CHAPTER 5
CHAPTER 5
Fifteen minutes later, my hospital door burst open.
Ethan stormed in first, his face red, his expensive coat hanging open. Margaret followed behind him, gripping her purse like a weapon.
"So you're done with this little performance?" Ethan snapped.
Alicia stepped forward. "Sir, you need to lower your voice."
He ignored her.
Margaret looked at my leg and sighed dramatically. "I have arthritis in both knees and I still manage my responsibilities."
I stared at her. "Then manage your lunch."
Her mouth fell open.
Ethan leaned over my bed. "You think you're brave because two cops felt sorry for you?"
"No," I said. "I think I'm done because I finally feel sorry for myself."
His eyes narrowed.
"You'll regret humiliating me."
"I was humiliated for three years. You just didn't notice because I did it quietly."
Margaret pointed a trembling finger at me. "When you're thrown out of this family, you will leave with absolutely nothing."
I reached for my phone.
Ethan's eyes flicked to the screen.
The frozen account notice glowed in my hand.
His expression changed.
Just a little.
Just enough.
"What did you do?"
"I protected marital assets after you threatened financial retaliation in front of police officers."
Alicia covered her mouth.
Margaret turned to Ethan. "What does that mean?"
"It means," I said, "he can't empty the account."
Ethan's voice dropped low. "Madison, unlock it."
"No."
"Unlock it now."
I pressed the emergency call button beside the bed.
Alicia moved instantly.
"I need security," I said calmly. "They are interfering with my medical treatment."
Ethan stared at me like he did not recognize my face.
"You're throwing your own husband out?"
"A man who demands lunch from his injured wife stopped being my husband long before today."
Security arrived in less than a minute.
Ethan tried to recover his dignity, but panic had already slipped through the cracks.
Margaret kept muttering that I was unstable, ungrateful, cruel.
I watched them being escorted into the hall.
Then Ethan turned back once, eyes full of fury.
"You think you won?"
May you like
I looked at him from my hospital bed, leg broken, body aching, heart finally steady.
"No, Ethan," I said. "I think you just started losing."
