Part 2Their Vicious Oaths Came True

"Are you really doing this?" Arthur demanded, his brow furrowed. "I told you, I’ll still take care of you. You’re still my responsibility."

He sighed, the weary sigh of a man burdened by a nagging wife. "We’re old, Claire. We’ve spent a lifetime together. Why cause a scene now?"

He leaned in, offering a 'compromise' that made my skin crawl. "Look, I’ll spend Monday, Wednesday, and Friday with you. Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday with her. Sundays, we’ll have a family dinner. How’s that?"

Even though my heart had already hardened at the wedding, hearing those words felt like a physical blow to the chest.

It wasn't enough to humiliate me at the wedding. Now he wanted to schedule me like a chore, a "sister-wife" in my own home.

"Do you really think you’re such a prize?" I pulled my arm away and laughed in his face. "You’re a stagnant, filthy man, Arthur. I don't want you."

I knew Sonia. I knew her better than he did.

Years ago, when I was pregnant with Nathan, I was an emotional wreck. The company—Harrison Global—was just starting. Arthur was working himself into a stomach ulcer, and I felt so guilty that I hired Sonia, a nutritionist, to help him manage his diet and health.

Back then, she was already sending him suggestive texts. I had asked Arthur about it, and he had looked at her with genuine disgust.

"I can't stand women like that," he’d told me. "One harsh word and she starts leaking tears. Claire, please, fire her. Get me someone who actually does their job."

But at the wedding, when I had asked him Why her?, he had completely rewritten history.

"I tripped and hurt my ankle a few months ago," he’d said. "We bumped into each other at the clinic. She burst into tears, terrified that I was seriously hurt. Seeing her cry for me... I realized she’d been waiting for me her whole life. I couldn't fail her anymore."

Even Nathan, the boy I had raised with every ounce of my soul, stood by her.

"Sonia used to be the nutritionist at my prep school," Nathan added. "She was always so sweet to me. She actually cared if I was hungry or tired. Honestly, Mom, if you hadn't fired her back then, Dad wouldn't have been miserable for so long. You owe her."

Men always find a way to turn their betrayals into someone else’s debt.

I moved into one of my private properties. Within the hour, the System pinged.

[Status Update: 'Ruined Reputation' protocol has been activated.]

The events of the wedding had leaked. A video of the seating arrangement and Nathan’s snub went viral on social media. People were eviscerating the three of them. Harrison Global’s stock began a slow, steady crawl toward the basement.

Arthur’s PR team worked through the night, but it was like trying to hold back a landslide with a toothpick. The "Beloved Philanthropist" was now the "Cheating Scumbag."

Arthur didn't see the warning signs. He saw an inconvenience.

He barged into my new house, red-faced, demanding I issue a public apology to Sonia.

"Tell them the wedding was your idea," he barked. "Tell them Sonia isn't a mistress—she’s the love of my life and you support us."

I leaned against the doorframe. "Why would I apologize for the truth? You brought your mistress on stage. You reap what you sow. Now, sign the papers."

I tossed the divorce agreement at his feet. I wanted it done before his downfall took my share of the assets with it.

"What is this act?" Arthur sneered. "You leaked those videos, didn't you? Sonia left a suicide note and vanished this morning because of the hate she’s getting. Is that what you wanted? To drive her away so I’d come crawling back? It won’t work."

His eyes were cold. "And watch your mouth. In this relationship, the one who isn't loved is the interloper. That’s you, Claire."

I was about to retort when Nathan pushed his way inside.

"Dad’s right! You’re the outsider now, Mom! Sonia is the one he loves!"

He looked at me with pure vitriol. "Sonia is missing, and you’re sitting here acting like a queen. You’re cruel."

"So, in your mind, your own mother is the mistress?"

I didn't wait for an answer. I slapped Nathan across the face. Hard. Twice.

I was glad I had already given up on them. If I hadn't, that sentence would have killed me.

"I carried you for nine months. I nearly died giving birth to you. And I raised a parasite who doesn't know the meaning of loyalty," I said, my voice cold as ice. "If you think I’m so terrible, then fine. I’m not your mother anymore. Go find Sonia. See if she’ll bleed for you the way I did."

Nathan’s face went pale. He opened his mouth, but no sound came out.

"Enough!" Arthur yelled. "If you don't apologize, you’re finished at the company. I’m stripping your title as Vice Chair."