Chapter 2

Suddenly, Kieran snatched the divorce papers off the table and ripped them to shreds without hesitation.

"I'm not signing this. I'm not getting a divorce!" he shouted.

I looked at him, not with anger, just annoyance. "Kieran, ten years ago, when my dad was seriously ill, you proposed to me in the hospital hallway.

"You said you'd be good to me, that you'd take care of me for the rest of my life.

"Even before my dad passed away, he held your hand, believing you were someone he could rely on to look after me."

I paused for a moment.

"Back then, you were crying even harder than I was."

Kieran opened his mouth, but no words came out.

I looked away. "Mr. Hummel, give him another copy."

Aaron pulled out a second set of divorce papers from his briefcase. Same cover, same terms.

After that, I turned and headed out.

When I reached the entrance to the ballroom, I stopped without turning back.

"Sign them and have them delivered to my office within three days," I said. "Otherwise, I'll see you in court."

I pushed open the door to the ballroom, sunlight pouring in.

I walked into the sunlight, leaving behind a suffocating silence.

After I left, the Fieri family's hall erupted.

Kieran slumped into his chair, his face ashen.

Eric tugged at his sleeve. "Dad, what did that woman mean? Are we moving out?"

Kieran yanked his son's hand away. "Get lost!" he snapped.

Eric was shoved to the floor and started bawling.

Henry stood up, leaning on his cane, his whole body trembling.

"Unbelievable. She's defying us!" he stammered.

He pointed at Vivian, his voice shaking. "You. To talk to her. Tell her to give those papers back!"

Vivian sat in the corner, completely still. "Me? You want me to talk to her?" Vivian shot back, disbelief in her voice.

She looked up, her expression so twisted that one couldn't tell if she was about to laugh or cry.

"And what am I supposed to say? That our family milked her for ten years and now it's time to pay up?" she said bitterly.

Henry was so furious. He slammed his cane against the floor. "Watch your mouth. If it weren't for me, you'd still be stuck farming in the middle of nowhere!"

Vivian didn't respond. She stood up and slowly walked back to her room.

After closing the door, she sat down on the edge of the bed and dragged an old suitcase out from underneath.

The suitcase was old, its lock rusty. She had to twist the key several times before it finally opened.

Inside were stacks of old, yellowed account books and a few unsent letters.

Vivian picked up the top book and opened it to the first page.

The handwriting was crooked and scrawled, written by her younger self.

[1985, the sixth of January, Henry married me. He had 100 dollars. Meanwhile, I had 200 bucks.]

[Henry spent every last bit of our money on his brother's tuition.]

She flipped to the next page.

[July 1988, I gave birth to Kieran.]

[It was hard labor, and I lost a lot of blood. Henry didn't want to pay for a hospital, so he settled for a midwife.]

[I nearly died right there in bed. The midwife said if she'd been half an hour later, both me and the baby would be gone.]

She kept flipping through the pages.

[In 1995, Henry started working with Mr. Lutz.]

[Mr. Lutz was a good guy. He gave us the capital to start up and even helped us settle down in the city.]

[Henry signed the agreement. House, car, shares, all went to the Lutz family.]

[He wouldn't let me see what was in it, said women don't get these things.]

[But I secretly copied it and hid it at the bottom of my suitcase.]

Vivian flipped to the last page of the ledger. There was a single line written there, the ink almost faded away.

[My whole life... it's like I lived for nothing.]

She closed the ledger and just sat on the edge of the bed, staring blankly.

The voices of Henry and Kieran drifted in from outside her window, their argument growing louder.

"This is all your fault! Why did you have to pull this stunt today?" Henry snapped.

"How was I supposed to know she had those papers?" Kieran shot back.

"You've been keeping a mistress and kids on the side. You really think I didn't know? I turned a blind eye because I thought you could handle this issue!" Henry shouted.

"How was I supposed to know? She... kept it all so well hidden!" Kieran stammered.

"You're worthless! How did I end up with a son like you?" Henry roared.

Vivian listened to their voices, her lips twitching.

She remembered forty years ago, when she first married into the Fieri family.

Back then, the Fieri family was still living in a mud-brick house in a remote town.

Every day, she'd get up before dawn to start the fire, cook breakfast, and feed the pigs and chickens.

Henry's mother always complained she was too slow, calling her a "freeloader."

When she was pregnant with Kieran, she was still out working in the fields, her belly huge.

Just three days after giving birth, she was already up, washing clothes for the whole family.

She thought that once the Fieri family's fortunes turned around, her own life would finally get better too.

Eventually, things really did get better for the Fieri family.

They moved into the city and started living in a big house.

But for her, nothing changed.

Cooking, doing laundry, looking after the grandkids, and getting scolded. It was the same routines.

Henry was all smiles to everyone else outside, but at home, he just bossed her around.

She'd put up with it for forty years straight.

She'd endured it so long. She even she started to think that's just how life was.

Vivian put the ledger back in the suitcase and locked it. She stood up and walked over to the mirror.

The woman in the mirror had hair streaked with gray, her back slightly hunched, and deep lines etched around her eyes.

She gazed at herself in the mirror for a long while. Then, she made a decision.

She picked up a comb and carefully smoothed her hair. She put on a fresh set of clothes. Then, she opened the door and stepped out.

In the living room, Henry and Kieran were still going at each other.