For half a year, unease had lingered in her chest. Vincent Brown had been unwell, yet every time she asked, he dismissed it, blaming exhaustion from work and refusing any medical checkups. She had talked him into having a full workup at the hospital just last week.
Today, she had only come to pick up his test results. Never once had she imagined the truth would be this devastating.
By the time she left the hospital, her thoughts were scattered. She barely remembered the trip home, her fingers gripping the report so tightly it crumpled at the edges.
The door had barely closed behind her when Vincent flung a stack of papers toward her. "Vivian, I want a divorce."
For one fleeting second, a fragile thought crossed her mind. Maybe he already knew. Maybe this was his way of sparing her, pushing her away so she wouldn't have to carry his burden. "So... you've found out already, haven't you?"
Vincent had yet to respond when Chloe Carpenter-his so-called cousin-stepped in, her palm resting lightly over the small curve of her abdomen.
"Of course, he knows. I'm the one who told him," Chloe chimed in, her lips curling with satisfaction. "I happened to see you during my prenatal visit. You caught my attention, so I followed you. I caught scraps of your conversation with your doctor. Late-stage cancer... who would've guessed?"
"You're mistaken. That's not what-" Vivian tried to explain, but Vincent's mother cut in before she could finish.
Leaning heavily on her cane, Helen Brown moved closer at a slow pace. "Vivian, don't take this the wrong way, but Vincent already has enough pressure providing for this household. Adding your situation into the mix would only drain everything. You're sensible. You wouldn't want to hold him back, would you?"
The air seemed to freeze around Vivian. So that was the truth.
Vincent believed she was the one who was sick. In his mind, she had become a liability, and that was reason enough to cast her aside.
Clinging to the last bit of hope she had left, she turned to Vincent. "Baby, this isn't the end. Treatment is still possible. As for the expenses, we can sell the condo."
Helen's voice shot up instantly. "Sell the condo? Have you lost your mind?"
The warmth Vincent once carried disappeared without a trace. What replaced it was a cold, unyielding stare.
"That's not happening." A flicker of impatience crossed his face, and whatever restraint he had left broke apart. "I'm done pretending, Vivian. Chloe is pregnant with my child. And the condo? It's already under her name."
The words hit like a blow Vivian couldn't brace for. "What did you just say?"
Now that everything was laid bare, Chloe slipped her arm through Vincent's and leaned into him, her expression brimming with victory.
"Vivian, you really never figured it out?" Chloe spoke, her tone sharp and cutting. "I was never his cousin. That was just a story we used, so I could stay by his side without questions. You believed it for five whole years... and spent all that time taking care of us."
"Tell me honestly... is it all true?" Vivian's voice came out unsteady as her eyes moved from Helen to Vincent. Neither of them looked her in the eye.
The medical report crinkled in her grasp as her fingers tightened around it.
Instead of pain, an odd emptiness settled over her.
Five years earlier, she had become Vincent's wife. On the day they married, he had introduced Chloe as a cousin who had fallen on hard times and needed a place to stay. Not long after, Chloe became a permanent fixture in their home.
The very next day, Vincent had convinced Vivian to quit her job. He told her his mother was confined to bed and needed constant care. Believing she was marrying a devoted son, Vivian walked away from a bright future in pharmaceuticals and devoted herself to the family instead.
For five years, she had used every professional connection she possessed to help Vincent advance in his career until he eventually sat in the CEO's office at Life Pharmaceuticals.
She had remained at Helen's side, overseeing treatments, arranging therapy sessions, and patiently helping her recover from paralysis.
She had treated Chloe like family. When complications threatened Chloe's pregnancy, Vivian had exhausted every favor she could call in to secure medication and personally managed the treatment that protected the child.
And now the truth stood before her in all its ugliness. Everything she had believed in for five years had been built on deception.
Slowly, Vivian shut her eyes. A long breath left her lungs. When she looked up again, the sorrow had disappeared. The warmth was gone as well. "All right. If that's what you want."
Reaching down, Vivian picked up the divorce papers. Her eyes skimmed over the contents, and a faint laugh escaped her throat.
After everything she had given them, they intended to send her away with absolutely nothing.
Without arguing or questioning a single clause, Vivian signed her name. Once the pen left the page, she looked directly at Vincent. "One day, you may regret this."
The ease with which Vivian signed caught Chloe off guard for only a second. Then satisfaction spread across her face.
"Regret? Why would we? We'll probably be celebrating instead." Chloe's eyes swept over Vivian dismissively. "But... I might let you stay and work here as a servant."
"Chloe, you're a kind girl." Helen smiled at her.
Her expression turned cold as she faced Vivian. "You're nothing more than a stay-at-home wife with no real value. Vincent's future should be shared with someone accomplished, someone respected, someone like Chloe. Frankly, you should be thanking her. A servant position is already more than you've earned."
A faint smile touched Vivian's lips.
"No, thanks." Then she shifted her attention back to Vincent. "Tomorrow at three. We'll finish the divorce procedures."
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