After the divorce, he begged

Chapter 181

Timothy stared blankly, ‘Seriously? That's it?"

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Without another word, Jeffrey left the room and headed up to his top-floor office. He sank into his chair, staring

out the expansive windows at the steady stream of traffic below, a heavy sense of frustration settling over him.

He called Gregory with a few instructions, then briefed Stanley on what to keep an eye on. Finally, he dialed

Riley’s number, the tension in his chest still lingering.

“What's up?” Riley spoke with her usual laid-back tone.

“Amelia’s awake now,” Jeffrey said.

Riley froze.

“Not gonna csee her?” Jeffrey asked.

“When you think about it, Amelia and | are more like online acquaintances than anything else,” Riley mused,

leaning back comfortably. “It's been years... I'd be surprised if she even remembers havingas her disciple.”

“Does it even matter whether she remembers or not?” Jeffrey said quietly.

“You didn’t call just to chat about this kind of stuff, did you?” Riley said, sounding almost uninterested.

Jeffrey got straight to the point. “If Amelia tries to take Rebecca away, whose side will you be on?”

Riley stretched out the words. “Hmm, letthink...”

Jeffrey didn’t press her and just waited calmly.

“It depends,” Riley replied, her tone light and untroubled. “If I'm feeling favorable toward you, I'll stay neutral. If

not... I'll probably help Amelia. Consider it paying back what she taught me.”

“Understood,” Jeffrey said simply, and ended the call. He knew what Riley meant. She wouldn't interfere openly,

but if things got messy, she might tell Amelia about his plan.

Just as he hung up, Andrea's nflashed on his screen. She'd been calling nonstop all night.

Jeffrey hesitated for a moment before answering, “What is it?”

sok

Jeffrey hadn’t shown up at the hospital for days, but to be honest, Rebecca didn’t even care.

She'd taken the entire week off work just to stay by her mother’s side. She was spending every waking moment

with Amelia, guiding her through physical therapy and barely finding a second to think about anything else.

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Chapter 181

Even though Amelia kept insisting she was fine on her own, Rebecca refused to leave,

Now that her mom was finally awake, there was no way she was going to let her face the grueling.

monotonous routine of rehabs by herself. She just wanted to be with her mom.

After a few days, Amelia was almost back to her old self-chatting easily with Rebecca and moving around more

freely, though anything that took a lot of effort still gave her trouble.

One Friday after Amelia’s physical therapy session, Timothy cin to give Rebecca an update. “Your mother is

doing exceptionally well. Most patients wouldn't see this kind of progress in such a short time. It’s a real

testament to her physical strength.”

Rebecca's face lit up at the good news.

“We were expecting it to take about a month for her to walk normally again,” Timothy continued. “But now, it

looks like it'll only be half that time.”

Rebecca's smile faltered as she did the math. “Two weeks... Today is the 5th. If | don’t get those divorce papers

signed by the 12th, my application will be thrown out.

‘There's no chance Jeffrey will just letwalk away in the next seven days. If | push him now, who knows what

he’ll do to sabotage Mom's recovery?’

“Ms. Jensen?” Timothy called out, raising his voice a bit.

“Yes?” Rebecca snapped back to reality.

“After each round of therapy, try chatting with your mom a bit more,” Timothy suggested patiently. “It'll really

help fire up her brain and get her talking again—it’s good for her recovery overall.”

Rebecca nodded. “Got it.”

Timothy shared a couple more reminders before stepping out.

Following Timothy's advice, Rebecca started chatting with Amelia. After a while, Amelia suddenly asked, “Is

something bothering you?”

“I'm just worried about the divorce,” Rebecca said honestly, Jetting herself be Amelia's little baby for once. “If |

don’t finalize everything soon, the application's about to get canceled automatically. If that happens, I'll have to

redo the entire thing from scratch.”

Given how Jeffrey's acting these days, there was no way he’d agree to go through with it. And even if he did,

with another month to wait, who knew what could go wrong?

Amelia looked confused. “Wait, what? Divorce application... automatically canceled?” She'd always thought it

was just a matter of showing up with the right paperwork.

Rebecca started to explain, then suddenly realized everything. The mandatory “cooling-off period” for divorces

in this state was a new law that had been enacted while Amelia was in a coma. She quickly brought her

up to speed on how the 30-day waiting period worked.

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Chapter 181

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A look of complete bewilderment crossed Amelia’s face. “They can do that?” she asked, clearly thrown by the

concept.

“I only have seven days left before the application is canceled, Rebecca confessed, her voice thick with anxiety.

“I'm just scared of what he might do

“Don’t you worry,” Amelia said, her complexion remarkably youthful for her fifty years. “If the application lapses,

we'll get you the best lawyer money can buy, and we'll fight. | am not letting you stay trapped in that marriage.”

Rebecca chose her words carefully. “Jeffrey has a powerhouse legal team behind him.”

Amelia simply smiled, “So do I.”

Rebecca stared, genuinely taken aback.

“Once I'm fully recovered, I'll handle everything,” Amelia promised, holding Rebecca's hand tight. “All you need

to do is live your life the way you want, honey.”

“Alright,” Rebecca said, finally able to relax.

After a while, seeing Amelia caught up in her thoughts, Rebecca called out tentatively, “Mom?”

“Yeah?” Amelia responded, looking over.

Rebecca hesitated, then asked, “You and May... you weren't really orphans, were you?”

“No,” Amelia said, finally not hiding the truth. “I'll explain everything in detail later. But for now, just remember:

no matter what, I'm your mom, and | love you more than anything in this world.”

Amelia had kept all that stuff from Rebecca, wanting her to grow up in a blissful bubble. But after everything

Jeffrey put her through, Rebecca couldn't stay innocent forever.

“So, what's the story with you and Richard?” Rebecca asked.

“It was a mutual arrangement,” Amelia explained, her tone practical. “He needed a wife for his political image,

and | needed a husband to shield us from certain people. We were both upfront about it, signed a contract, and

got married.”

Rebecca nodded, a puzzle piece clicking into place. “That explains it. He was never really home. | always thought

they were just a busy, deeply-in-love couple. He was good to us, but his career always cfirst. And now his

distant behavior finally makes sense.’

“And the Jensen Group going under...” Rebecca mused. “Was that part of your agreement, too?”

“I let him know about all the risks and gave him plenty of advice,” Amelia said calmly. “But he wanted to do it his

way, so... that’s just how it ended up.”

Rebecca couldn't help but ask, “Why didn’t you ever start your own business?”

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Chapter 181

She thought. And who are these people Mom keeps mentioning? Is she talking about the Jensen family?

Amelia paused, then waved her hand dismissively. “Wasn't worth the effort.”

Secing Amelia wasn’t eager to discuss it, Rebecca let it slide. After chatting for a while, Rebecca said she’d head

back to Rebecca’s Manor to freshen up and change clothes. Amelia didn’t mind-she simply reminded her to stay

safe.

On the way back, Rebecca found herself unconsciously tightening her grip on her phone.

She wasn't just heading hto change clothes. She also needed to talk to Jeffrey about handing in her

resignation.

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