Felix''s eyes turned cold, and his tone hardened. "This is between me and ire. Grandma, stay out of it."
"And I''m not divorcing her."
Old Mrs. Quigley was heartbroken and furious. "You''re ruining her life! If you don''t love her, why are you holding her back?"
"Give me some time. I will get to the bottom of this," Felix insisted, his demeanor still cool. "That was my child, too. I won''t let it die for nothing."
Old Mrs. Quigley just shook her head.
She was utterly disappointed in him.
She left him with two words. "Toote."
After she was gone, Felix irritably fumbled in his pockets for a cigarette.
But he wasn''t in a smoking area. He walked downstairs alone until he found the designated spot.
He smoked one cigarette after another, an endless chain until the pack was empty. But the nicotine did nothing to calm his nerves.
His mind was still in turmoil.
He couldn''t get the image of ire out of his head-lying on the hospital bed, her eyes closed, silent tears streaming down her face.
A sense of panic tightened its grip on him.
Madeline called again.
Normally, he would have answered immediately. This time, he ignored it.
He pinched the bridge of his nose, trying to console himself.
*ire can''t afford the penalty for breaking the contract. She would never file for divorce herself.*
*And she cares deeply about Grandma, treats her like her own family.*
*She wouldn''t have the heart to go through with a divorce, if only for Grandma''s sake.*
*Stop panicking.*
When Old Mrs. Quigley returned to the room, ire hadpletely calmed down.
"My dear girl, don''t be sad. Getting too upset during this recovery period can cause long-term health problems. It''s not worth damaging your body over someone who isn''t worth it," Old Mrs. Quigley said, holding ire''s hand, her heart aching for her. ire looked down, a bitter smile on her lips. "You''re right. He''s not worth it."
And so, she decided to tell her grandmother the truth.
When Old Mrs. Quigley learned about the contract Felix and ire had signed, she was so incensed. that she clutched her chest, struggling to breathe.
onave
ire quickly retrieved her grandmother''s medication from her pocket and helped her take it.
After a few moments, Old Mrs. Quigley''s breathing evened out.
"My dear, you''ve suffered so much," she said, wiping away tears. "Don''t you ever let yourself be wronged like this again."
"Whatever you decide, Grandma will support you. Don''t worry about my feelings. At my age, I''ve seen it all."
"Nothing is more important than my granddaughter''s life!"
"Thank you, Grandma."
Her words were all the reassurance ire needed.
ire stayed in the hospital for three days.
Noreen stayed with her for all three.
Wilbur also came to visit every day.
While he was mainly there for Noreen, he treated her best friend with the same
care.
He even hired the best nutritionist for ire to help with her recovery.
Noreen also asked him to find the bestwyer in Northcrest, a man named Coley.
ire consulted with Coley about the divorce, naturally bringing up the agreement they had signed.
Coley told her, "An agreement like that has no legal standing. It''s an unequal contract by its very nature, and thew does not support it."
His answer left ire in stunned silence.
So... the contract was meaningless.
Just like her marriage to Felix. Meaningless.
And she had held up her end of the bargain for six years. How utterly ridiculous.
ire asked Coley, "In that case, Mr. get
ad the fastest way to
a divorce? All I want is for this to be over as quickly as possible, content, >
Coley gave her two options.
"The fastest way is an uncontested. divorce. Once the mandatory thirty-day cooling off period is over it''s finalized, the alternative litigation, but that can take much longer."
So, she would have to talk to Felix one more time.