Chapter 6
Jessica's arrival was like dropping a lit match into a powder keg. The tension in the hallway instantly exploded.
When Mary and Sophia saw her, their faces morphed into an incredibly messy cocktail of emotions.
There was shock, a massive wave of guilt, and a highly suspicious, undeniable familiarity.
"Jessica? What... what are you doing here?" Mary stammered, her eyes frantically darting over to gauge my reaction.
Jessica completely ignored Mary's question. Instead, she locked eyes with me. Her gaze was evaluating, sizing me up, laced with a very clear, highly arrogant challenge.
She let her eyes linger on me for a few long seconds before dramatically pivoting her gaze toward the heavy doors of the ICU. She immediately arranged her features into a mask of profound, tragic grief.
"I heard David had a medical emergency, so I rushed over as fast as I could," she said.
She reached into her Birkin bag, pulled out a silk handkerchief, and delicately dabbed at the corners of her perfectly dry eyes.
"How is he? What did the surgeons say?" she pleaded, looking at Mary.
Her acting was absolutely perfect.
If I didn't know exactly where that three hundred grand had gone yesterday afternoon, I genuinely might have been fooled by her "deeply devoted" performance.
"And exactly how did you hear he had an emergency?" I cut in coldly, entirely shattering her dramatic monologue.
My voice was so aggressively cold, sending an immediate chill through the room that froze the very air around us.
Jessica clearly hadn't anticipated me confronting her so directly. Her tragic, heartbroken facade slipped for a fraction of a second.
She composed herself in a heartbeat, looking at me with soft, dewy eyes and a tone of pure, feigned innocence.
"One of David's coworkers called me. We... we just happen to be collaborating on a very important business project right now."
"Is that so?" I sneered. "What an amazing coincidence.
"This 'business project' must be incredibly critical if it convinced David to willingly wire you three hundred thousand dollars at exactly 5:20 PM yesterday afternoon."
As soon as I spoke, every face in the crowd twisted in disbelief.
All the color violently drained from Jessica's face. Her carefully constructed, calm persona completely imploded, instantly replaced by genuine, raw panic.
"What... what are you talking about? I have no idea what you mean," she stammered.
"You don't?" I stepped directly into her personal space, shoving my phone screen—still displaying the massive wire transfer—right into her face.
"Do you want me to read it out loud for you?
"Recipient: Jessica Grant. Amount: Three hundred thousand dollars.
"I assume that cash is sitting very comfortably in your personal account right now, right? Or did you already wire it over as the down payment on that brand-new house?"
Jessica stared at the blindingly bright phone screen, her entire body beginning to shake uncontrollably.
Mary and Sophia, who were standing right next to her, looked absolutely paralyzed with fear.
Jessica opened and closed her mouth like a fish, desperately scrambling for an excuse. "I... It was a loan! David lent it to me! He said he had plenty of extra cash and didn't need it right now..."
"A loan?" I interrupted her, letting out a sharp laugh.
"Do people usually attach a memo saying 'Wishing you a lifetime of happiness' to a standard financial loan?
"Jessica, do you seriously think I am a complete idiot? Do you think the doctors and nurses standing around us are idiots?
"You accepted a massive wire transfer of our joint marital assets—effectively stealing stolen funds—and you have the sheer, unmitigated audacity to show up here playing the role of the tragic, heartbroken lover?
"Who exactly gave you the nerve to pull a stunt like this?"
My volume was rising with every single sentence, and the raw fury in my voice was impossible to ignore.
The crowd of onlookers in the hallway swelled, people openly pointing fingers and whispering aggressively at Jessica.
"Oh my god, so she's the mistress? No wonder the wife is refusing to pay the medical bills."
"She literally stole their life savings to buy herself a house, and she actually showed up at the hospital? That is next-level psychotic."
"Honestly, the guy deserves to die in there. He destroyed his own family for a gold-digger."
Every whispered judgment felt like a sharp needle, stabbing into Jessica's skin.
Her face flushed a deep, humiliating crimson, then instantly went pale again. Her flawless makeup could no longer hide the sheer panic and embarrassment radiating off her.
She shot a desperate, pleading look at Mary for backup.
But Mary completely avoided her gaze, physically shrinking backward into the wall.
Now that the irrefutable proof was out in the open and everyone was watching, Mary had to seriously reconsider defending her "sweet, understanding" Jessica.
Because at the end of the day, the person who desperately needed that money to survive was her own son.
"Emma, stop it! You don't have to be so incredibly vicious. I'm sure Jessica didn't mean to..." Sophia finally tried to intervene, speaking in a weak mumble to defend Jessica.
I whipped my head around, glaring at her with eyes like daggers.
"Shut your damn mouth!" I snapped. "You guys knew they were sleeping together this whole time, didn't you?
"You knew exactly what he was doing when he wired her that money, didn't you?
"Your entire family completely conspired against me and played me for an absolute fool!"
All the betrayal, exhaustion, and fury I had suppressed all night violently erupted.
Sophia physically recoiled from my screaming, terrified into absolute silence.
Seeing that she had completely lost control of the narrative, Jessica realized she was not walking out of this looking like the victim.
She took a deep breath, forcing a mask of arrogant composure back onto her face. "Emma, I understand you are highly emotional right now, so I am going to let your insults slide.
"We can discuss the finances later. Right now, the absolute priority is saving David's life.
"You cannot let him die just because you're throwing a jealous tantrum!"
Unbelievable! She was actively trying to reclaim the moral high ground and play the saint again.
I stared at her, and suddenly, a wave of absolute, serene calmness washed over me.
Arguing with a sociopath was a complete waste of oxygen.
"You know what? You're completely right. Saving his life is the absolute priority right now," I said, nodding slowly. I looked her dead in the eye, a calculated smile spreading across my face.
"So, you need to return that three hundred thousand dollars immediately.
"And while you're at it, you should be the one covering the two-hundred-thousand-dollar surgical fee, shouldn't you?
"After all, he put himself in the ICU stressing over how to buy you that house.
"Legally and morally, that bill is entirely yours to pay."