Forsaken Bonds

The assistant hesitantly replied, "I assumed Mr. Smith would've told you."

He was reluctant to bring up such a tragic matter, knowing it would only rouse Nicky's anger.

After a long silence, Nicky finally looked at me and questioned, "Why didn't you tell me something happened to our daughter? I didn't even get to see Tara one last time!"

I slapped her hard and yelled, "You're the one who stopped Tara's treatment. You killed her!"

Nicky stumbled back and looked at me in shock. "That's impossible. The doctors said her condition was stable. I only paused the treatment for one day. How could she have died—"

Suddenly, it seemed as if something clicked in her mind, and she looked at me suspiciously.

"You and my assistant must've set this up, right?"

I slapped her again.

"Who do you think you are? Do you think I'd use my daughter's life to deceive you? Tara couldn't go a day without her medication and the breathing machine. The night you halted her treatment, she spiked a high fever and had convulsions.

"I called you endlessly, searched everywhere for you, but you were nowhere to be found. You and Ryan were in Antarctica enjoying the aurora when Tara died. How could you call yourself Tara's mother?"

Her face turned ashen, and she collapsed.

Ryan rushed over to support her, snapping at me, "Jensen, Nicky's hurting too. Stop hounding her."

My eyes burned with hatred as I grabbed him by the collar and punched him repeatedly. "If it weren't for you, Nicky would never have stopped Tara's treatment. I'm going to teach you a lesson you'll never forget!"

Ryan tried to shield himself and pleaded to Nicky for help, but she remained slumped on the floor.

After giving Ryan a thorough beating, I grabbed my bag and walked out.

I swore to myself that I would never let them get away with it so easily.

Once I returned home, I compiled all the videos I recorded from the incident along with screenshots of Ryan flaunting his relationship with Nicky on social media, and posted it all online.

I even spent 1,500 dollars to boost my post, ensuring it became a trending topic.

Later, I lay in bed while holding Tara's photo. I was exhausted but unable to sleep.

Over the past year, I had been completely drained, torn between caring for a sick daughter and the pain of Nicky's betrayal.

When I first discovered her affair with Ryan, I had asked for a divorce.

It hurt, but only for a moment.

However, Nicky protested furiously.

"Jensen, we've been through so much together. You've stuck with me through hard times. My staff knows that well. If I dump you now, what would everyone think of me? Not only would it ruin my reputation, but it'd damage the company as well."

I was beyond disappointed. "Nicky, why should I care about your reputation or the company's image? You should've known the consequences."

However, Nicky used Tara's medical costs to control me, and for Tara's sake, I kept giving in, only for her and Ryan to push the limits even further.

Since Nicky was so afraid that a divorce would ruin her reputation and the company's image, I decided to expose her affair online to see how she would handle it.