Chapter 3

3.

She looked down at me from her pedestal, completely unmoved.

"I do not have it on me," she said calmly. "I will give it to you when payroll comes at the end of the month."

Rage surged through my veins, and I nearly cracked my teeth from grinding them so hard.

"You gave me your word!"

She casually twirled a strand of hair around her finger.

"I told you from the start I had no money. You were the one who insisted on pestering me."

The humiliation and injustice built up over years erupted like a volcano.

"Sharon Montgomery, you are a monster!"

"Back in my village, my parents treated you like their own daughter!"

"My mother sold her own bridal jewelry and begged every official in the county just to secure your spot back in the city!"

"Do you have a shred of conscience left in you?"

Slap!

A stinging slap cut my words short.

Sharon's eyes were terrifyingly cold.

"How long are you going to hold tiny favors over my head?"

"I am warning you, Caleb. If you keep throwing tantrums, get the hell out of my sight!"

Without another glance, she turned on her heel and walked away with Austin.

"Sharon, why do not we try that new French bistro downtown?" Austin asked smoothly. "I heard a meal there costs a few hundred dollars, though."

"Who cares? It is my treat! Consider it a celebration."

The blazing fury consumed the last shred of my sanity.

I scrambled up and sprinted toward the police precinct as fast as my legs could carry me.

When I returned with two officers in tow, Sharon and Austin were just finishing their lavish meal.

Seeing the uniforms behind me, the elegant smile on her face froze instantly.

I glanced down at the table and saw the check totaling seven hundred and twenty dollars. What a grand spender.

When the officers stated I was reporting a grand theft of personal funds, Sharon lost all her composure and raised her hand to strike me again.

I caught her wrist in a vice-like grip.

"Give me back my money."

Trembling with rage, Sharon yanked fifty dollars from her purse and slammed it against my chest.

"That is all I have! Take it or leave it!"

Austin chimed in with fake concern.

"Caleb, how could you call the police on Sharon over a petty family dispute?"

"Shut your mouth!" I roared.

Turning to the officers, I stated clearly, "Officer, the stolen amount exceeds six thousand dollars!"

"Furthermore, I want to report my wife, Sharon Montgomery, and Austin Vance for engaging in an illicit, adulterous affair!"

The word adultery made both Sharon and Austin turn ghostly pale.

In this era, while it might not lead to a firing squad, it would completely ruin their careers, social standing, and livelihoods forever.

Sharon panicked entirely.

With trembling hands, she ripped open her leather wallet and shoved a thick stack of bills into my chest.

"Take it! Take all of it! Is that enough? How could you blow a little money out of proportion!"

Terrified of being implicated, Austin immediately took three steps back to distance himself from her.

I took the thick wad of cash and began counting it slowly, bill by bill, in front of the officers.

Over two thousand dollars. She had actually been carrying that much cash in her purse.

The officer looked at me and asked professionally, "Sir, do you still wish to press charges?"

I tucked the cash securely into my coat pocket and shook my head.

Sharon and Austin visibly exhaled in massive relief.

A cold, mocking smile spread across my lips.

"However, I am filing for an immediate divorce."

Sharon's face twisted into an ugly sneer of pure hatred.

"Fine by me, Caleb! I cannot wait to be rid of you!"

The divorce paperwork went through at lightning speed.

Yet the moment I returned to our quarters to pack my meager belongings, the front door was kicked wide open.

Plant security guards rushed in with grim expressions, pinning my arms behind my back.

"Caleb Hayes, you have been reported for stealing scrap steel from the plant warehouse. Come with us."

The old metal mug in my hand crashed to the floor, ringing out with a harsh clatter.

Sharon strolled in behind them, leaning close to whisper into my ear.

"If you had behaved, I would not have divorced you. But since you insisted on making a scene, I cannot leave an eyesore like you around."

My heart turned entirely to ice.

I never imagined the woman I spent a lifetime loving was this utterly venomous to her core.

Just because I might become an inconvenience to her career, she was willing to frame me and send me to prison for life.

I looked at her, surprisingly calm.

"It is not too late for you to regret this," I said quietly. "Do we really have to burn everything to the ground?"

She took a step back, gesturing coldly to the guards.

"I am simply doing my duty. There is nothing to regret."

Austin followed behind her, putting on his signature look of righteous sorrow.

"Caleb, Director Montgomery was kind enough to take you in from the countryside. How could you repay her with theft?"

"It is truly heartbreaking."

Neighbors and workers gathered outside the hallway, pointing and whispering.

"Unbelievable. Director Montgomery treated him so well, and he turns out to be a backstabbing thief."

"Stealing industrial materials from the state is treason against the workforce!"

A few workers who usually got along with me opened their mouths to speak, but quickly lowered their heads under Sharon's piercing glare.

As the officers moved in with handcuffs, I suddenly burst out laughing.

Above the chorus of curses calling me a thief, I raised my voice to an ear-splitting shout.

"Officers! I want to file a formal report!"

"I am reporting Sharon Montgomery, Director of Red Star Machinery Plant, for massive embezzlement, illegal smuggling, and collaborating with foreign operatives!"

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