I lost count of the number of times I had called Sarah's phone number. I didn't lose hope that she would answer even one of my calls or one of the many messages I sent her since that document arrived, even though I knew she had blocked me after that encounter with Rachel in my office.
I remembered the disappointment, the repulsion, and the contempt in her eyes, and it was well deserved. I had hurt her in the worst way possible. I hated having to admit it, but I had shattered her noble heart that beat only for me.
"I will send you the divorce papers."
When she said that, I thought it was just an outburst on her part. I thought anger was speaking for her. When I saw her in the office, I considered telling her the secret that Rachel had been blackmailing me with for months.
I was going to apologize for betraying her in that way. I was going to end it when I got home. But I never thought she would be capable of asking for a divorce.
Until this moment when I had the document in my hand, reading it for the umpteenth time, line by line, looking for any clause that requested compensation for infidelity, for the two years of marriage, or perhaps claiming half of the belongings she was entitled to. Instead, I was surprised to find that she didn't want a penny.
She only wanted to divorce me. Period.
I felt increasingly irritated by the things I had done to the person who deserved it the least.
In a fit of frustration, I smashed the whiskey glass against the wall, shattering it into pieces just as my secretary appeared at the door with a frightened look.
"I said not to disturb me, what part didn't you understand?" I asked without a trace of kindness. I couldn't be kind when I was consumed by the flames of regret, guilt, and desperation for not being able to find Sarah.
I needed her to hear my reasons, no matter if she wanted to proceed with the divorce afterward. But at least I would have explained everything, even though cheating on her with her best friend had no forgiveness or justification whatsoever.
"I'm sorry, sir. Mrs. Amelia is here." Cristina began to explain in fear while looking at the shattered glass on the floor.
"Mrs. Amelia is the last person I want to see." I reluctantly said, not wanting to talk to my mother again after the way she had referred to my wife.
"That little girl only tarnished your image. No one knows about her background, but it's clear that she is poor, she's not at your level. You deserve something better."
"She probably found a better match."
"She's a gold digger."
She was nowhere near that. Sarah was the opposite of how my mother depicted her.
"Is that how you treat the person who gave you life?" And there she was, trying to test my patience and the little tranquility I had left.
I gave my secretary a stern look for disobeying my order not to receive any visitors. She had disobeyed me by letting my mother in, and she knew it. She lowered her head in an attempt to apologize, and I had to turn around and walk to the window, turning my back to the pair of women in my office. Otherwise, I would end up taking out my bad mood on Cristina, and it was not her fault for what I caused.
"I hope you're not like this because of the absence of that prude Sarah." I closed my eyes as I took a deep breath. I wanted to remain calm, but my mother's constant attacks on Sarah didn't help at all.
"Mom, please, don't talk about Sarah that way." I said with an icy voice, not giving her a single glance, although from her steps, I deduced that she had sat in the chair in front of my desk.
"I understand it all now. I'm sure that gold digger asked for an exaggerated amount of money to divorce you. I told you, she's nothing more than an opportunist. She only cared about your money." As soon as my mother said that, I turned to look at her without a hint of grace.
I saw her glancing at the divorce papers that I still didn't dare to sign, and I quickly took them from her hands, leaving her with a furrowed brow.
"No, she hasn't asked me for a single cent. She gave up her share as Mrs. Lancaster." Her expression immediately relaxed. She straightened her neck, and for a moment, I thought that with that, it was proven that she wasn't the interested party or gold digger that she claimed.
However, she continued with the attacks towards me... towards Sarah.
"At least she is aware that she is not entitled to a single dollar from the Lancaster family, but of course, she probably won't need your fortune anymore if she already has her next victim in sight."
I placed my hands on the table and looked at my mother, furrowing my brow, not knowing what the hell she was talking about. Her lips formed a grin and I could see a glimmer of malice in her eyes.
"What are you talking about?" I asked, containing the anger bubbling up in my system.
She took out her cellphone, after swiping her finger across the screen, she showed me a post on social media.
"Sarah Petit, new vice president of the prestigious Doinel fashion house."
The post was accompanied by a couple of pictures. In one, she was shaking hands with the renowned businessman, the man I've always admired, Leonardo Doinel. The second picture made my blood boil and my bad mood increase considerably. It was her, embraced with the brunette I had read a few news about.
I understood that he was Doinel's business partner, his name was Paul Dubois. Most of the news involving him mentioned scandals with women, he was an incorrigible womanizer and this was no exception.
"The ex-wife of Lancaster has set her sights on Paris' most eligible bachelor, will Paul finally settle down with the new vice president of the company he is associated with? Is Sarah Petit's second wedding approaching?"
I clenched my jaw, feeling really annoyed by what I was reading. I let out a tired sigh. Had she replaced me so quickly?
Sarah wouldn't be capable of doing such a thing, and if this was her way of getting back at me, I admit it had been the most painful blow I'd ever received.
Without wanting to read another word, I handed my mother back her phone. She received it with a satisfied expression, as if she was enjoying me finding out such a thing about Sarah.
"How do you expect me not to think she's a gold digger? It hasn't even been a week since she was kicked out of the Lancaster family and she's already found a new victim. Vice president of a company as prestigious as Doinel, in just a few days? It's clear that she's been taking you for a fool for a long time, she saw a better prey and divorced you."
That was a complete stupidity, that wasn't the real reason for our divorce. Sarah had eyes only for me, I noticed it in her constant dedication to being a good wife, and I ended up screwing it all up.
"Mother, thank you for your visit, I have things to do." I said, ignoring her malicious words and making my best effort not to lose my cool in front of my mother.
"I'm just trying to open your eyes, that social climber, opportunist never should have married you." She got up from her seat and I couldn't help but give her a scathing look.
"Don't refer to my wife in that way again, stop with your attacks." I snapped, sitting back down in my chair, and my mother smiled mockingly.
"Wife? Son, just sign those papers once and for all, do that favor for the Lancaster family. You don't want to continue being involved in gossip about the infidelity of the great Sarah Petit." She said with a mocking air and left my office without waiting for a response from me.
Without waiting for me to tell her that I was the one who had been unfaithful, and that was why she had sent me the divorce papers without even showing up, without knowing that I was the one who had failed.
I searched on my computer for any news related to Sarah. I needed to know where she was, I wanted to know how real the post my mother showed me was.