Tears of RegretChapter 1

The economy tanked, and my husband’s salary was slashed from ten thousand a month to just two thousand.

Right around that time, our daughter was diagnosed with a severe heart condition.

To cover the crushing medical bills, I took out loans to fund his new business venture. It failed, leaving us with nothing.

"Honey, I'm so sorry!" he cried, standing on the edge of a rooftop, ready to jump.

I ran to him, sobbing, and threw my arms around him. "It's okay," I promised. "We'll get through this together."

We spent the next seven years surviving in a cramped, damp basement apartment.

Our daughter died in my arms because we couldn't afford the five-thousand-dollar dose of the specialty drug that could have saved her.

Then, I ran into one of his old colleagues.

"Eleanor, congratulations! I heard Macaulay's been getting raises every year. And that pharmaceutical company he started is worth billions now!"

I stood there, clutching our daughter's ashes, the blood draining from my face.

The man didn't notice my expression. He just kept gushing. "His first love, Isabelle, is a single mom with a sick daughter, you know. For the past seven years, Macaulay's been anonymously sending her ten thousand dollars a month. He even spent a fortune developing that five-thousand-dollar specialty drug and has been giving it to her daughter for free, an unlimited supply..."

* * *

"You're so lucky, Eleanor! A man who's so loyal to his past but respects the boundaries of his present? You couldn't find a better guy if you tried!"

I couldn't process his words. I just asked for the address and stumbled my way to the gleaming headquarters of Macaulay's company. As I reached his office door, I heard voices from within.

"Mr. Vance, about Isabelle. We have her on the payroll, but she only comes in for one meeting a week. The reports we generate for her are never used, and after taxes and insurance, her salary is still over twenty thousand a month. Are you sure you want to give her another raise next month?"

The secretary paused. "Also, your wife came by last week. She was on her knees, begging one of our reps to let her have a single dose of the specialty drug on credit. I think she really needs it..."

Macaulay cut her off, his tone leaving no room for argument. "Isabelle's salary will be increased every month. And that drug has an extremely limited production run right now; her daughter's needs come first. She's had it so hard all these years, raising a sick child on her own. A stable income and a guaranteed supply of medicine are the least I can do to give her peace of mind."

He took a breath. "As for my wife… don't worry about her for now. Our daughter's had this condition for years; it can't be that severe. Keep this quiet from both of them. Isabelle has a good heart. If she knew the truth, she'd feel guilty, and I don't want that."

My hand trembled on the doorknob, a chill seeping into my very bones.

To raise the money for his "failed" business, I had borrowed from every single one of my relatives. I still hadn't paid back a cent, and they treated me like a ghost. For seven long years, I'd shouldered every burden, never wanting to add to his stress. Our daughter had been on the brink of death so many times, and I had sat by her hospital bed alone, even when I was burning up with a 102-degree fever. I knew the pattern of the tiles on that hospital floor better than I knew my own reflection.

The pittance he brought home each month didn't even cover the basic medical co-pays. I lived on less than a dollar a day, scavenging for scraps from the market, even selling my plasma, just to keep our expenses under fifty dollars a month. In the dead of winter, I would drag our daughter out to the streets to sell trinkets from a small cart, constantly running from the cops.

I remember once, she begged for a piece of cake. I broke my own rule and spent four dollars on a small slice for her. When Macaulay found out, he lectured me for wasting money.

And all the while, he was secretly wiring ten thousand dollars a month to another woman. Setting her up with a cushy, no-show job, complete with benefits.

I had nothing. And I couldn't even save my daughter.

Then, I heard his cold voice again from inside the office. "Isabelle is a good woman. She knows I'm married and has refused my help time and again. This is the only way I can support her without her knowing. Besides, I founded this company for her. Until the drug is in mass production, no one gets it before her daughter. Not even my own."

My heart felt like it had been ripped open. The dam of my emotions finally broke.

I threw the door open.