Hope Crawls Through Ruins by Kain Rowan Vale 18

Chapter 18 

Briana looked up and met Vivian’s eyes, her gaze steady. 

“I was thinking…” Vivian offered. “Maybe I should wash it before I give it back to you” 

“I’m throwing it away” Briana said flatly. “It doesn’t need washing” 

“You spent so much time on this, and it’s still lovely, It feels wrong to throw it away Vivien said. 

Briana pulled at it once more, “It’s my choice what I do with it” 

Vivian tightened her grip, using her other hand to try to pry Briana’s fingers loose 

As she struggled, she caught sight of the bracelet on Briana’s wrist, something she’d seen before 

Briana had been wearing it for as long as Vivian had known her, never once taking it off. It was clearly something she valued, 

A shadow crossed Vivian’s face, 

Then, as they fought for the shawl, something gave way. Briana’s wrist felt suddenly bare, followed by the sharp, scattered sound of beads hitting the marble, 

Briana’s face went white. She looked down to see the beads rolling away across the smooth floor 

Vivian gasped, her surprise obviously put on. “What’s this?” 

Shepard followed Vivian’s gaze to the floor, his expression shifting briefly before his eyes flew to Briand’s bare wrist. 

The bracelet Briana had worn for over twenty years had broken. Beads scattered in every direction, and her heart sank as she wondered if she could ever gather them all again. 

Shepard’s lips pressed into a thin line. He knew exactly what that bracelet represented to her. 

Briana stood still, staring at the beads rolling in all directions. Her eyes couldn’t seem to settle, 

Something inside her seemed to break along with the string, a quiet, painful snap. 

Back when her parents were still alive, they had brought it back for her from a famous church, a charm for peace and protection. 

It had been a gift from her parents, and Briana had worn it every day since losing them. 

It was more than a bracelet to her. It was a comfort, her last tangible link to her family, 

The room was perfectly still as Briana knelt, her hands shaking slightly as she picked up each bead from the floor 

She counted them quietly in her head. But when she finished, she realized one was gone. 

She kept searching, her palms pressed to the marble. She didn’t speak or cry, all her focus fixed on finding that one mining bead. 

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Chapter 18 

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Her silence unnerved him. She should have been furious or making a scene, yet all he saw was this hollow 

stillness. 

“Shep, I didn’t mean to,” Vivian said, her voice soft and flustered. “It just… it just came apart.” 

Shepard just stayed quiet, not sure what to say. 

Vivian’s lips trembled, and her eyes grew damp. She knelt down beside Briana. “I’m so sorry,” she whispered. “I didn’t mean for this to happen.” 

“Get lost,” Briana said, her voice low and cold. 

But Vivian acted as if she hadn’t heard, her eyes still wet as she went on, “I’m really sorry. Let me help you pick them up.” 

“I told you to get lost,” Briana repeated, her tone sharpening. Whether it was an accident or not, Vivian had just turned herself into Briana’s permanent enemy. 

Briana was willing to let Vivian have Shepard and be his wife. But she couldn’t understand why Vivian had to push so hard or why she kept pretending to be innocent when she’d already won. 

“I never wanted you to throw it away,” Vivian continued, her voice trembling slightly. “It’s something you worked so hard to make, and I…” 

Before Vivian could finish, Briana’s hand shot out, striking her sharply across the face. 

The force of it snapped Vivian’s head to the side. 

“If I can’t find the last bead,” Briana said, her voice low and fierce, “you’ll pay, Vivian.” 

For a second, Vivian just stood there, her face burning. 

She couldn’t believe Briana had actually struck her right in front of Shepard. 

Briana was already back on the floor, searching. Then she saw the final bead, tucked along the wall. 

But it was cracked, lines running through it. It looked ready to fall apart. 

Briana lifted it gently and let it lie open in her palm, afraid to move. 

She had the bead back, but it was full of cracks. She wasn’t sure if it could be fixed, but the thought of it being broken for good made her chest tighten. 

She turned to Vivian with a look so fierce that it could have burned through steel. 

Vivian shrank back, quickly hiding behind Shepard. 

‘How could a bracelet matter that much?‘ Vivian wondered. ‘So much that he would just stand there and watch me get slapped?‘ 

But she didn’t dare to ask. She kept her head down, her hair falling like a curtain, still playing the wounded innocent. 

“Vivian didn’t mean to break it,” Shepard said, his voice cold. “But you hit her, and that’s not right.” 

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Chapter 18 

“Yes, I hit her,” Briana fired back. “And what of it? Tell me she didn’t have it coming?” 

Shepard’s expression tightened. “You’re behaving like a harpy” 

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“My only regret is that I didn’t slap her harder, Briana said, her eyes shining with unshed tears. She pressed her lips together, refusing to let a single one fall. 

She was utterly alone now, with no one to 10. 

The tears welling up in her eyes struck a chord in him. He knew what that bracelet truly meant. 

She had once said she would wear it forever, a way to keep her parents close. 

She had also promised to stay by his side for a lifetime, always there for him. 

And now they were divorced, and the beads lay scattered and cracked, 

The thought of punishing her for slapping Vivian suddenly left him. 

“Just buy a new one,” Shepard said, his voice calm. “It’s only agate. You can find them in any store.” 

Briana let out a cold laugh. “You know exactly what it means, Shepard, And you know it can’t be replaced.” 

“It’s broken. What do you want me to do about it?” Shepard said, his tone casual to the point of indifference. “If you insist on compensation, just name your price. I’ll cover it for Vivian.” 

He let the silence hang for a moment before offering, “Three million. Will that settle it?” 

That exact figure was written into their divorce settlement, the money he’d fought not to give her then. To toss it at her now like a consolation prize was the deepest kind of insult. 

In that moment, Briana felt her dignity being crushed underfoot by Shepard and Vivian. 

She pressed her teeth into the soft flesh of her inner lip until the metallic taste of blood filled her mouth. 

“I hate you,” she said, forcing the words out slowly, distinctly. “Shepard, I hate you.” 

“Six million,” Shepard said, his voice cold. 

The offer was a fresh blow. Briana bit down harder, the coppery taste of blood flooding her mouth as she forced herself to swallow. 

“Fifteen million,” Shepard upped the bid again, his voice dripping with contempt. “Are you satisfied now?” 

Briana turned and walked straight out. 

It was nothing but humiliation from Shepard, relentless and repeated. 

To him, millions or billions meant little; he could part with that kind of money in a heartbeat. 

He gave or took back his money as he pleased, using it like a weapon against her pride. 

All she could do was ignore it. His wealth meant nothing to her, and she refused to have any part of it. 

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Leaving the mall, Briana headed directly for a jeweler, hoping someone skilled could salvage the cracked bead. 

Shepard watched her go until she was out of sight. 

“Shep,” Vivian said quietly, “that bracelet…“. 

“It’s not your concern,” he said, his voice cool. 

Shepard tried to push the thought away, but it was useless. Briana’s tear–filled eyes haunted him. 

After a moment, he turned to his secretary. 

“Yes, Mr. Carter?” Noticing his glance, the secretary immediately stepped forward. “What do you need?” 

“Transfer fifteen million to Charles,” Shepard ordered. 

‘Let her refuse it. Her brother won’t, he thought. 

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