Chapter 22: A Queen without a throne

Elsie's lowly living

Assuredly, Elsie stood at the door of the small, poorly ventilated apartment with her children, clustered behind her. The cracked walls, dusty and stained floors, an odor of damp air spreading through the place very far removed from her previously owned luxurious penthouse, that was all she could afford now.

With her heavy heart, she stood in front of the small apartment barely enough for the four of them. But it was shelter, and that would do for now.

Her children seemed lost, staring blankly around. "Mama, is this our home?" asked the youngest, in a shattered voice.

Elsie forced a smile through a breaking heart. "Yes, darling. It's our new home."

She began to unpack their scanty belongings, hands trembling as she stuffed their clothes into a rickety dresser. From a billionaire's wife to horrible living conditions, the weight was almost unbearable.

Her mother couldn't help

Elsie made a desperate call for help from her mom. After several rings, Mama Elsie picked up tiredly. "Elsie? Is that you?"

"Mama," Elsie said, crying. "I need your help. I have nothing left. The children... need a place to stay."

A long silence followed before Mama Elsie answered, "Elsie, I... I can't help you. I've got nothing either. After all that happened, the village turned their backs on me. Now I'm barely managing."

With the reality of her mother's words sinking into her, her heart lost all strength. The woman she had always counted on for advice, support, and help was herself now in no position to help. 

"I'm very sorry, Elsie," Mama Elsie said regretfully. "I wish I could do something for you and your children."

Elsie nodded though her mother would not see her. "I understand, Mama. I'll think of something."

Regret came knocking

The days morphed into weeks, and her regret just amplified. She thought about Damian, the life they had built together; she thought about all the choices she had made, all the lies she had told, all the people she had hurt. She became so full of greed and ambition that she neglected what mattered in the first place.

An evening saw her sitting on the floor of the apartment, children asleep in the next room. Elsie buried her face into her hands and wept. She had lost all—wealth, dignity, a future. And no one else was to be blamed but her.