Chapter 6
Nicole’s face froze, her jaw tightening as she glared at Hanley. “Hanley, there’s no need to argue with this woman. We’re not unreasonable people. Let’s just give her back the portion of the money she contributed. This way, she’ll have no reason to keep bothering us, and we can live in peace.”
Hanley was clearly confused. “Mom, what are you talking about? After what she did, she should leave with nothing. Why should I give her any money? Even if it goes to court, we’ll have the law on our side.”
Kennard couldn’t hold back his anger. “Exactly. I’d rather burn this house down than let her have it.”
“Fine, if that’s how it is, I’ll go straight to court for the divorce. That night, you pushed Christopher and caused his head injury–bloodied and all. That’s domestic abuse. Christopher is a witness. I’m curious to see who the judge sides with. And I’ll make sure to invite all your relatives to sit in on the trial.”
Nicole was frantic now, even stumbling over her words. “No, you can’t go to court. Hanley, just sign. Your career is just taking off. Do you really want this woman to ruin the rest of your life? If we go to court, we’ll never live it down.”
Hanley glared at me, but he said nothing.
The tension was palpable. Nicole quickly grabbed the pen and shoved it into Hanley’s hand, urging him, “You did attack Christopher that night. Do you want to go to jail? Just sign and give her the money. We don’t need to deal with her anymore.”
Listening to Nicole’s incessant coaxing, I couldn’t help but laugh.
It wasn’t that she was worried about Hanley going to jail–she was terrified of me taking this to court and exposing all the ugly truths she was so desperate to hide.
She knew that if the case did go to trial, the court would make Hanley and Christopher undergo another paternity test. Given Kennard’s temper, Nicole would be in for a world of trouble.
Hanley was clearly afraid of the consequences of his actions, especially if they landed him in prison for abusing Christopher. He shot me a venomous look, but still, he signed the divorce papers.
I tucked the signed agreement into my bag and glanced toward the bathroom. “I left something in there. I’ll grab it and be on my way.”
I went into the bathroom, packed up my things, and shut the door behind me as I left.
Once I was outside, I hurried straight to the hospital to drop off the items I had hidden in my bag.
After waiting all day, I finally received a call from the hospital.
“Is this Dawn Pearce? The paternity test results for the samples you submitted yesterday are in. There’s no genetic connection between the two parties. You can come by to pick up the report when you have time.”
A smile tugged at my lips.
Just as I had suspected–everything was falling into place.
I carefully tucked the results away, thinking about when the right time would be to reveal this secret to the world. I imagined the look on Kennard’s face when the truth came out, and I couldn’t help but feel a thrill of satisfaction.
After finishing the divorce procedures with Hanley, I urged him to settle the financial matters quickly.
Hanley, furious, spat at me, “You heartless woman. You’ve lied to me for years, and now you’re threatening me with Christopher’s abuse. How did I not see how malicious you really are?”
+25 BONUS
Chapter 6
I looked at him with a blank expression. “You’ll find out soon enough who’s truly heartless. Stop talking nonsense and transfer my money.”
Hanley threw the bank card at me with a scowl. “Don’t ever show your face around me again.”
I pocketed the card and smiled. “We’ll meet again. And I’ll have a special gift for you–consider it a divorce present.”
Seeing the confusion in his eyes, I turned on my heel and left, my heels clicking sharply on the floor.
Fortunately, I had saved some money, and now that I had reclaimed my share of the wedding funds, I could finally breathe easy. Christopher and I could live without fear of financial struggle.
As for everyone who had wronged me and Christopher–I would make sure they paid every last bit.
