As soon as I connected the call as instructed by the staff, Sean’s furious voice exploded from the other end.

“Andrea, have you had enough?” he snapped. “You leaked the call recording in the group chat, and now Brit is being cyberbullied so badly that she’s hospitalized. She almost lost the baby. Is that not enough for you?

“And now you’ve hired someone to pose as a court staff, saying you want to file for divorce? Do you have any idea how Brit feels? When she heard about it, she felt so guilty that she almost jumped off a building to make up for it. Do you have to push her to death before you’re satisfied?”

Listening to his agitated accusations, I finally understood. It wasn’t that he hadn’t received the court’s notice. He had simply assumed the divorce hearing notice was another one of my pranks.

Snapping back to my senses, I immediately shot back, “Brittany deliberately spread rumors about me and framed me, and you said it was my fault. Now that public opinion is turning against her, it’s still my fault? Let me remind you one last time, the hearing is real. If you–”

Before I could finish, he cut me off impatiently. “Enough! Andrea, I don’t have the time to play along with your nonsense. Brit is pregnant and emotionally unstable after all the backlash. She’s not fit to continue working right now. You shall handle her workload later, and tonight, make sure you attend the business dinners. Entertain the clients she’s in charge of.

“As long as you do a good job, I can overlook the jealousy-driven mess you caused before and keep your position at the firm.”

Hearing him issue the order like he was above me, I chuckled. He seemed to have forgotten that Brittany wasn’t the only one being cursed at yesterday. In this line of work, getting scolded by clients or even by the opposing side’s families was nothing unusual.

Back then, I had taken on several criminal defense cases. In one of them, I successfully reduced the defendant’s sentence by two years. The moment I walked out of court after the verdict, the victim’s family poured red paint all over me. They even beat me, calling me inhuman, accusing me of colluding with the criminal. At its worst, someone exposed my personal information online. Even my parents back home were dragged into it and publicly insulted.

At that time, I was so scared that I hid at home, too afraid to even turn on my phone. However, Sean acted as if it were completely normal. Not only did he offer me zero comfort, but he even blamed me for being overly sensitive. He said that since I chose to be a lawyer, I should learn to handle pressure and that emotional resilience was the bare minimum in this profession. If I couldn’t even endure that, I might as well quit and stop wasting time.

What I found ironic was that I had believed his manipulation back then. I thought I just wasn’t strong enough, so I worked myself to the bone with endless overtime. I even forced myself to smile when clients or opposing families insulted me, telling myself to endure it and be strong.

Brittany, on the other hand, had only been exposed in a client group chat and got a few harsh words thrown at her, yet Sean reacted as if the world was ending. Not only did he give her paid leave, but he even expected me to take over all her work.

Worst of all, he clearly knew I had just undergone surgery for a stomach condition caused by overworking and was still in recovery. And yet, he still wanted me to attend drinking engagements on her behalf. There were plenty of male lawyers in the firm, but instead of assigning any of them, he picked me, the one who had just had surgery.

To put it bluntly, he saw me as a convenient tool, so my health and my feelings did not matter. It seemed that when it came to love, people really did have a double standard.

Coming back to my senses, I no longer let his words manipulate me like before. Instead, I refused.

“Sean, I just had surgery, so I can’t drink. Besides, this is Brittany’s job. I have no obligation to take responsibility for it.”

The line fell silent. It was as if he couldn’t believe that I, the obedient workhorse who had always endured everything, would one day defy him.

Very quickly, his anger flared. “Andrea, I’m telling you, not negotiating with you. If I’m paying you a salary, you’re obligated to follow my orders!”

This time, though, I didn’t indulge him at all.

I shot back immediately. “Fine, then I quit. I’m not negotiating either. I’m just telling you.”

Without giving him time to react, I hung up.

After the hearing concluded, and I received the official judgment confirming the dissolution of my marriage with Sean, I immediately dialed an overseas number.

“Mr. Owen,” I said, my voice steady, “I’ll join your company.”

“Really? Andrea, have you finally made up your mind? This is great!”

On the other end of the call, Owen spoke with a noticeable Briellic accent. He sounded excited. I simply nodded, calm and composed.

I had met Owen during a cross-border case I handled for an overseas client. Back then, he was the defense attorney on the opposing side. At the time, I noticed clear signs of fabrication from the evidence his client had submitted. So, I immediately requested a recess and informed him of my concerns.

After hearing me out, Owen didn’t question my motives just because I was his opponent. Instead, he conducted a thorough investigation into his client’s materials and discovered that a large portion of the evidence had indeed been falsified. He immediately terminated the attorney-client relationship, protecting both his own reputation and that of his firm. Otherwise, if the truth had only come out after the verdict, his entire firm could have been blacklisted from the industry.

From that moment on, Owen took a strong interest in me, both in my integrity and my sharp instincts. He invited me multiple times to work overseas, offering me a position as a partner at his firm, along with a seven-figure base salary to support my living expenses. However, back then, I was still lost in the perfect illusion Sean had carefully spun for me.

