Chapter 9 - THE DIVORCE DECREE
Three months later.
I sat in a sleek, glass-walled conference room at the county courthouse. Across the long wooden table sat Ethan, wearing a faded orange correctional jumpsuit, handcuffed at the wrists.
He was hollowed out. He had lost twenty pounds, his once-pristine hair was messy and unkempt, and dark, purple circles bruised the skin under his eyes. Sitting beside him was a overworked public defender who looked like he wished he were anywhere else in the world.
Marcus Vance sat next to me, sliding a stack of legal documents across the table.
"This is the final marital asset dissolution agreement, Ethan," Marcus said cleanly. "In exchange for Savannah waiving her right to seek full restitution from your liquid defense funds, you forfeit all claims to the primary residence, all joint financial accounts, and all future corporate earnings."
Ethan looked up at me, his eyes filled with a terrifying mix of desperation, rage, and profound regret.
"Savannah," Ethan rasped out, his voice hoarse from months in jail. "Please... look at me. You got everything. You destroyed my life. You took my career, my reputation, my freedom. Isn't that enough?"
"You destroyed your own life, Ethan," I said calmly, looking at him without a shred of pity. "You chose to forge signatures. You chose to steal. You chose to break your vows with my sister. I simply stepped out of the way and let the consequences of your choices crush you."
Ethan slammed his handcuffed hands against the wooden table, making the metal chain clatter loudly. "I loved you! In the beginning, I really loved you!"
"No," I replied smoothly. "You loved what I provided for you. You loved the comfort, the financial security, and the illusion of power I bought for you."
"And what about Natalie?" Ethan spat out bitterly. "She won't even accept my phone calls from jail! The second the money dried up, she abandoned me! She ruined me just as much as you did!"
"You ruined each other," I said. "Two parasites who thought they could feed on the same host forever."
The public defender nudged the paperwork toward Ethan. "Sign the papers, Ethan. If this goes to a contested trial, her legal team will drag out the forensic audits and the prosecutor will use it to add three more counts of wire fraud to your criminal indictment. Sign it."
Ethan trembled, pulling a cheap ballpoint pen toward his shaking fingers.
He pressed the tip to the paper and signed his name on the line: Ethan Vance.
Marcus pulled the signed document back, verifying the signature, and turned to me with a satisfied nod. "It's done. You are officially divorced."
Ethan slumped back in his chair, staring blankly at the metal table. "I hope you're happy, Savannah. You're completely alone now. You have your money, your clean house, and your quiet life. But you have no family. You have nobody."
I slowly unbuttoned my wool coat, letting it fall open across my lap.
For the first time in three months, Ethan’s eyes dropped to my stomach.
I was now twenty-four weeks pregnant. My bump was fully round, distinct, and unmistakably prominent beneath my soft cashmere sweater.
Ethan froze. His eyes widened in absolute, paralyzing disbelief. He stared at my stomach, then looked up at my face, his breath catching wildly in his throat.
"What... what is that?" Ethan stammered, his face turning ghost white once again. "Savannah... are you..."
I placed a gentle hand over my stomach, feeling the strong, unmistakable kick of my baby from within.
"I am six months pregnant, Ethan," I said, my voice soft, radiant, and dripping with absolute victory.
"Is... is it mine?" Ethan gasped, trying to stand up, his handcuffs clanking wildly as the correctional guard immediately placed a heavy hand on his shoulder, forcing him back down into his seat. "Savannah! Is that my baby?!"
I looked him dead in the eyes, my smile colder than steel.
"No," I said softly. "This child belongs entirely to a strong, unbroken mother. You will never see this baby. Your name will never appear on the birth certificate. And when my child grows up, they will know that their mother built a kingdom out of the ashes of the fools who tried to destroy her."
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"No! Savannah! Wait! That's my child!" Ethan screamed frantically as Marcus and I stood up from the table. "Savannah! Please! Let me see my baby! Savannah!"
His desperate, pathetic screams echoed down the long concrete corridor as Marcus and I walked out of the conference room, closing the heavy steel door behind us forever.
