Chapter 19
The officer’s words seemed to be the final straw that broke Tom.NôvelDrama.Org owns all © content.
In the midst of his breakdown, he finally remembered the onset of my unexpected nosebleeds.
He recalled late one night, weak and feverish, I asked him to take me to the hospital for a check-up. But instead, he rushed off to Betty’s side because Julie had called and said she missed him.
He remembered the cruel words and sarcasm when I had asked him for money.
Suddenly, Tom scooped me into his arms. “Where’s the doctor? Save my wife!”
“I’m sorry, Jessica. I’m worthless. I deserve to die. Please, just give me one more chance to make it right!”
I couldn’t bear it any longer and passed out.
When I woke again, Tom was seated beside my hospital bed. As soon as he saw me stir, he nervously asked, “How are you feeling? Does anything hurt?”
“Get out! I don’t want to see you.”
“Don’t be like this. I know you’re mad, but I need to stay and take care of you.”
“Who needs your care? Once we settle everything between us, we’ll get a divorce.’
Tom looked at me with disappointment. “Is money all you care about? Even though you’ve never acted like a wife, I never thought of leaving you because I love you and Monica.”
“Love me?” I scoffed. “You just didn’t have a better option.”
The only reason Tom didn’t divorce me and run off with Betty was because he cared about his image. In public, he needed a respectable wife.
Betty was the woman he couldn’t show off, so he kept her hidden under the guise of friendship, relishing in the thrill of their secret affair.
Seeing his pitiful expression only filled me with disgust.
Tom was embarrassed that I had exposed him, but he knew how outrageous his actions had been, so he tried to keep his composure. “I know you hate me, but what’s done is done. We have to figure out how to move forward.”
“After what you did to me and Monica, how can you even suggest we ‘move forward”?”
“What do you mean, ‘what I did’? I didn’t cause your illness, and Monica’s death was an accident. I admit I share some of the blame, but if you had listened to me and quit your job to be a stay-at-home mom, picking Monica up from school every day, none of this would’ve happened.”
Even now, Tom believed I was more responsible for everything that had gone wrong.
I sneered. “Betty stays at home with your money, taking care of Julie, and yet, didn’t she still get kidnapped?”
Tom was at a loss for words. “We’re talking about us! Why bring Betty into this?”
“Fine, let’s talk about us. Give me back the money. I need it for my treatment.”
Tom hesitated for a while, his face turning red. “I used the money for Julie’s surgery, but I can borrow some. Fortunately, you haven’t found a matching bone marrow yet.”
“I have.”
Tom’s face lit up with hope when he heard there was a match and he was about to say he’d borrow the money. But my next words sent him into a cold sweat.
“I found the match the same day I called you. If you had given me the money then, my surgery might already be a success. But now, both the money and the bone marrow are gone.”
“Tom, you gave everything to Betty and her daughter, who weren’t even in urgent need. Are you satisfied now?”