I stared into her eyes. I'd expected bitterness to flood through me. Instead, my heart was a stagnant pool. Nothing stirred. Not a single ripple.

When I said nothing, the smile on Mabel's face nearly cracked. "I stole Guy from you. You don't have anything to say about that?"

I reached up and pried her fingers off my chin, one by one, my gaze dripping with mockery. "Say what? You want me to throw a fit? Wail and beg? Not going to happen."

"You stole a piece of trash. Why would I be upset? Congratulations on recycling someone else's garbage."

Mabel hadn't expected that. The smile vanished entirely, replaced by raw fury burning behind her eyes. "Amber, a sharp tongue won't help you. You still couldn't protect your own child or your mother."

She stepped closer, her expression vicious. "And this baby? Don't think for a second you're keeping it."

The mention of my daughter sent a spike of pain through my chest. My nails dug into my palms until the skin nearly broke. My body trembled, and no words would come.

But that wasn't the reaction she wanted. Her lips curled again. "I've prepared a big surprise for you, sis. When you see it, you'll lose your mind."

Her heels clicked against the floor as she walked out.

I stared at the doorway long after she disappeared, her words circling through my head on a loop.

What was she going to do to my mother? What was she going to do to the baby inside me?

I couldn't let myself think about it, but the images clawed their way in anyway.

I didn't know how long I sat there before I realized my face was soaked with tears.

I wiped them away with a shaking hand, picked up my phone, and dialed the number.

My voice was hoarse, but every word came out razor-clear. "Wallace, get the divorce certificate processed and send it straight to James Group headquarters. And look into Mabel's financial records."

"I'll come for you the day after tomorrow."

After I hung up, I stared at the IV drip. Pain radiated from my stomach. The space where my heart should have been felt hollow, cavernous, wrong.

But the longer the pain lasted, the more numb I became. I closed my eyes. When I opened them again, nothing remained but cold resolve.

Discharge day came. I gathered my things and had barely stepped through the door when I saw Guy waiting outside, leaning against his car as if he'd been there a while.