Claire had snapped. She told Simon Sophie had ruined her things, including her wedding dress with paint-covered hands. That she was manipulative. That she didn’t want to be a mother anymore.“She’s destroying everything,” Claire said. “Either she goes, or I do.”Simon was stunned. Claire, who had cried the day they brought Sophie home, was now giving ultimatums.

But Sophie wasn’t just a child anymore—she was his child. And he couldn’t abandon her.“I’m not going to destroy this little girl’s life,” Simon said. “She’s my daughter now.”Claire walked out that night. And Simon let her.Weeks later, while Sophie baked cookies with his mom, Simon sat in silence, wondering if his marriage could be salvaged—but knowing without question: he would never stop fighting for his daughter.