The Tenth Crown Chapter 1

At the parent-child workshop, I received a note from my son, titled "My Honest Words for Mom."

【Mom, can you please stop clinging to Dad?】

【If you hadn't saved him, Dad would never have married you.】

【Dad has two Go world championships, but you only have one national title.】

【You trapped Dad by having me. Only bad people do that.】

【My friends all say their moms are the most beautiful people in the world, but I think Sienna is.】

【Please divorce Dad and let Sienna be my new mom.】

【Thank you.】

* * *

In the car, Jordy sat with his head bowed, fiddling with his fingers.

Suddenly, the kid's smartwatch on his wrist buzzed to life.

Dwight's voice, tight with barely suppressed rage, crackled through the tiny speaker.

"Jordy! What on earth did you write at the workshop today?"

"Do you have any idea what you've done? Another kid took a picture of your note, and now it's spreading through every parent group chat! How could you humiliate your mother like that?"

Jordy's lower lip trembled, and then he burst into tears.

"I didn't make it up! I heard you say it, Daddy! I heard you!"

"That night you drank too much, you were crying when you said it. I remember every word!"

On the other end of the line, Dwight’s furious tirade choked to a halt.

A few seconds of dead air passed before his voice returned, laced with a new, frantic edge.

"Your mother… is she there with you? Did she hear any of that?"

Jordy scrubbed at his eyes with the back of his hand.

"She's not my mom! I don't like her!" he wailed. "She's driving right next to me! I wanted her to hear it!"

Even through the phone, I could picture the color draining from Dwight's face.

He fumbled for an explanation, his words stiff and hollow.

"Claire, it was just the alcohol talking. You can't take it seriously. Jordy is so focused on Go, his emotional intelligence is… underdeveloped. He gets it from me. I'm so sorry."

"It's your birthday today," he added. "I'll definitely be home tonight."

A flicker of surprise went through me. In ten years of marriage, he'd never once celebrated my birthday.

How convenient. We could settle everything at once.

My voice was flat, devoid of emotion. "Good. When you get back, we can sign the divorce papers."

My words were like a switch.

Jordy's sobs instantly vanished, replaced by a triumphant cheer.

"Yay! That's great!"

"Sienna was right! She said you'd agree to anything I asked!"

The line went silent.

After a long moment, Dwight’s voice came back, strained.

"We'll talk when I get home."

I ended the call.

Outside, a massive billboard flashed past the window. It featured Dwight's profile—his brow furrowed in concentration, a white Go stone held between his fingers.

【Two-Time World Go Champion Aims for a Third Title】

The sun glinted off the sign, a blinding flare of light that made me wince.

A wave of dizziness washed over me.

It felt like a lifetime ago, but ten years ago, I was the one everyone expected to win it all.