All I wanted was to build a life with Sean, so I turned Owen down. Owen, though, didn’t get upset. Instead, he left me his personal number and told me that if I ever changed my mind, his firm would always welcome me.

Thinking back on it now, my choice back then wasn’t worth it. For Sean, I gave up a bright future. I spent seven years of my youth exhausting myself to the point of breaking, and in the end, I didn’t even make partner at his firm, nor did I ever receive the title of a legitimate wife. At this point, it was time to start thinking about my own life and have a fresh start in a new environment.

After hanging up with Owen, I immediately submitted my resignation to Sean through my phone. What surprised me was that Sean, who usually took forever to reply—sometimes even until the next day—approved my resignation instantly this time.

Just as I was wondering about it, a notification of a new post from him popped up on my screen. In the photos, he and Brittany were in a private room at a karaoke bar, holding hands. They were singing together, laughing, and he was even feeding her snacks.

I couldn’t help but let out a sarcastic laugh. No wonder he approved it so quickly. It was because he was busy on a date with her.

Sean had always been low-key and reserved. He barely posted on social media throughout the year. Even on our wedding anniversary or birthdays, he never shared a single photo. On the rare occasions he posted something work-related, he would carefully edit every image, making sure even the slightest corner of my clothing was cropped out as if being associated with me would embarrass him.

Yet, this time, he posted a full set of nine photos in one go. In the comments, Brittany openly showed off their relationship.

[I just wanted to sing to the baby in my belly, and my husband here canceled a case worth hundreds of thousands in legal fees just to keep me company and help me relax. Where can you find a husband like this?]

Looking at her smug expression in the photos, I laughed. Just earlier, Sean had told me she wasn’t feeling well—that she was emotionally unstable and couldn’t work. Now, she looked perfectly fine.

Besides, I vividly remember Sean hated karaoke bars. Back then, his biological father had met an escort in a karaoke bar, who later destroyed his family and ultimately led to his mother’s death. Because of that, Sean had never stepped into a karaoke bar again.

Even when clients offering million-dollar legal fees invited him, he would refuse. He would turn around and leave the moment he arrived at the door, choosing to lose the business rather than go inside. And now, just to make Brittany happy, he walked in without a second thought.

Love sure was powerful enough to make someone overcome even their deepest trauma. And he knew I could see all of this. Yet he still posted it, allowing Brittany to provoke me in the comments by calling herself his wife.

I knew he wanted me to get jealous and to apologize. Unfortunately for him, he had miscalculated.

Instead of contacting Sean, I dialed my best friend, Faye Green.

“Faye, it’s my treat tonight. Would you like to see your favorite model with six packs?”

Late at night, inside a private room, my best friend, Faye, had been absentmindedly tracing the lines of someone’s abs, but she suddenly seemed to remember something.

She quickly pulled out her phone, checked the time, and asked cautiously, “Andy, you haven’t reported your whereabouts to Sean for almost three hours now. Aren’t you afraid he’ll get angry?”

Seeing the hesitation in her eyes, I couldn’t help but let out a self-deprecating smile.

Back when Sean and I had just started dating in university, he told me that because of his family history, he feared and hated betrayal more than anything. He wanted me to keep him updated on my whereabouts every day so he could feel at ease. I pitied him, so I chose to comply. Even if I were just stepping out of the dorm to buy daily necessities at the supermarket, I would tell him immediately.

At the time, I thought that by cooperating like this, I could slowly soothe his wounded, sensitive heart. However, the truth was, his suspicion and need for control only grew worse. Especially after we got married, he demanded that I report to him every hour, no matter what I was doing. He even required me to plan out the next day in advance, of where I would go, what I would do, and how long everything would take.

Once, I had an upset stomach and spent five extra minutes in the bathroom without informing him right away. He immediately became paranoid. He even pulled up the law firm’s surveillance footage to verify whether I was lying or had betrayed him. Yet, he held himself to a completely different standard.

No matter where he went or what he did, he never reported anything to me. Sometimes, if I casually asked about his plans, he would fly into a rage, accusing me of trying to control his life and saying I didn’t trust him or love him enough.

Looking back at it now, I found it ironic. I used to foolishly believe it was because he had been hurt too deeply, and that I simply hadn’t given him enough sense of security and trust. However, I see now that there was something wrong with him.

I suddenly lifted my glass and downed the red wine in one go, completely unfazed.

“It doesn’t matter anymore,” I said. “We’re divorced. In a few days, the divorce certificate will be finalized. I have no obligation to care about his feelings anymore.”

Faye pinched her own cheek, wincing from the pain, and then threw her arms around me.

“This is amazing, Andy! You’ve finally come to your senses! I’ve disliked that b*st*rd Sean for a long time. To celebrate your escape from him, tonight is on me. Come on, cheers! To freedom!”

I clinked glasses with her.

Just as the sound of our glasses faded, a cold voice came from the doorway of the private room.

“Whose control are you trying to escape from?”