She split her savings in half, keeping only what she needed to live on. The rest, she transferred to her mother.
She knew full well why Valerie kept tormenting her—to make herself seem more important in Blayne’s eyes.
But once Terri was gone, Valerie would lose interest.
And without her in the picture, her mother’s life would finally get easier.
Terri had played this game of cat and mouse long enough.
So she chose to leave.
She blocked every number and silenced every notification.
She was going far away—to Texas.
To start a new life.
Blayne would never hear from her again.
They would never cross paths again.
She found a gap in her schedule to return one last time, gathering all of her belongings.
Everything Blayne had bought her remained untouched.
One New Year’s, he gave her a gift—holding her hand, he guided her as they wrote in elegant script together.
[Terri, may you be happy year after year.]
She had hugged him then, tears streaming down her face.
Back then, she had believed it was real.
She had treasured that piece of letter like it was the most precious thing in the world.
Now, she took it out and set it aflame without a second thought.