Chapter 66: Compensation for Emotional Distress
“You don't have to answer right away. Take all the time you need.” Ryan didn't press her, only turning up the heat in the car.
The car drove smoothly toward Sophie’s apartment. Evelyn looked out at the speeding streetlights. The neon stretched across the glass in long, blurry streaks, reflecting the distorted, wasted years of her marriage.
The only sound in the Maybach was the soft hum of the tires on the asphalt.
The car stopped outside Sophie’s building. Ryan pulled a heavy, textured business card from the compartment, took a pen, and scribbled a long number on the back.
“This is my private number,” he handed the card to Evelyn. “If you need anything, at any hour, call me.”
Evelyn gripped the small card. “Thank you.”
Sophie was waiting anxiously by the entrance. The moment Evelyn stepped out, Sophie rushed to steady her, giving Ryan a fiercely scrutinizing look.
“Thanks, but our Evelyn isn’t just anyone you can touch casually,” Sophie snapped, protective as a mother cat.
Ryan merely smiled faintly, his gaze bypassing Sophie and settling on Evelyn. “Take care of her.” He then got back into the car, and the Maybach silently drove away.
“My God, Evelyn, tell me everything! Who was that man? He was practically devouring you with his eyes!” Sophie demanded the moment they were inside the apartment.
Evelyn slipped off her shoes and collapsed onto the sofa. “Just… an investor, I guess.”
“An investor? Investing in what? Investing in you leaving that bastard Damian? I’d support that one hundred percent!”
Evelyn didn’t reply, just closing her eyes. Ryan’s words echoed in her mind: If you want, I will settle my affairs quickly and take you away.
It was her escape route. Her final card.
But she refused to leave in shame. She had two months left until her pregnancy became obvious. She wouldn't hide like a rat anymore. She would fight back against Damian Green and this utterly rotten marriage.
Just then, her phone lit up.
[I’m Octavia. Meet me tomorrow at 3 PM at the Plaza Hotel coffee shop. I have things I want to discuss with you.]
Octavia Green, Damian’s mother. The woman who, from the start, scrutinized her and deemed her common background unworthy of the Green family. For eight years, they had barely interacted outside of mandatory family events.
Evelyn’s heart sank, her instinct screaming to run. Hide? How much longer? Since she decided to face the fight, Damian’s mother was a necessary obstacle.
She handed the phone to Sophie. Sophie read the text and immediately bristled. “That old witch! What does she want now? Absolutely not, you can’t go alone!”
“I’m not going alone.” Evelyn looked up at Sophie. “You’re coming with me.”
The next day, 3 PM, Plaza Hotel coffee shop.
Octavia was already seated by the window in a Chanel suit, her hair perfectly coiffed, her diamond necklace sparkling coldly. She frowned the moment she saw Sophie standing beside Evelyn.
“Afraid I’d hurt you? You brought backup?”
“Sophie is my friend,” Evelyn said calmly, pulling out a chair. “She wanted to come, and I wouldn’t leave her at home.”
A flash of annoyance crossed Octavia’s face, but she decided not to press the issue. “Evelyn, let’s stop pretending. Your marriage to Damian is over.”
“Before, you could at least function as a presentable housewife. But now? Look at the scandal you’ve caused. You are a stain on the Green family, a liability to the Omni Group.” Her eyes were like razors. “Damian is the CEO of Omni. His future is boundless. You stopped being worthy of him a long time ago.”
Sophie was about to explode, but Evelyn held her hand still.
Evelyn’s heart was silent. Unworthy? Yes, she’d sacrificed her education, her dreams, and her chance to be a top designer for his career. And this was her reward: “unworthy.”
Octavia seemed pleased with Evelyn’s silence. She took a check from her Hermes bag and slid it across the table.
“This is ten million. Take this money, divorce Damian, and disappear. The further the better. It’s best for everyone.”
Ten million.
Evelyn looked at the flimsy piece of paper. She remembered Octavia’s condescending questions about her family the first time they met. She remembered how Octavia flaunted her son’s success at every family gathering while ignoring her daughter-in-law’s efforts. She remembered trying to learn the rules of high society she never cared about, just to fit in.
In their eyes, all her sacrifice and dedication were nothing but a transaction with a price tag. That last thread of attachment to the marriage, to this family, was severed by this check.
Evelyn looked at the check and suddenly smiled. It was a light, desolate, and utterly resolute smile.
Before she could speak, Sophie snatched the check. “Ten million? Madam Octavia, you are so generous.” Sophie folded the check and stuffed it into Evelyn’s pocket. “We’ll take this money. But it’s not a severance package; it’s compensation for Evelyn’s eight years of lost youth and emotional distress!”
Octavia’s face darkened. “You!”
Evelyn stood up. “I will discuss the divorce with Damian.”
Outside the cafe, Sophie was still fuming. “That old witch is so cheap! Only ten million to get rid of you!” She hugged Evelyn. “But darling, don't lose both the money and the relationship. You have no future with that scumbag, so take the money. You deserve it.”
Evelyn nodded. “Thank you, Sophie.” She hailed a taxi. “Sophie, you go back first. I have something to do.”
“Where are you going?”
“To get what I paid for. I need to go home and give Damian a ‘surprise.’”
Sophie looked worried. “Are you sure you’ll be okay alone? Damian is a lunatic…”
“It’s fine,” Evelyn gave her a reassuring smile. “He still needs me for now. He won’t go too far. I’ll call you if anything happens.”