"Liar!" She spat a sunflower shell onto the floor with venom. "Thaddeus says you've been hiding a secret stash. This divorce is happening today, no more stalling! Paulette is carrying a Gilbert heir, so you'd better clear out and make room."
The study door opened.
Thaddeus walked out with a stony expression, still wearing the shirt I'd ironed for him the night before.
He didn't look at me. Just tossed the papers onto the coffee table.
"Sign it."
I walked over and picked them up.
It was a divorce agreement. The house belonged to the husband. The car belonged to the husband. The savings belonged to the husband. The wife would leave with nothing, forfeiting all rights to marital property.
Not a single crumb left for me.
"Thaddeus," I said, looking at the man I'd spent three years of my life with. "I'm leaving. Does that make you feel even a little sorry?"
He let out a contemptuous laugh, then settled onto the couch beside his mother and lit a cigarette. Through the haze of smoke, his face looked warped.