“What now?”

The voice on the other end was tense.

“David, we’ve got a major problem.”

“Like what?”

“Three of our biggest corporate partners just sent notices terminating their contracts.”

David went still.

Those three projects were worth more than ten million dollars. If the contracts were pulled, the penalty alone would be close to a million.

His voice dropped.

“Why did they cancel?”

“I don’t know. They only said they received internal information about the company and decided to sever ties.”

David tightened his grip on the phone. His ears rang.

A one-million-dollar penalty could sink the business.

“I’m coming to the office now.”

He ended the call.

Megan stepped forward.

“What happened?”

“Problems at the company.”

Before anyone could say more, a nurse approached them.

“Mr. David, the bill for Allison’s examination hasn’t been paid yet.”

Megan instantly pulled out a credit card.

“I’ll cover it.”

The cashier ran the card.

“Transaction error.”

Megan frowned.

“Try again.”

The card was swiped a second time.

“Same result. It appears the card has been blocked.”

Megan stared in disbelief and produced another card. It failed too.

David felt something ugly shift in his gut. He took out his own card and thrust it forward.

“Use mine.”

The cashier swiped it. A red message flashed across the screen.

Account frozen.

David stared.

“That’s impossible.”

As if summoned by the screen itself, his phone rang again. This time it was the bank.

“Mr. David, due to an emergency injunction filed with the court, all accounts under your name have been temporarily frozen.”

For a second, David actually looked as though the floor had dropped out beneath him.

“Whose injunction?”

The answer came calmly.

“Catherine’s.”

That name hit him like a blow to the skull.

He stood motionless in the middle of the clinic hallway, and only then did he begin to understand that the woman he had looked down on for eight years had been preparing for this day far longer than he ever imagined.

And this was only the beginning.

Part 2

The corridor suddenly felt too narrow, too hot, too crowded for breath. The bank employee’s words echoed in David’s head, Applicant Catherine, as if the name itself had turned into a verdict.

Megan saw her brother’s face drain of color.

“David, what happened?”

He didn’t answer right away. He stood frozen for several seconds, then turned and looked toward the ultrasound room where Allison was still inside.

His gaze had gone completely cold.

Megan pressed harder.

“David, say something.”

His reply came out hoarse.

“My accounts are frozen.”

“What?” Megan nearly shouted. “How can they be frozen?”

Linda stepped forward, frightened.

“Son, explain properly.”

David drew a breath that did nothing to steady him.

“The bank said it’s by court order. Kate filed the petition.”

The air around them tightened all over again.

Megan actually sneered, though the expression looked forced now.

“What can that housewife possibly do?”

But she had barely finished speaking when David’s phone rang again. This time it was an unfamiliar number.

“David.”

A calm male voice answered, “My name is Steven. I’m an attorney. I represent Catherine.”

David’s grip on the phone hardened.

“An attorney?”

“Exactly. I’m calling to inform you that my client’s lawsuit has been accepted by the court. Pending litigation, the court has granted a motion to freeze your assets.”

David’s voice roughened into anger.

“What is she accusing me of?”

“Concealment and dissipation of marital assets during the marriage.”

David let out a bitter laugh.

“The condo and the car are my premarital property.”

Steven was unmoved.

“We have extensive evidence that you transferred more than two hundred thousand dollars from a joint marital account into your personal account and used it to purchase a condo for Miss Allison.”

David froze.

Megan, who had been listening to pieces of the conversation, snatched the phone from his hand.

“Hello? What kind of nonsense are you talking about?”

The lawyer didn’t raise his voice.

“We have bank statements, the purchase agreement, and security footage from the brokerage office.”

Megan’s face lost its color.

David grabbed the phone back.

“Are you threatening me?”

“No,” Steven said clearly. “We are simply exercising our client’s legal rights. The court will serve you with a summons within three days. We expect your cooperation.”

Then the line went dead.