Chapter 2 - The Ice Age Begging
The first twenty-four hours were a blur of legal maneuvers and medical monitoring. Marianne was a woman of her word. By noon the next day, a family court judge—utterly appalled by the documentation of a husband abandoning his heavily pregnant wife for a tropical vacation using her own stolen funds—signed every single emergency order.
By 2:00 PM, locksmiths had replaced every entry point of the house with high-security, biometric deadbolts. By 3:00 PM, the forensic accounting team hired by Marianne had served a freeze notice to Ethan’s bank and the corporate accounts of Apex Exotic Motors.
I was sitting in my private suite at the labor center, sipping chamomile tea and watching the monitors track my daughter's steady, strong heartbeat, when the first tremor of the earthquake hit.
It was 4:15 PM in Cancún.
My phone didn't just ring; it practically exploded with activity. Ethan’s name flashed across the screen. I let it ring. It stopped, then immediately started again. Then came the text messages.
Nora! What the hell is going on? My Amex Black card just got declined at the resort restaurant. I'm standing here looking like an idiot in front of my mother and the staff. Answer your phone!
Two minutes later: Nora, this isn't funny. I tried to transfer funds from the corporate account and the app says access denied. Call the bank right now and fix this! You must have messed up the bill payments again.
I watched the screen with a detachment that surprised me. For months, messages like this would have sent me into a panic, desperately apologizing, scrambling to fix whatever perceived mistake I had made to keep the peace. Now, I felt absolutely nothing.
Then, Diane’s number popped up. I decided to answer. I wanted to hear the exact moment the realization hit them.
"Nora!" Diane’s screech was so loud I had to pull the phone an inch away from my ear. "What have you done? We are at a five-star resort and we were just told our reservation is being cancelled because the card on file is frozen! They are threatening to call security if we don't provide an alternative payment method! Resolve this immediately!"
"Hello, Diane," I said, my voice smooth and calm. "How is the weather in Cancún?"
"Don't you dare take that tone with me, you ungrateful little girl!" Diane gasped, her voice shaking with rage. "Put Ethan's money back where it belongs! He works himself to the bone to provide you with that roof over your head, and you pull a petty stunt like this because your feelings are hurt?"
"Ethan's money?" I let out a soft, melodic laugh. "Diane, look at your son. Ask him about the $450,000 he stole from my father’s trust. Ask him about the forged signatures. The money paying for your ocean-front suite, your flights, and that expensive designer sunhat you're probably wearing right now belongs to me. Or rather, it used to. Right now, it belongs to a court-ordered escrow account."
There was a sudden silence on the other end, followed by the sound of shuffling and muffled arguing. Ethan’s deep, panicked voice took over the line.
"Nora? What are you talking about? What trust? That was a temporary business loan, we were going to discuss it—"
"A loan requires two consenting parties, Ethan. Forgery is a felony," I interrupted coldly. "By the way, your corporate bank accounts aren't just frozen. The District Attorney has already been notified of the identity theft and bank fraud. I believe your business partners at Apex are currently receiving automated alerts about the suspension of your corporate licensing."
"Nora, please!" Ethan’s voice cracked, the arrogant bravado entirely gone, replaced by a raw, desperate panic. "You can't do this. It will ruin me. The dealership will tank overnight if the manufacturers find out about a fraud investigation! We can talk about this! I'll catch the next flight back!"
"Oh, don't rush on my account," I said sweetly. "You told me to call an ambulance if I went into labor, remember? You told me not to make everything about myself. So, I'm taking your advice. I'm focusing entirely on myself and our daughter."
"Nora, listen to me—"
"Goodbye, Ethan. Oh, and one more thing," I added before he could speak. "Don't bother going back to the house when you return. The locks have been changed, the security codes rewritten, and a sheriff’s deputy is currently stationed at the gate with a temporary restraining order. If either of you sets foot on the property, you'll be arrested for trespassing."
I hung up before he could utter another syllable.
Within minutes, my phone began ringing again, a relentless barrage of calls from Ethan, Diane, and even Ethan's business partner, Marcus. I calmly tapped the screen, blocked every single one of their numbers, and handed the device to Marianne, who had just walked into the room carrying a fresh stack of legal documents.
"They're panicking," Marianne said with a sharp, satisfied smile. "My office just received a frantic call from a local attorney in Cancún trying to figure out how to unfreeze a corporate card so they don't get thrown out of the resort. I told them we don't negotiate with felons."
"Are they stuck there?" I asked.
"Well, their return flights were booked on the corporate Amex, which is now completely useless," Marianne chuckled, sitting down beside my bed. "Unless Diane has some secret cash hidden in her designer beach bag, they’re going to have a very difficult time finding a way home. And when they do get back... they’re going to find out that the world they built on your back has completely disintegrated."
Just then, a sharp, undeniable wave of pain ripped through my abdomen. This wasn't a Braxton Hicks contraction. It was deep, radiating from my lower back, gripping my entire torso in a vice-like hold. I gasped, grabbing Marianne's hand.
May you like
The monitor next to the bed began to beep in a rhythmic, accelerating tempo.
The nurse rushed into the room, looking at the printout. She looked up at me with a warm, reassuring smile. "Well, Nora, it looks like your daughter has impeccable timing. This is the real deal. You're in labor."
