Nick’s face filled the courtroom screen.
The image was shaky and slightly tilted, as though the tablet had been resting against something instead of held in someone’s hands.
Part of our kitchen table was visible.
So was the back of a chair.
Then Nick’s voice came through the speakers.
Clear enough that nobody had to ask what he had said.
“Once the surgery is over, I’m done pretending.”
A murmur moved through the courtroom.
My fingers went numb.
On the screen, Nick was pacing through our kitchen while talking, unaware that Chloe’s tablet was recording from across the room.
The video had apparently been made before my surgery.
Before I gave him my kidney.
Before he stood beside my hospital bed and told me I had served my purpose.
Nick’s attorney rose immediately.
“Your Honor, we object to—”
The judge lifted a hand.
“Sit down.
I will determine what this court considers.”
The attorney stopped.
Nick didn’t move.
Onscreen, he walked closer to the table.
His voice became louder.
“She’ll do it.
She thinks saving me will fix everything.”
My stomach turned.
I looked at Chloe.
She was staring at the floor.
I wanted to reach for her, but she was standing several feet away beside the bailiff.
The recording continued.
Nick said that after the transplant, I would be recovering for weeks.
He said that would be the best time to file because I wouldn’t have the energy or money to fight him properly.
Then he laughed.
Not loudly.
That somehow made it worse.
“By the time she realizes what’s happening, I’ll already have the lawyer working on the house and custody.”
A cold silence settled over the room.
I stopped hearing anything except my own heartbeat.
For weeks, I had been torturing myself with one question.
Had Nick truly decided to leave after the surgery?
Had something changed while I was in the hospital?
Had I missed some sign?
Now I had my answer.
He had decided before I ever entered the operating room.
The kidney hadn’t saved our marriage because he had already planned its ending.
Chloe reached toward the tablet.
“There’s more, Your Honor.”
Nick finally found his voice.
“Chloe, stop.”
Every person in the courtroom looked at him.
The judge’s expression hardened.
“Mr.
Nick, you will not address the witness unless I permit it.”
Nick sat back.
His jaw tightened.
Chloe pressed another file.
This video was different.
