THE DIVORCE GAMBIT From Dumped Wife to CEO's Forever novel Chapter 736

At those words, Decker shot up from his chair. "Get out! Both of you, get out!" he roared. "Out!"

His mother grabbed Plumley's arm. "Let's go, Plumley! He'll come begging soon enough!" Decker was so self-conscious he rarely left the house, relying on Plumley to run all his errands. If Plumley left, how would he survive? She was certain Decker would crawl back to them, and then they would have all the power.

After they left, Decker threw the untouched bowl of chicken noodle soup into the trash. He sat back down in front of the mirror, took a deep breath, and began to peel away the scab.

He did it with his eyes closed, bracing for pain, but there was none. Though the scab was thick, it came off smoothly. Within seconds, it was gone.

For a full minute, he didn't dare to open his eyes, terrified of the disappointment that might await him, terrified of facing the same scarred face. Finally, he forced them open.

And froze.

The man in the mirror was handsome, his features sharp and clear. The ugly scars that had defined his life were gone, without a trace. It was a rebirth. Decker was so overwhelmed he nearly burst into tears. He had imagined this moment countless times, wondering what he would have looked like without the burns. Now, he knew. He pinched his thigh, hard. The pain was real. This was happening. His thirty years of living in the shadows were over. He was no longer a monster.

"Long live Miss Gonzales!" he shouted to the empty room.

After a long while, Decker composed himself. He sat down at his computer, logged into the TikTok account he hadn't touched in a month, and started a live stream. As a streamer with millions of followers, and with the recent storm of accusations, people had been waiting for his response. The moment he went live, over a hundred thousand viewers flooded the chat.

He faced the camera. "Hi everyone, I'm Decker. My real name is Decker Blake. This is my ID. I have never been involved in any bullying. The reason I haven't responded to the lies online is because… I was dealing with something personal." He held up an old high school photo. "This was me. This is why I was afraid to show my face."

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