Page 22 of Broken Destiny

I repeated the words silently to myself as I stood alone in the parking garage.

He’s not coming back.Neither Jeremy… nor Dominic Peters.

And this time, it’s over.

6

CALEB

Days passed as the wedding inched closer. With each passing day, I couldn’t shake the sense that I was somehow betraying Tatiana, even though she was everything a man could reasonably ask for. She fit perfectly into my world, into the expectations placed on me.

Yet something inside me remained perturbed.

I had watched her on several occasions interacting with children—her nieces and nephews, even my own family’s kids. She would smile politely, then gently wave them away whenever they came too close, as though their laughter disrupted the neat order of her surroundings.

It bothered me.

I couldn’t picture her as a mother to my children, or as my wife.

The only woman I had ever imagined in that role had vanished more than three years ago… taking her son, Lucas, with her.

I had grown extremely attached to him… more than attached. I had loved him like my own flesh and blood, like the son I never had. I often found myself wondering if he was safe. If he was healthy. Or if Nyah had abandoned him somewhere to fend for himself.

After she’d disappeared, work had become my refuge. I buriedmyself in meetings, projects, and endless responsibilities, filling every hour of the day so I wouldn’t have to confront the emptiness she left behind. My family remained the only constant in my life—the one anchor that kept me from drifting completely off course.

But outside of that, I slipped back into old habits.

Late nights. Clubs. Bars. One-night stands with women whose names I rarely remembered the next morning.

None of them made me feel better or filled the void, because none of them wereher. Each woman carried bits and pieces that reminded me of her—a smile, a laugh, a certain way of speaking—but none of them possessed the one thing I had been searching for.

Nyah.

Eventually, Tatiana entered my life. What began as casual dating soon became serious in the eyes of everyone around us, especially as our families grew closer through social events and our public appearances together fuelled social media speculation—When’s the big day? Are you getting married soon?You two look perfect together.

The pressure built quietly.

One afternoon, a conversation with my mother in the library of my parents’ house pushed me toward a decision I wasn’t fully prepared to make.

“Are you serious about Tatiana?” my mother asked, her eyes narrowing at me.

“I’ve only dated her for ten months, Mom.” I leaned back in my chair.

“Yes, I know,” she said calmly. “Are you serious about her? Do you see a future with her?”

Her question struck deep.

I had only ever seen a future with one woman, and that had been destroyed. I hadn’t allowed myself to imagine one with anyone else. I didn’t want to. My mind remained fixed on unfinished business, on unanswered questions, on a past that would not loosen its grip on me.

“I don’t see a future with anyone,” I said.

My mother sighed, reaching out to place her hand gently over mine.

“Sweetheart, you have to let go of the past,” she said. “You’ve been holding on to it for too long. You’ve got to move forward.” She pursed her lips.

“Fine,” I replied, avoiding her gaze. “Is there anything else?”

She studied me before continuing. “Your father and I like Tatiana, and we want to see you build a life with her.”