Chapter 990
Claire shut off the faucet and shook the excess water from her hands.
Madeline continued her relentless gloating. “Felix has always treated me like gold. Every single one of his friends knows exactly who I am. You, on the other hand? Almost no one even knows you exist.”
She let out a mocking, condescending laugh. “I actually asked Felix why he refuses to introduce you to his inner circle. Do you want to know what he said?”
Claire didn’t say a word.
Undeterred, Madeline answered her own question. “He said there was absolutely no point. He told me he was going to divorce you sooner or later anyway, so the fewer people who knew, the less of a laughingstock he’d be when it ended.”
Her laughter echoed a little louder against the tiles. “In Felix’s eyes, your entire marriage is nothing but a humiliating joke.”
“Everyone is just waiting to watch you make a fool of yourself.”
It was always the same pathetic, recycled trash. What a complete waste of time.
Claire turned on her heel to leave.
But Madeline lunged forward and grabbed her arm. “Why are you so obsessively clinging to a man who feels absolutely nothing for you? Are you really that dense? He doesn’t love you!”
Claire violently yanked her arm free, firing back with a chillingly cold smile. “Instead of wasting your breath barking like a rabid dog at me, maybe you should try putting out a little more effort in Felix’s bed. Convince him to actually agree to the divorce and marry you, instead of dragging out my divorce request time and time again.”
Madeline’s face went completely slack. “What did you just say? You asked for the divorce?”
She genuinely didn’t know?
Claire let out a sharp, mocking laugh, looking at Madeline like she was an absolute clown. “Did Felix really not tell you? I asked him for a divorce a long time ago. He’s the one desperately dragging his feet. When his grandmother finally cornered him, he was forced to sign the papers. We’re in the finalization period right now. We were supposed to make it official the other day, but he stood me up at the courthouse.” “Oh, right. I think he stood me up because you called him crying about something.” The color drained from Madeline’s face, leaving her looking downright sickly.
She had absolutely no idea they were actively in the middle of divorce proceedings! She had fully convinced herself that Claire was the pathetic, desperate wife refusing to let go, because Felix was such a massive catch.
She never imagined that the only reason they weren’t divorced yet was because of Felix!
Madeline’s fingers curled into fists, refusing to accept the bitter reality. “You’re lying to me, aren’t you?”
She just couldn’t fathom a world where Claire would willingly walk away from Felix.
Claire looked at her like she was the punchline to a pathetic joke. “It seems Felix doesn’t actually care about you nearly as much as you love to brag.”
“You’re quite the joke yourself.”
“You—” Madeline snapped, acting like a rabid dog whose tail had just been violently stepped on. She charged recklessly straight at Claire.
Claire simply took a half-step to the side, effortlessly dodging the attack.
Madeline practically slammed face-first into the tiled wall behind her.
Stumbling to regain her balance, she froze in place, her chest heaving violently.
Her meticulously contoured face was flushed an ugly, furious crimson from a mix of absolute humiliation and physical exertion.
Looking at Claire’s infuriatingly calm, untouchable expression-the way she was looking at her like a pathetic clown the venomous jealousy in Madeline’s eyes practically, materialized into a physical weapon.
She knew she couldn’t outmatch Claire in height or physical strength, and fighting her outright would end disastrously. Her eyes darted around the room, landing on the heavy solid wood bathroom door. In a fractions. of a second, a vicious, venomous plan cemented in her mind.
This was a restroom. There were absolutely no security cameras.
Gritting her teeth, Madeline suddenly spun around placing her back to Claire She deliberately shoved her own hand right into the door jamb, then violently threw her weight against the heavy wooden door, slamming it shut.
“Ah-!”
A bloodcurdling, agonizing scream shattered the quiet of the restroom. Madeline’s hand was crushed in the heavy frame, turning instantly red as dark blood began to pool beneath her fingernails and seep between her fingers.
She dramatically collapsed to the floor, the tears flowing instantly on command. Sobbing violently, she wailed in a fragile, broken voice, “Claire, why would you do this to me? I just wanted to talk to you…”