Her marriage is shattered by a secret portal to a parallel apocalypse. Again and again, Claire’s husband and son disappear into that ruined world, where Sloan becomes their chosen family. They drain her money, abandon her during a miscarriage, and take her blood to save Sloan—until Claire finally ends it by destroying the portal. With their “second home” gone, the father and son fall apart, and Claire walks away, divorces them, and starts over on her own.