Valerie let out a short laugh—quiet, sharp, and full of contempt. The sound made Ethan visibly uneasy. “Did you really think I’d let you treat me like a doormat?” she asked.
Then she turned to her husband, who had gone pale. “As for you, Parker,” she said, his last name cracking through the air like a whip, “you think you became some great doctor all on your own.”
“That diploma is not just your achievement. Not even close.” She rose slowly from her chair.
Every movement was controlled, though anger burned just beneath the surface. The hand still gripping the wrinkled papers lifted toward his face. “I earned that diploma too,” she said.
Her voice rose, loud enough to make not only her in-laws but nearby diners turn and stare. Valerie no longer cared. “Every dollar that got you to this day came from my work, my exhaustion, and my sacrifice.”
“Every textbook was bought because I went without. While you slept before exams, I was up before dawn baking orders for strangers.”
She pointed straight at his chest. “For seven years, you drained my time, my health, and my youth so you could hang that piece of paper on a wall.” Her breathing was heavy now, her eyes bright with fury.
“And now you say I’m not good enough for your status?” She laughed again, this time more openly. “On that point, you’re right…”
“I’m not on the level of a coward who dumps his wife on the day he gets his diploma.” Then she turned to Rita. “And I’m nowhere near the level of a mother who encourages her son to behave like this because she likes the social upgrade.”
Valerie picked up her modest handbag and spoke with measured calm. “You’re both going to regret tonight.”
Publicly humiliated, the new doctor shot up from his chair.
His face flushed red with anger and embarrassment. “Sit down. Right now. Stop making a scene,” he hissed.
“What exactly are you trying to do? Fight over property? We don’t have anything. You spent everything on my tuition, remember?”
Valerie only smiled, and something in that smile made him go cold. “Did you really think I was that naive, sweetheart?” she said. She pulled out her phone, ignoring the whispers around them.
Ethan froze. It had never crossed his mind that his wife might have seen this coming. Valerie calmly dialed a number.
“Hi, Mr. Marks. Sorry for the late call,” she said evenly. Ethan frowned.
“Attorney Marks? Who is that?” he asked suspiciously.
