Quiet Goodbyes, A Love Without Tomorrow

The moment I decided to leave Vincent Thompson, I made three bold moves. First, I listed all the expensive gifts he had given me up for free online—buyers only needed to pay for shipping. Second, I secretly sold the apartment we’d bought for our future at a fraction of its value and shredded the million-dollar custom wedding gown I had yet to wear. Third, I erased myself from the world, signing up for a classified, decade-long national research project that required cutting all ties with the outside world—maybe even forever.