Chapter 5 - MARGARET CHOOSES A SIDE
Margaret arrived at Rebecca’s office two days later.
She did not have an appointment.
Rebecca’s assistant called me while I was reviewing school schedules in the conference room.
“Your mother-in-law is here.”
“Did she say why?”
“She says she wants to speak privately.”
Rebecca joined me moments later.
“Do you want her sent away?”
I considered it.
Then I remembered Margaret sitting at my dinner table while Ryan held Vanessa’s hand.
“No.”
Margaret entered carrying the same expensive handbag she had brought that night.
Her makeup was perfect.
Her posture was not.
She sat across from me.
“Claire, this has gone far enough.”
Rebecca looked at me but remained silent.
“What has?”
Margaret’s lips tightened.
“Taking the children away.”
“They were not taken away.”
“They belong in their home.”
“So did I.”
She looked down.
That landed.
“I did not approve of what Ryan did.”
“You knew.”
Margaret said nothing.
“You knew Vanessa was coming.”
“Ryan told me he intended to explain the situation.”
“Explain?”
My voice remained controlled.
“He brought his mistress into my dining room in front of Ethan and Sophie.”
“I told him the children should not be there.”
“But me?”
Margaret closed her eyes briefly.
“I thought your marriage was already finished.”
“Did Ryan tell you that?”
“Yes.”
“Did he also tell you we were trying to have this baby?”
Her eyes moved toward my stomach.
“No.”
“Did he tell you we attended marriage counseling six months ago?”
“No.”
“Did he tell you he still slept beside me every night?”
Margaret looked away.
The room became quiet.
Then she said something I had not expected.
“I was trying to protect my son.”
Rebecca spoke for the first time.
“From what?”
Margaret looked at her.
“From scandal.”
I laughed softly.
Margaret’s face tightened.
“It is not funny.”
“No.”
I looked at her.
“It is just remarkable.”
“What is?”
“That you were more worried about the embarrassment of Ryan having a mistress than what Ryan was doing to his family.”
Margaret’s eyes filled with anger.
“You do not understand the pressure he has been under.”
There it was.
The familiar defense.
Ryan worked hard.
Ryan carried responsibility.
Ryan provided.
Therefore, everyone else’s pain had to fit around his convenience.
I leaned back.
“Did you help him prepare for a custody case?”
Her expression changed.
Rebecca noticed.
So did I.
“Margaret.”
“I do not know what you mean.”
“Ryan spent months telling people I was unstable.”
“He was concerned.”
“About what?”
“You were emotional.”
“I was pregnant.”
“You called him repeatedly one evening.”
“He was missing from Ethan’s school performance.”
“You checked his location.”
“He told me he was at the office.”
Margaret stopped.
I continued.
“He was at the Fairmont Hotel.”
She said nothing.
“He was with Vanessa.”
Her face went pale.
That detail was new to her.
Rebecca opened a folder.
“Mrs. Bennett, did Ryan ever discuss documenting Claire’s behavior?”
Margaret’s silence was answer enough.
My chest tightened.
“What did he ask you to do?”
“He did not ask.”
“What did he suggest?”
Margaret stared at the floor.
“He said if you became difficult, we might need to remember incidents accurately.”
Rebecca’s voice sharpened.
“What incidents?”
“Arguments.”
“Which arguments?”
“I do not know.”
“There were none?”
Margaret swallowed.
“Not exactly.”
The room became completely still.
Ryan had been preparing witnesses for events that had not happened.
Rebecca leaned forward.
“Mrs. Bennett, I strongly recommend that you speak truthfully.”
Margaret looked at me.
For the first time, I did not see arrogance.
I saw fear.
“Ryan said the situation might become complicated.”
“How complicated?”
“He said he could not risk losing the children.”
My pulse jumped.
“When?”
“About two months ago.”
Before the dinner.
Before the separation.
Before I filed.
Ryan had already been planning a custody conflict.
Margaret whispered the next sentence.
“He said if necessary, there were doctors who could explain how pregnancy hormones affect judgment.”
Rebecca went perfectly still.
I felt cold from my scalp to my fingertips.
May you like
Ryan had not simply expected me to stay.
He had prepared for what would happen if I tried to leave.
