She Quit Her Family and Found Herself novel Chapter 1

"Hello, is this Mrs. Jewell? I'm Peterson from the wedding planning agency. I have a few details regarding the ceremony timeline that I need to confirm with you."

Hulda's hand paused as she stirred her food. She was in a good mood today, so she smiled and replied, "I am Mrs. Jewell, but my husband and I have been married for seven years. We don't have any plans to host a wedding anytime soon."

The caller hesitated for a moment before clarifying, "Did I dial the wrong number? Are you Mr. Herbert Jewell's bride-to-be, Ms. Sylvie Sinclair?"

Clatter...

The silverware slipped from Hulda's fingers and hit the floor. Her ears rang violently at his words.

"Hello? Are you still there? Are you Ms. Sylvie Sinclair?"

Hulda's face drained of color. "I... I'm not..."

"My apologies, I must have dialed the wrong number."

After a quick apology, the man abruptly hung up.

Hulda couldn't calm her racing heart, because her husband's name was indeed Herbert Jewell. She had married him at twenty-one. They had been legally married for seven years and shared a six-year-old son.

And the name Sylvie Sinclair was far from unfamiliar. She was Herbert's former student, currently working in his company's lab. She had heard the name fall from her husband's lips countless times, always wrapped in glowing praise.

Hulda didn't believe for a second that this call had reached her by sheer coincidence. Besides, the caller had accurately paired Herbert and Sylvie's names together.

By ten o'clock that night, Hulda sat utterly alone on the sofa in her sprawling living room, waiting for Herbert. She had called him several times, but every call went unanswered.

Finally, just before eleven, he called her back.

Before she could even breathe a word, his cold, deep voice cut through the receiver, dripping with obvious impatience. "I'm busy. Can you try being reasonable for once?"

Hulda's chest tightened. She didn't know exactly when she had devolved into the "unreasonable" wife in her husband's eyes.

"Are you coming home tonight?" she asked softly.

"No. I have a business trip this weekend. I'm crashing at the office tonight."

After a night of agonizing over every possible scenario, she had decided to see the truth of this supposed wedding for herself.

She had called the agency back from a different number, pretending to be a guest needing directions. The staff hadn't thought twice before giving her the venue's address.

As she stared off into space, a call from someone she hadn't spoken to in ages lit up her phone.

Hulda stared at the caller ID for several seconds before answering.

"Hello, Brandon," she greeted, her voice terribly hoarse and her throat dry.

"Hulda! It's so great to hear your voice," he said, sounding genuinely thrilled. "You probably know why I'm calling, so I won't beat around the bush. The institute desperately needs you right now. If you come back, I'll give you the position of R&D Center Director. What do you say?"

Hulda was not in the right headspace. Her tone was flat. "You and Dr. Atherton have everything under control there. Me coming back wouldn't make much of a difference."

The man on the other end grew anxious. "What do you mean it wouldn't make a difference? You single-handedly founded the Quantum Crystal Laboratory. You know better than anyone what this research means to the field. Besides, that director seat has always been yours. If you hadn't stepped down seven years ago... Ugh, I'm just keeping it warm for you. You don't expect me to babysit it forever, do you?"