Chapter 3

3.

He looked down at me from his height and said casually, "I do not have it on me. I will give it to you when I get my paycheck at the end of the month."

The blood rushed to my head. I felt like I was going to bite through my own tongue.

"You lied to me!"

He brushed some dust off his sleeve, looking bored.

"I told you from the start I did not have it. You are the one who kept making a scene."

Years of resentment exploded in my chest like a volcano.

"Quentin Vance! You are a monster!"

"Back in our hometown, my parents treated you like their own son!"

"My mother even sold her family heirlooms and begged everyone in town just to get you the position that got you out of the sticks!"

"Do you have any soul left in you? You bastard!"

SLAP!

The strike cut my words short.

Quentin's eyes were terrifyingly cold.

"Are you going to hold those tiny favors over my head forever?"

"I am warning you, Winona. If you ever harass me like this again, you are gone."

He did not even look back as he turned away with Jolene.

"Quentin, can we go to that Bistro on Main Street? I heard it's expensive, like, hundreds of dollars."

"Of course. My treat. We should celebrate."

A blinding fury burned away my last bit of sanity.

I turned around and ran toward the local police station as fast as my legs could carry me.

When I returned with two officers, Quentin and Jolene were just finishing their expensive dinner.

When he saw the cops behind me, his elegant smile froze.

I glanced at the bill on their table. 720 dollars. What a big spender.

When the officers told him I was reporting him for "theft of personal assets," Quentin lost it. He raised his hand to hit me again.

I grabbed his wrist mid-air.

"Give me my money. All of it."

Quentin was fuming. He pulled fifty dollars out of his pocket and threw it at my face.

"That is all there is! Take it or leave it!"

Jolene stepped in with her fake voice. "Winona, how could you call the police over such a small thing?"

"Shut up!" I snapped.

"Officers, the amount stolen exceeds six thousand dollars!"

"Furthermore, I am reporting my husband, Quentin Vance, and Jolene Sterling for adultery and public indecency!"

The mention of such charges made their faces go white.

In this town, those charges would not just get you fired; it would destroy your entire life.

Quentin panicked. He fumbled with his leather wallet and shoved a thick stack of bills into my hands.

"Take it! Just take it! It is just some money, why do you have to be so insane?"

Jolene immediately stepped away from him, looking terrified.

I took the money and, right in front of the police, I started counting it leaf by leaf.

Over two thousand dollars. He was actually carrying that much on him.

The officer looked at me. "Ma'am, do you still wish to press charges?"

I tucked the money into my coat and shook my head.

Quentin and Jolene let out a massive sigh of relief.

I let out a cold, sharp laugh.

"But I am getting that divorce. Today."

Quentin's face turned a sickly shade of green. He spat through gritted teeth, "Fine, Winona. I can't wait to be rid of you!"

The divorce was processed in record time.

But the moment I got back to the house to pack my meager belongings, the door was kicked open.

The mill's security team burst in and grabbed me.

"Winona Thorne, you have been reported for stealing industrial alloy from the plant. Come with us."

My old tin cup fell to the floor with a deafening clang.

Quentin stepped out from behind them, leaning close to my ear.

"If you had just been a good little wife, I would not have divorced you. But since you want to fight, I can't have you hanging around being an eyesore."

My heart turned to stone.

I never realized the man I had spent a lifetime with was this evil.

Just because I was a threat to him, he was willing to send me to prison and ruin my entire future.

I looked at him, feeling strangely calm.

"It is not too late to stop this. Do you really want to burn everything down?"

He took a step back and waved his hand to the security team.

"I am just doing my job. I have nothing to regret."

Jolene was there too, looking heartbroken.

"Winona, Mr. Vance was kind enough to take you in when you were just a nobody from the country. How could you repay him by stealing?"

"It is truly devastating."

Neighbors and workers gathered around, whispering and pointing.

"I knew it. Mr. Vance is such a good man, and he was raising a snake."

"Stealing from the company? That is basically stealing from all of us!"

A few workers who liked me tried to speak up, but they went quiet under Quentin's cold glare.

As the police approached to take me away, I suddenly laughed.

In the middle of the crowd calling me a thief, I screamed at the top of my lungs.

"Officers, I have a report to make!"

"I am reporting Quentin Vance, the Plant Manager, for embezzlement, illegal corporate espionage, and gross misconduct!"