Love And Revenge

Part 1

"My father just passed away," Asther said to Ava, who had just received a phone call.

Ava, still lying down and wrapped in a blanket, reflexively sat up. Her face looked genuinely shocked. Ava held onto the blanket wrapped around her body to keep it from falling.

"Let's go there immediately, Asther," Ava urged.

"No need! I will go alone. Because my father is no longer here, our marriage must end here too. Leave my house tonight!" Asther dismissed Ava.

Ava's eyes widened at Asther's words. Their marriage had just taken place earlier this morning. After going through their first night together, Asther now wanted them to separate.

"Asther, what do you mean by ending?" Ava asked, unwilling to believe what she had just heard.

"You're not deaf, are you, Ava? When I say 'end,' it means you and I are no longer husband and wife. This marriage was my father's and your father's will. Now I have no reason to keep you as my wife. So leave calmly! As for the dowry, you can take it too," Asther explained casually, as if without a care in the world.

Ava fell silent and could only stare at Asther with a cold expression. Ava got out of bed; she felt ashamed of herself. She was still wearing a blanket while Asther was barely dressed, only wearing shorts. They had just consummated their marriage, and now Asther was easily talking about separation.

"Why are you silent? Didn't you never love me either? Did you marry me just to keep your father's company stable? Well, I'm the same. After this, my company will remain stable because I will lead it directly, so I don't need you, Ava," Asther continued, further hurting Ava's feelings.

Ava closed her eyes for a moment. Then she looked sharply at Asther and nodded slowly. "Yes, I never loved you. Let's part ways!" Ava said firmly.

***

A hard slap landed on Ava's cheek. The unfortunate woman almost fell because of the severity of her father's slap.

"You ungrateful child! What do you want? How can you separate from Asther in just one night?" Mr. Lawton, Ava's father, scolded.

Ava didn't answer; she just held onto her cheek, which felt painful and hot.

"Reject Asther's divorce request! Seek help from Mrs. Evelyn. She loves you so much. You will forever be ashamed if you become a widow just in one night. What man would want a woman abandoned by her husband on the first night?" Mr. Lawton said again.

Ava lifted her head and looked at her father now. Then Ava shook her head slowly, rejecting her father's advice. "No, I have made the decision to separate from Asther. I have also signed the divorce petition from Asther that he sent this afternoon," Ava replied with a firm voice, not a hint of sadness in it.

Mr. Lawton's eyes widened in disbelief. Mr. Lawton was furious and approached his daughter. Mr. Lawton hit Ava mercilessly. "You disobedient child! You're making me suffer huge losses. What's the point of your existence if you're useless!" Mr. Lawton scolded, continuously hitting Ava until she fell to the floor.

Ava was lying on the bed, being treated by Mrs. Maria, her mother. Mrs. Maria looked hesitant to see Ava's condition, which was full of bruises on her face. Mrs. Maria shed tears and gently stroked Ava's hair.

"Why did you sign the divorce papers from Asther without discussing it with your father? Don't you know that your marriage is very important for the company?" Mrs. Maria asked.

Ava, who had initially closed her eyes, then opened them and looked at her mother. "Is the company more important than me, Mom?" Ava asked.

Mrs. Maria looked surprised; she looked away and shook her head slowly. "It's not like that."

"Then? Why are you saying that now? Shouldn't you be asking about my feelings instead? Do you really not care about me?" Ava asked, actually wanting to be comforted by her mother instead of being blamed like this.

Mrs. Maria was stunned by Ava's words. As a woman herself, Mrs. Maria had never imagined being divorced on her wedding night.

***

Ava's tears flowed uncontrollably as she boarded the train, hiding her bruises and wounds from the public by covering her head with a hoodie. Before boarding completely, Ava glanced back for a moment. She took a deep breath and continued her steps onto the train.

Inside the train, Ava sat in front of a married couple. She glanced briefly and felt a painful throb in her heart seeing the intimacy of the couple in front of her.

"Why is my fate like this? I never did anything wrong. I did my best to be a good wife to Asther. What did I do to deserve this cruel treatment?" Ava wondered silently. Unable to hold back any longer, tears streamed down Ava's face as she covered it with her palms. She sobbed, disregarding the strange looks from those around her.

Meanwhile, elsewhere, Asther had just signed the divorce petition that he would send to the court. Asther was surprised to hear his personal secretary, Jhein's words. His hand stopped signing, and he looked up at Jhein.

"She didn't take anything?" Asther asked, trying to reassure himself.

"No, Miss Ava didn't take any dowry from you, Young Master. She only took her own clothes," Jhein explained.

Asther frowned, looking incredulous. "Then why didn't Mr. Lawton get angry? How could his daughter not take any dowry after being divorced by her husband?" Asther asked, still not believing it.

Jhein appeared to be thinking, then shook his head slowly. "I don't know, Young Master. But the dowry from you to Miss Ava is still intact and now in your room."

Asther fell silent and averted his gaze. He took a deep breath and continued signing the divorce papers. "It's up to her. All I know is that I'm letting her go properly. The amount of dowry I gave isn't small either; at least it's enough to pay for the first night we spent together," Asther said lightly.

Jhein was astonished. How could Asther speak like this now? Jhein knew how much Asther loved Ava. How could those feelings disappear overnight?

"Quickly handle this divorce! Once the divorce papers are ready, deliver them directly to Ava!" Asther said, handing the divorce petition to Jhein.

Jhein accepted the papers and bowed. "I will take care of it as soon as possible, Young Master, but it seems we have to postpone delivering the divorce papers once they're ready," Jhein replied.

Asther furrowed his brow in confusion. "Why?"

"Because Miss Ava has already left Andorra and gone somewhere. I received word that she left home without saying goodbye," Jhein explained.

***