Chapter 3
Right next to me was the surging Missouri River, and for a moment, I felt the urge to run over and throw myself in, to end all the pain and
humiliation.
But I couldn’t do it.
Holding onto my bulging belly, I lowered my head and slowly made my way toward the hospital.
A few people recognized me from the viral videos online. They pulled out their phones, excited to snap pictures.
When I finally reached the hospital, Chloe Kimmit caught sight of me and let out a loud scream.
“Ah! Why don’t you have any clothes on?”
“Mr. Stinson, isn’t Mrs. Stinson being a bit too outrageous? There are people everywhere. If someone sees this..
Noah looked annoyed and said, “Adeline, this is a hospital! Even if you like showing off your body, can’t you pick a better place?
“Why aren’t you dressed yet?”
He acted like he didn’t remember setting my clothes on fire with his own hands just an hour earlier.
I didn’t want to argue. I just asked quietly, “Can I leave now?”
Before he could answer, Chloe, lying on the hospital bed, tugged at his sleeve.
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“Mr. Stinson, it doesn’t seem like she wants to apologize to me.
“Maybe we should just forget it. She is your wife, after all. I’m just afraid…”
Б.
Her voice trailed off as tears spilled down her cheeks.
Noah gently wiped them away, clearly worried about her.
“She wouldn’t dare!”
His eyes landed on me, and he snapped again, “What are you standing there for? Hurry up and apologize to Chloe!”
The words “I’m sorry” were right at the edge of my lips.
But when I saw the smug smile on Chloe’s face, I just couldn’t say it.
I took a deep breath and turned to face Noah.
“I went to talk to Madam Stinson about getting a divorce.
“What happened with Ms. Kimmit isn’t my fault…”
A look of grievance appeared in Chloe’s eyes again as she reached for Noah’s sleeve like she always did.
Noah suddenly stood up and grabbed my chin tightly.
“This lie is a little more creative.
“But sadly, it’s still just pathetic,
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“If you actually go through with the divorce, your mom will die. Can you live with that?”
But my mother… she had already passed away.
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I looked down, hiding the pain inside, and spoke softly, “Noah, this whole marriage was a mistake from the start.
“You like Chloe, don’t you? Once we’re divorced…
Before I could finish, he cut me off and told his assistant to prepare divorce papers, which he then tossed at me.
“Didn’t you say you wanted a divorce?
“Sign it now, and I’ll give you what you want!”
The divorce agreement was incredibly unfair.
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Not only did I have to move out with nothing, but I also had to repay the massive medical bills from all my mother’s treatments over the years.
It was the kind of amount I couldn’t repay even if I went without food or water for several lifetimes.
Still, I picked up the pen without a second thought.
Just as I was about to sign, Noah suddenly grabbed the divorce papers from the floor and ripped them up.
He said coldly, “Oh, right. I almost forgot–every meal you’ve eaten, every drop of water you’ve used, even the toilet paper–you owe it all to my family.
“Once you’ve paid that back, then maybe we can talk about getting divorced.”
His eyes turned to Chloe, who was standing quietly nearby, and then he came up with a new idea.
“Chloe ended up in the hospital because of you. How about you work as her nurse? I’ll pay you 200 dollars a day. Sound good?”
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“No way!”
“Sounds good!”
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My refusal and Chloe’s agreement came out at the exact same moment.
