The Brother's Wife Chapter 2

Claire answered the door with baby Sophie balanced on her hip, dark circles under her eyes. She'd been beautiful once—I remembered that from the wedding photos—but exhaustion had carved itself into her features.

"James?" Her voice was uncertain. "I thought you were in Miami..."

I pushed past her into the apartment. "Change of plans."

The place was small, cramped. Medical bills were stacked on the kitchen counter next to an eviction notice. Claire's struggling medical practice wasn't bringing in enough to cover the mounting debts James had left behind.

Over the following weeks, I was cruel in small, calculated ways. I criticized her cooking, complained about the apartment, made cutting remarks about her inability to provide for Sophie. My plan was simple: make them both miserable, just as James had made me miserable.

But Claire never fought back. She just worked harder, stayed up later, took on more patients. She seemed to think I—James—was angry because she wasn't bringing in enough money, that she was failing as a wife and mother.

"I'm sorry," she'd whisper after I'd berate her about some trivial matter. "I promise things will get better soon. I just need a little more time."

Her acceptance of my cruelty made something twist uncomfortably in my chest.