He Paid Half My Mother’s Surgery, Now I Own Half His Company Chapter 10

He Paid Half My Mother’s Surgery, Now I Own Half His Company Chapter 10

The divorce proceedings went quickly. 

The court clerk asked whether both parties were 

proceeding with the dissolution voluntarily. 

“I do,” I answered. 

Antony stayed silent for several seconds before 

saying, “I do.” 

Five years of marriage, reduced to a few thin 

sheets of paper. 

Outside the courthouse, Antony called my name. 

“Jessie.” 

I turned toward him. He held a jewelry box in his 

hand. Inside sat the gold bangle my mother had 

given me. 

“I tracked it down and bought it back from the 

resale shop. This belongs to you.” 

I didn’t take it. “Selling that bangle was my own 

decision. What Mom gave me was never just about the gold.” 

Antony’s fingers tightened around the box. “What 

about us… going forward?” 

I cut him off. “There is no ‘us‘. Mr. Fleming, from 

now on we only discuss business.” 

I turned and walked away. 

Mom waited for me on the steps below. Her 

health had improved drastically. She had even 

signed up for painting classes at the Southton 

Senior Center, twice a week. 

Spotting me, she held up her thermos. “Jessie, 

have some water.” 

I walked down the stone steps and took the bottle. 

Mom glanced over at Antony. “I almost wish I 

could slap him.” 

I blinked in surprise. “Mom, I never thought I would 

hear you say something like that.” 

She looped her arm through mine, breaking into a 

bright smile. “Let’s go home.” 

“Okay.” 

One month after the divorce was finalized, 

Fleming Group’s cash flow collapsed. Aventis Innovations was the first asset to go into liquidation. 

Shortly after, two flagship projects ground to a halt. Stock prices kept tumbling. 

Antony, who once controlled careers with a single word, was now forced to sit through endless investor pitches. But no investor wanted to prop up a company that had lost its core talent base. 

Some people asked if I felt triumphant. I thought it over and nodded. “It does feel satisfying. I capitalized on the opportunities he threw away.” 

Fleming Group’s fate was Antony’s own doing. He used to believe employees were easily replaceable. He convinced himself Jessie would be nothing without him. In the end, every irreplaceable person had been pushed out by his 

own hand. 

That same year, our Southton regional branch turned profitable. Linda was promoted to Regional Director. Henry scraped together a down payment on an apartment and moved his wife and baby to 

the city. 

At our team celebration, Linda raised her glass 

toward me. “Back at Aventis Innovations, when I 

stood up for you? I was absolutely terrified. I had a mortgage hanging over my head. I truly feared Mr. 

Fleming would fire me on the spot.” 

I clinked my glass against hers. “But now, we get 

to call all the shots ourselves. Let’s drink to us.” 

The road to finding yourself is always painful. But each of us holds the courage to rebuild our lives.