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 29: The Blue Room

They went up to the second floor via a narrow rusty iron spiral staircase. The room was ten by ten feet—small, very small for them. The walls were painted a faded blue; there were damp stains on the ceiling. The furniture consisted of a thin foam mattress on the floor, a plastic wardrobe with a crooked door, and a small fan that hummed loudly. The bathroom was even more depressing: a shower with a torn plastic curtain and a cracked, constantly running toilet.

Lauren took a step back, holding back her nausea.

“Richard, I cannot! I swear I cannot! It smells damp, the mattress is so thin my back will hurt, I am pregnant!”

Richard looked at the room with a broken heart. This was the lowest point of his life, but he looked at his wallet.

“Ma’am, here is the money. $400. One month’s rent and the deposit. We are moving in right now,” Richard said, handing the bills to Mrs. Carmen.

“Richard!” Lauren protested.

“Shut up, Lauren! Get in!” Richard shouted; his voice echoed down the hall.

When Mrs. Carmen left, Richard slammed the door shut, took off his tie, threw it on the floor, and collapsed onto the hard mattress. Lauren was still standing by the door, sobbing.

“You are so cruel! Why has our life become like this? Sarah! It is all Sarah’s fault!”

“Sarah’s fault?” Richard laughed cynically—a laugh that sounded like madness. He looked at the moldy ceiling.

“Yes, Sarah is brilliant. She did not just take our money; she took our dignity. Put us in this rat hole so we would devour each other.”

Meanwhile, back on the Upper East Side, Sarah was sitting in her cool, fragrant office. In front of her, Hector presented the latest report.

“Day one surveillance report, ma’am,” Hector said.

Chapter 30: The Hope of an Arrogant Person

Sarah sipped her chamomile tea.

“Read it to me.”

“Targets Richard and Lauren were seen checking into a cheap rooming house in the Bronx around 3:00 p.m. Room without air conditioning, densely populated environment.”

Sarah smiled slightly.

“The Bronx? That area has traffic jams, it is hot and noisy. An excellent choice for training patients.”

“Regarding the employment blacklist,” Hector continued.

“I have already discreetly spread information to the HR network of competing companies and business partners. The rumor is they are candidates with legal problems, embezzlement, and serious ethical violations. It is almost certain that no reputable company will dare to hire Mr. Miller.”

“Good. Also, make sure they cannot access online loans. Their data is already on the credit watch list for the unpaid cards, right?”

“Yes, ma’am. His credit score is disastrous.”

Sarah put down her teacup, stood up, and walked to the large window overlooking her pristine swimming pool.

“Hector, do you know what hurts an arrogant person the most?” Sarah asked without turning.

“Losing their fortune, ma’am?” Hector replied.

“No,” Sarah replied softly.

“What hurts the most is hope. The hope that they can still get up when we have already cut off their legs. Let them hope that tomorrow will be better, and then destroy that hope again the next day.”

“I understand, ma’am. Any additional instructions?”

“Send them a welcome gift to their new rooming house. A food package, but make sure the contents are something that reminds them of their past but with an insulting quality.”

“You mean we should send them two servings of chicken noodle soup, but only with the broth and noodles, no chicken or vegetables? And on the note, we write: ‘Diet menu for the new couple, sent anonymously by a delivery service.’”

Hector smiled slightly, a smile of admiration and fear for his boss.

“At your service. It will be done immediately.”

Chapter 31: A Gift from an Old Friend

The first night in their new home. At 8:00 p.m., loud music from the neighbor’s room blared through the thin walls. The air in the room was suffocating and humid; the small fan only moved the hot air around. Richard lay on his back, staring at the dusty blades. His stomach was rumbling; they had not eaten since noon.

“Honey, I am hungry,” Lauren moaned. She was facing away from him, curled up.

“Then go buy food! There are plenty of places at the entrance to the alley,” Richard replied brusquely.

“I do not want to go out! There were some weird guys looking at me earlier! You go!” Lauren complained.

Richard snorted, got up, and grabbed his wallet. He had about $800 left.

“What do you want to eat?” he asked sharply.

“I am craving sushi, or at least a pizza.”

Richard looked at her in disbelief.

“Are you crazy? A serving of sushi costs what we need to eat for a week here! Be realistic, Lauren. We are having kebabs.”

“I do not want street food! It is disgusting! Think about our baby!” Lauren started to cry again.

“When you were with Sarah, you bought her expensive food! With me, you are a cheapskate!”

“Sarah had her own money! You? You are just a parasite!” Richard shouted. His emotion exploded.

Lauren fell silent, stunned. Richard took a deep breath.

“I will buy you something decent, but not sushi. We will have fried chicken from a chain nearby.”

Richard left, slamming the door. In the narrow alley, he walked with his head down. He felt like everyone was watching him. When he returned with a bag of fried chicken, he saw a food package hanging on his doorknob. He frowned, took the bag. It smelled like homemade food. There was a note. He read it under the dim light of the hallway: Diet menu for the new couple, from an old friend who cares.

Richard’s heart pounded. He recognized the handwriting on the note; it was Hector’s handwriting, but dictated by Sarah. He opened the package with trembling hands. Indeed, inside was only a watery broth with a few noodles. No meat, no vegetables, nothing substantial. It was a humiliation—a symbolic message: You only deserve to eat leftovers.