Chapter 6
Chapter 6
Hayes didn’t wake up in the hospital until the next afternoon.
The sharp, antiseptic smell hit him first, and the blinding white ceiling above made his head spin.
He struggled to sit up but failed. Every muscle of his ached like he’d been run over.
“You’re awake?” A weary, elderly voice rang from beside the bed.
Hayes turned his head and saw his mother, Janet, sitting by the bed. Her face was gaunt, her eyes puffy and red.
“Mom…” His throat felt like sandpaper.
“Thank God you’re awake…” Janet wiped away her tears. “The doctor said it was a stress-induced breakdown from overwork. Nothing serious. You just need rest.”
Hayes remained silent, feeling no relief at surviving-only complete desolation.
Rest? Like he could just lie here while his whole life burned to the ground.
No company. No money. Soon, no roof over their heads.
“Mom, I…” He wanted to ask about the family, but the words stuck in his throat.
Janet seemed to read his mind. She sighed, “Hayes, is it true? Has Chelsea really taken the company from you?”
Hayes nodded in bitter humiliation.
Janet pressed. “And… what about the house? Our home?”
“I-it’s gone too.” Hayes kept his head low.
Janet swayed like she might pass out. “Then where are we going to live now? And that girlfriend of yours? Where is she while you’re lying here?”
Vivian’s name hit like a knife between the ribs. Hayes squeezed his eyes shut, unable to bear thinking about her right now.
Janet took one look at his face and pieced it all together. “I knew that bitch was nothing but trouble!” she exploded. “I told you not to divorce Chelsea, but you wouldn’t listen! Now you’ve got nothing! It’s all her fault!”
While cursing, she kept pounding Hayes’ arm, as if to let years of pent-up resentment out with each blow.
Hayes just sat there and took it, feeling hollowed out.
This mess was all on him.
If only he hadn’t been such an idiot. If only he’d appreciated Chelsea’s devotion. If only…
But life didn’t do take-backs.
After a few days in the hospital, Hayes’ body had shown some improvement, but he looked much worse.
He received a court summons. Chelsea had got an eviction order, demanding that he immediately vacate the house and comply with the final transfer procedures.
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Chapter 6
Then the bank notices started arriving. All those personal loans he’d signed for the company were now his problem alone, as he didn’t own the company anymore.
To make things worse, the meager compensation left in his account-after covering medical bills and other random expenses-had nearly dried up.
He and Janet were about to be homeless and broke as hell.
Desperate, Hayes thought of Chelsea again.
He knew that turning to her now would only invite humiliation.
But he really had no other choice left.
He’d get on his knees if she’d just throw him a lifeline.
Clutching at his last shred of hope, he dragged his frail body back to the company building once again.
He tried to enter to find Chelsea, but was stopped by security.
“Sorry, sir. Without an appointment or an employee badge, I can’t let you in,” the security guard said, his expression completely blank. They had already been briefed-Hayes was no longer with the company.
“I’m here to see your chairwoman! Let me in!” Hayes attempted to force his way past the guards.
Several security guards surrounded him, their stance firm. One of them said, “Sir, please don’t make this difficult for us.”
Hayes stared through the glass door at the office he used to rule. The place felt alien now-his former colleagues, who once fawned over him, now pretended not to see him standing there. Humiliation washed over him.
He refused to accept this.
He planted himself at the company entrance, waiting for Chelsea to show.
Just as he’d anticipated, there Chelsea was at dusk.
She walked out with several senior executives in tow, discussing something with a composed, self-assured smile.
“Chelsea!” Hayes desperately charged forward and cut her off.
Chelsea’s brows knitted at the sight of him, but her composure returned almost instantly. The senior executives behind her halted mid-step, eyeing Hayes with visible wariness.
“Can I help you, Mr. Quinn?” Chelsea’s tone remained detached.
“Chelsea, I’m begging you-please, just give me a break!” Hayes pleaded, his voice cracking with desperation, all pride abandoned. “I know I was wrong. I swear I’ve learned my lesson. Just give me back a tiny stake in the company, or… lend me some money to get back on my feet. Please! You can’t leave me with nothing!”
He even tried to drop to his knees, but security yanked him back up.
Passersby turned their heads, pointing and whispering about the scene.
Chelsea looked at this disheveled, dignity-stripped man before her, feeling nothing. She even found the whole scene darkly amusing.
Chapter 6
He should’ve known better than to betray.
“Mr. Quinn,” she said, her voice low but razor-sharp, “the moment you signed those divorce papers, we were done. The company and the money are both mine. I owe you nothing and have zero interest in helping you any further.”
“As for the trouble you’re in…” She paused, her gaze icy. “It’s the price of your betrayal and greed. You made your bed-now
lie in it.”
“How can you be so cruel?” Hayes roared in despair. “We were married! Doesn’t that mean anything to you?”
That got a real laugh out of Chelsea. “Oh, it meant so much when you forced me out with nothing while embracing Vivian. When you stole company funds to buy her luxury stuff. You torched whatever we had first, Hayes.”
Her voice stayed calm but carried. Each word hit like a slap.
Hayes was struck dumb, his face drained of all color.
Without another glance, Chelsea turned to security. “Next time he comes to bother me or any employee, call the cops.”
She strode past Hayes, leading the company’s executives straight to the parking lot.
Her heels clicked away, that steady, crisp rhythm fading.
Hayes watched her go, her straight-backed confidence a stark contrast to his own disheveled state.
He knew it then-he’d lost his last hope.
Chelsea would never look back.
She had completely cut him out like a tumor.
The stares and whispers around him burned.
Unable to bear it any longer, Hayes covered his face in shame and fled the scene like a kicked dog.
Night fell as he wandered the city streets. All those bright lights and happy people only made the hole in his chest bigger.
He scrolled through his contacts, only to realize there wasn’t a single soul he could confide in or turn to for help.
Those fair-weather friends who used to flock around him when he was riding high now scrambled to avoid him the moment they heard he’d fallen on hard times.
His family was even worse. They either mocked him or gave him that “karma” crap.
He finally understood what it meant to be forsaken by all.
And this was all his own doing.
Remorse gnawed at him like poison, but he knew it was far too late for regrets.
It seemed as if his life had reached a dead end.
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8:03 pm
