knife.

"Daddy, I'm scared."

Luke wasn't looking at Ezekiel. He was looking at Eden. He was calling Eden Daddy.

The world shattered.

Ezekiel's knees went weak. His heart stopped. The air left his lungs. He couldn't breathe. He couldn't think. His son. His little boy. Calling another man Daddy. Calling his cousin Daddy.

Eden smiled. He picked up Luke. He carried him toward the house. Luke wrapped his arms around Eden's neck. He buried his face in Eden's shoulder. He didn't look back.

Ezekiel watched them go. His legs gave out. He fell to his knees. He couldn't move. He couldn't speak. He could only stare.

Grace walked closer. She looked down at him. Her eyes were cold. Her voice was ice.

"You're not welcome here. I'm married to Eden now."

Ezekiel looked up. His face twisted with confusion. His voice cracked.

"We haven't divorced. How can you be married to him? We're still married. I never signed anything."

Grace laughed. A cold, cruel laugh. The sound cut through him like broken glass.

"Oh, Ezekiel. You poor fool. I forgot to tell you. The one on the marriage certificate was never you. It had never been you. It was always Eden."

"No." He shook his head. "That's impossible. I was there. I signed. We had a ceremony. Our families were there. Our friends. Everyone."

Grace smirked.

"The ceremony was for show. My father made sure the real marriage certificate had Eden's name. Not yours. You were just a stand-in. A placeholder. A fool who believed he was worthy of me."

Ezekiel couldn't believe it. His mind refused to accept her words.

"Why? Why would you do that to me? I loved you. I gave you everything. I went to prison for you. I sacrificed five years of my life for you."

Grace's face twisted with anger.

"Because my father's enemies would always point at you. Not Eden. You were the target. The easy target. The poor man who married above his station. And when you went to jail, it was perfect. I had no choice but to use that medium to keep you locked up."

His blood ran cold.

"The bad lawyer," he whispered. "That was your idea?"

Grace nodded. Her smile was cruel.

"The lawyer was my idea. Everything was my idea. My family was in full support. We paid him to make sure you stayed inside. We made sure your case dragged. We made sure you rotted in that cell."

Ezekiel stared at her. The woman he loved. The woman he sacrificed everything for. She had destroyed him. She had planned it all.

"And now," Grace continued, "it hurts me to see you out and free. But it doesn't matter. You're nothing to me. You've always been nothing."

He found his voice. He climbed to his feet. His hands shook with rage.

"Security! Get this man off my property!" Grace screamed.

Two guards rushed forward. They grabbed Ezekiel's arms. They pulled him away. He fought. He struggled.

"Let go of me! Grace, you snake! You ruined me! You destroyed everything! I'll take my son away from you! I'll fight for him!"

Grace walked closer. Her voice was low. Her eyes were cold.

"And Ezekiel," she said, "Luke isn't yours."

He froze.

"You think I would get pregnant for you? I aborted yours once. I was on contraceptives whenever we had sex. I was never going to have your child. Not for a stand-in like you."

The guards pulled him. He stumbled backward.

"Now I can finally be with Eden and our son," Grace continued. "Go far away from us. Don't come back."

The guards dragged him to the gate. They threw him out. He landed on the pavement. His body hit the ground. His mind was numb. His heart was broken.

The gate slammed shut.

He lay there. On the ground. In the dirt. The man who sacrificed everything for his family. The man who gave up five years of his life. The man who loved a woman who never loved him back.

Everything he believed. Everything he trusted. It was all a lie.

He pushed himself up. His hands were shaking. His eyes burned with tears he refused to shed. He looked at the mansion. The lights in the windows. The shadows moving inside.

His wife. His son. His cousin. His home.

It was all gone.