My Husband Claimed He Was On A Business Trip. I Found Him At The Hospital With My Pregnant Best Friend. Little Does He Know, I Just Cut Him Off From Every Penny He Ever Stole. What Should I Do Next?

Chapter 1: The New York Morning & The Chicago Lie

That morning, New York City seemed grayer than usual. However, my mood was quite the opposite. I, Sarah, was busy adjusting the tie of my husband, Richard, who stood imposing before the large mirror in our master bedroom. This luxurious Upper East Side penthouse had been the silent witness to our happiness during five years of marriage, or at least that is what I believed until that moment.

“Honey, are you sure you do not want me to pack you something for the road? The drive to Chicago is quite long,” I offered gently, patting his broad chest.

Richard smiled—a smile that always managed to melt my heart. He kissed my forehead for a long moment.

“No need, my love. I am in a hurry. The client in Chicago requested an urgent meeting for tonight. This project is very important for my portfolio, you know. I want to show your father that I can succeed without the shadow of your family’s great name.”

I nodded, feeling proud. Richard was certainly a hardworking husband, though in reality, all the capital for his business, the Cadillac Escalade he drove, and even the designer suits he wore had all been purchased with my money. This was money from the dividends of the company I inherited from my parents, which I now ran. But I never gave it any importance. In a marriage, the wife’s assets are also the husband’s, are they not?

“Be careful, darling. Let me know when you get to the hotel,” I asked.

Richard nodded, grabbed the car keys, and left. I watched his back disappear behind the carved oak door. A strange feeling crept over me, a small premonition that I quickly dismissed. Perhaps it was just the nostalgia of being alone for a few days, I thought.

Chapter 2: The Hospital Visit

That afternoon, after finishing several meetings at the office, my thoughts turned to Lauren, my best friend since college. Yesterday, Lauren had messaged me to say she was hospitalized in a town upstate, Havenwood, after an emergency appendectomy. Lauren was a sweet woman who lived alone in a strange town. I often helped her; even the small house she occupied in Havenwood was one of my properties, and I let her live there rent-free out of compassion.

“Poor Lauren, she must feel so lonely there,” I murmured.

I looked at my watch: 2:00 p.m. My afternoon schedule was empty. An idea suddenly sparked: why not go visit her? Havenwood was only a couple of hours away by car, and there was no traffic. I wanted to surprise her, bring her favorite chicken noodle soup and fresh fruit.

Without another thought, I called my personal driver, John. But then I remembered John had taken a sick day, so I decided to drive my beloved red Mercedes myself. The drive to Havenwood was peaceful the whole way. I imagined Lauren’s joyful face when she saw me arrive. I also planned to call Richard at night to tell him I was in Havenwood visiting Lauren. Surely Richard would praise me for being a noble-hearted wife.

At 5:00 in the afternoon, I arrived at the parking lot of an elite private hospital in Havenwood. Lauren had told me she was in VIP room 305. I found it a bit strange. Lauren did not work; where did she get the money or insurance to afford such a luxurious VIP room? But my positive thoughts took over again. Perhaps she had savings, or, well, I would just pay the bill, I decided internally.

Chapter 3: The Secret in Room 305

With a large fruit basket in my hand, I walked through the hospital corridors that smelled of antiseptic but still felt luxurious. My steps echoed softly on the marble floor. My heart beat slowly, not out of fear, but out of excitement to see my friend. The elevator chimed on the third floor. I stepped out and looked for number 305.

The room was at the end of the hall in a secluded and quiet area. When I was about five steps from the door, I stopped. The door to room 305 was slightly ajar; perhaps a nurse had not closed it properly when leaving. I was about to knock, but the sound of laughter from inside stopped my hand in midair.

“Open your mouth, honey. Here comes the airplane.”

It was a man’s voice—a terribly familiar voice. It was the voice that had said goodbye to me that very morning to go to Chicago. My blood ran cold. The fruit basket in my hand suddenly felt incredibly heavy.

It could not be. My mind denied it. Maybe Richard had stopped by here, but he said he was going to Chicago in the opposite direction. With trembling hands, I gathered my courage and moved closer to the crack in the door. I held my breath and tried to look inside.

The scene I saw destroyed my world in an instant. On the hospital bed, Lauren was sitting up looking fresh, wearing satin pajamas, not a hospital gown. Her face was not pale at all. And next to her, sitting on the edge of the bed, was Richard, my husband.

Richard was feeding Lauren pieces of apple. Richard’s gaze—that gaze was the same one he gave me when we were newlyweds: full of love, of adoration.

“My little wife is so spoiled,” Richard said softly, as he wiped a bit of food from the corner of Lauren’s lips with his thumb.

My wife? My world collapsed. I felt my legs weaken and had to lean against the wall to keep from falling.

“That word ‘my wife.’ Honey, when are you going to tell Sarah?”

Lauren’s voice was coquettish, a little whiny.

“I am tired of having to hide like this, love, and especially now that I am a few weeks pregnant. Our child needs to be acknowledged.”

Chapter 4: The Parasite and the Queen

Pregnant? Our child? I felt as if a bolt of lightning had struck my heart. My eyes burned; tears wanted to fall, but the shock kept me frozen. Richard placed the fruit plate on the bedside table, then took Lauren’s hands and kissed them repeatedly.

“Be patient, my love. You know my situation. If I ask for a divorce now, I could lose everything. Sarah is smart; all the assets are in her name—the car I drive, this watch, even the capital for the last project. It is all her money.”

“But we have been secretly married for two years, Richard. Are you going to keep being a parasite to her? You said you were a man with a lot of pride.”

Lauren pouted. Richard chuckled.

“Precisely because of my pride, I need to build up capital first. I am siphoning funds from Sarah’s company into my personal account little by little through overbilling on phony projects. Be patient. As soon as our savings are enough to buy a new house and start our own business, I will kick Sarah to the curb. Besides, I am sick of pretending to be sweet to her. She is too overbearing, not like you, so submissive.”

Lauren let out a crystalline laugh.

“All right, my Richard is the smartest. Hey, is the house in Havenwood safe? Sarah will not reclaim it?”

“It is safe, darling. The deed is not in my name yet, but Sarah is a fool. She thinks the house is empty. She does not know that the poor friend she is housing is actually the queen in her husband’s heart.”

They both laughed—a laugh that sounded like the devil’s voice in my ears. I backed away slowly. I could not breathe, as if the oxygen in the hallway had been sucked out by their wickedness. I wanted to throw the fruit basket in their faces. I wanted to break down the door, rip out Lauren’s hair, and slap Richard until his teeth fell out.