"I... I didn''t mean for it to be like that," Lionel stammered. "Back then, I just..."


    Hannah''sugh was even louder this time. "Didn''t mean for it to be like that? You refused to look at the evidence. And even when you did, you used me of faking it to frame her. Don''t bother trying to exin, Lionel. It just makes you sound more ridiculous. The truth is, you despised me, so you assumed I was the evil one, and that your precious Sandra could do no wrong."


    She waved a dismissive hand and turned back to the window, her message clear: the conversation was over.


    They drove the rest of the way home in silence.


    Since their morning ns had been derailed, Hannah still had the afternoon free. As soon as they walked in the door, she turned to him. "Are you free this afternoon? We can still go to the courthouse and get this done."


    "What is your rtionship with Peter Temple?" Lionel asked, ignoring her question. He still couldn''t figure it out. Did she know him through Samuel? But he had thought her rtionship with her colleagues was purely professional. Was Samuel pursuing her? Why would they have been at the hospital together? The questions gued him.


    Hannah looked at him, a flicker of indecision in her eyes. They were getting divorced; her life was no longer his business. But then she considered the possibility of him jumping to the wrong conclusion and causing trouble for her new family.


    "It''s none of your business," she said coolly. "But will tell you this: my rtionship with them is clean. It''s nothing like your rtionship with Sandra Just because you and she are tangled up in a sordid affair, dont assume everyone else is the same." A bitter smile touched her lips as she remembered his usations about her and Yves. "Whether it''s Mr. Lancaster or Mr. Temple, my rtionships are honorable. You''re the one who''s not."


    Just then, her phone buzzed. It was a text from Peter, telling her to pack her things ande home. The family was holding a dinner that night to officially wee her.


    Okay, she texted back.


    She put her phone down and stood up. "The courthouse is closed on the weekend. We''ll go on Monday. And if you don''t show up then, I''m going to Grandma first. I''ll tell her everything. I''d


    father she hear it from methan


    have a public scandal give her a


    heart attack. Then you''d just me


    me for that, too."


    With that, she turned and headed upstairs to pack.


    Lionel watched her go, a crushing weight settling in his chest. Less than half an hourter, he heard the tell-tale rumble of wheels on the staircase. He looked up and saw Hannah, pulling a suitcase behind her.