Chapter 6
His voice was barely above a whisper, trembling with tears.
Drusilla looked at him in silence.
She stared at him quietly, as if he were a stranger.
Harvey felt her gaze sting him to the core.
He stepped forward, anxious and urgent.
"Drusilla, I know my mom totally crossed the line today," Harvey said.
"But she only did it for me, you know how she is. Please, don't let it get to you," he continued.
"When you come home, I'll make sure she never acts like this again. I won't let her hurt you anymore."
He was practically in tears, sounding desperate and sincere.
But Drusilla couldn't help but let out a laugh when she heard him.
Her smile was tragic, laced with irony.
"Harvey, when your mom was pointing her finger right at me, calling me shameless and saying my son was nothing but a bastard..." Drusilla said.
Her voice was quiet, but every word was like a dull blade, slowly slicing into Harvey's heart.
"When she threw the divorce papers at my feet and demanded I leave with nothing but the clothes on my back..." she pressed.
Harvey's face went even paler.
"When she was berating me so viciously, I couldn't even lift my head, and my mom was shaking with rage..." she fumed.
Tears silently slid down Drusilla's cheeks.
"You just stood there in the corner, doing nothing," she said.
"You didn't even have the guts to say a single word," she paused.
Then she continued, "Now that my brother finally stood up for me, you come and tell me not to take it to heart?"
"Harvey, what makes you think you have the right?" she pressed.
Every word hit Harvey like a slap in the face, stinging him to his core.
He opened his mouth, but nothing came out, not a single excuse.
Margaret couldn't stand it anymore.
"Drusilla, quit acting like you're so pitiful!" she barked.
"Wasn't my son good enough for you?" she fumed.
"When you were pregnant, he was at your beck and call every single day!" she kept going.
"And after the baby came, he was always helping out, wasn't he?
"And now you're blaming him?
"You're such an ungrateful wretch!"
She was getting more and more agitated, looking like she was about to pounce on Drusilla and tear her apart.
I stepped in front of the hospital bed, fixing her with a cold, unyielding stare.
"Isn't that just basic decency for a husband, to look after his pregnant wife and his own kid?" I retorted.
"You act like he's some kind of saint for doing the bare minimum," I stormed.
"And one more thing," I reminded.
I took a step closer, my voice low and dangerous.
"Say one more word about my sister, and your son will end up in the next ward today," I shot back.
Margaret was so rattled by my glare that she went completely silent.
She opened her mouth, but couldn't bring herself to say anything else.
Just then, Mom pushed the door open and came in.
"The discharge paperwork's all done. The doctor told me everything we need to watch out for. I've got it all," she said.
She took one look at how tense things were and hurried over to the hospital bed.
"Drusilla, let's go. We don't have to put up with this anymore," she said.
Drusilla nodded.
I gently helped her get out of bed.
Mom went to pack up our stuff.
Harvey stood off to the side, looking totally lost and panicked as he watched us pack up.
"Drusilla, are you really leaving?" he asked, his voice trembling.
"What about the baby?"
He kept going, "He's still so little. Who's going to look after him when you get home?
"Here at the hospital, there are nurses and doctors. It's so much safer."
He kept pleading, his words tumbling out in a desperate attempt to make her stay.
But Drusilla didn't even look his way, not once.
I steadied Drusilla as we made our way slowly to the door.
Mom trailed behind, cradling the baby in her arms and lugging our bags.
Just as we reached the door, Drusilla suddenly stopped.
She turned back to look at Harvey.
"Harvey, these past five days, a lot has become clear to me," she said.
Her voice was so calm, it was almost chilling.
"I'll sign the divorce papers," she said.
"Not right now.
"After I've finished my postpartum recovery, we'll talk," she sounded calm.
"I'm taking the baby with me.
"Your family isn't worthy," she added.
With that, she turned and walked out of the maternity ward without looking back.
Harvey just stood there, completely stunned, like he'd been struck by lightning.
Margaret was totally dumbfounded, too.
She never expected that all her fuss would actually make her daughter-in-law leave.
I picked up my nephew from the bassinet and cast one last look their way.
"Suit yourselves," I said coldly.
With that, I strode out, not sparing them a glance.
Behind me, Margaret's cries rang out.
"Harvey! Are you just going to let her take the baby?" she yelled.
"That's my first grandson!
"Stop her! Hurry up!" she yelled.
But Harvey just stood there, rooted to the spot.
He was too scared to even budge.
The car was so quiet on the way home, you could hear a pin drop.
I kept sneaking peeks at the backseat through the mirror, just to make sure everyone was okay.