THE SURTR: SON IN LAW

CHAPTER 02 HUMILIATION

Ellen arrived at the location where Marlene had told him to come, at nine am sharp. It seemed to be quite a high- end office, and the air was crisp as he stepped inside the Wisemann and Shull Law firm.

But his heart fell when he saw that she was already waiting for him, along with a divorce lawyer.

"Oh good, you are finally here."

Her bland greeting reached his ears as he approached them.

"Yes, good morning-"

Before Ellen could even finish his greetings, the lawyer rudely cut him off.

"Since you are just a poor peasant with no property or significant assets to claim, why don't we just finish this quickly? So, Mr Willmott, here are the papers that I have prepared according to my client's conditions. You can read them if you know read a legal document, because I am sure it's your first time reading one."

Saying this, he slid a stack of papers across the table, towards Ellen.

Marlene was sitting with a cold look on her face, and kept looking at her phone from time to time.

Seeing the divorce agreement was placed in front of Ellen, she said in an annoyed tone,

"Just sign it and let's get this over with, as soon as possible."

Ellen nodded and there was a thick silence inside the office, which was broken only by the rustling of papers.

The pen felt heavy in his hand as he traced his signature across the document, sealing the end of a chapter in their lives.

Even though their separation was finalized now, Ellen didn't feel any anger towards Marlene. His gaze towards her was still tender, after all, he really used to love her and care for her.

His pride was not hurt even if she had filed for a divorce; if she had been secretly miserable while being married to him, he would feel even worse.

Since last night, he had managed to come to terms with the decision, although he still held onto some of his affection for Marlene.

After all, she was the woman he loved and had married. He wanted her to always be happy and find satisfaction in her life, whether it was with him or without him.

As he signed the last page and placed the pen on the table with a heavy heart, he looked at Marlene with a faint hope in his eyes.

He handed the papers to the lawyer and spoke softly,

"Here you go. But Marlene, I hope that we can still be friends after this."

Marlene met his gaze with a cold and distant expression as her lips turned into a half-smile, and she mocked;

"Friendship?! That is impossible! Just seeing your face is enough to give me nightmares, so why will I want to torture myself after finally getting divorced from you?"

A look of hurt flashed in Ellen's eyes, but he suppressed his emotions and offered a formal smile.

"I had actually thought that we might respect the good times during our marriage and continue to be friends, but nevermind. I wish you good luck for the future, Marlene."

Marlene remained unmoved as she replied coldly,

"For that, it is important to have some good memories, and I have only seen horrible days with you. But finally, my suffering is over, and it is time to move on."

As he looked at her for one last time, it became clear that the woman before him was no longer the one he had fallen in love with.

Ellen stood up from the table while Marlene began to discuss something with her lawyer, and the echoes of Marlene's bigger words were lingering in his mind.

As he stepped out with a lingering sadness in his heart, he noticed an obnoxious green Porsche screech to a halt in front of him.

He immediately noticed that it was the same car from the previous night, and on raising his head, he found that it was none other than Sam Catt, the son of his company manager who acted like he was some kind of Prince.

Despite being in his twenties, Sam looked more like a sloppy, beer- bellied man in his forties or fifties.

Apart from his crooked nose and the wrinkles criss- crossing all over his face, his untidy appearance made him look even more ugly and repulsive. His hair was shaggy and uncombed, and his beard was patchy and ungroomed.

Right at that moment, the office door opened and Marlene came running outside, and stopped right in front of Sam.

She gave him a sweet smile,

"Oh, I am so glad you came to pick me up…"

Ellen was completely shocked with the realization that Marlene was interested in his manager's son, and it was clear that he had only managed to get her attention due to his dad's money.

In his shock, he blurted out,

"I thought that you wanted a divorce because you were not happy, but I didn't expect that you just wanted to leave me and find a rich man in less than ten minutes of signing the documents."

Marlene turned around to look at Ellen and then deliberately grabbed Sam's hand as if she just wanted to provoke Ellen. And then she declared haughtily,

"You can think whatever you want, I don't care. Because the truth is that Sam truly loves me, and I truly love him."

Seeing her actions, Ellen felt sick to his stomach. He couldn't figure out whether he was more disappointed in her for being such a disgusting cheater, or in himself for blindly trusting her.

But now, he could see everything very healthy, and he said bluntly;

"Marlene, you know that even if you told me that you wanted to be with someone else, I would have happily divorced you. But honestly, you don't need to lie to yourself about true love, even if you have found a sugar daddy."

Ellen's words cut deep, leaving Marlene's pride wounded. Feeling humiliated by him, she opened her mouth and began to shout,

"Ellen, how dare you say that? Take a look in the mirror first, and you will see nothing but a penniless loser! I can't believe I wasted my time with someone as poor as you in the first place."

Sam was looking at Ellen with a smirk on his face, while Marlene spoke,

"You have the guts to tell me what to do and what not? First, try and earn as much money in a whole month as he earns in a single day, and then I will be interested in listening to your opinion. You are just jealous that I'm leaving you for someone who isn't a loser and can actually provide for me."

Her insults rained down on Ellen relentlessly, each one intended to wound his pride.

However, Ellen refused to get down to her level, and said, making his disappointment clear.

"I wish you could understand that a person's wealth does not define what kind of a person he is. But unfortunately…"

Before his sentence could be completed, she turned away, facing towards Sam.

"It's time to go, Darling, there is no use speaking to him anymore."

Sam nodded and they stepped on the road, still holding hands. At that exact moment, another car came speeding down the road, straight towards them.

The car didn't slow down as it came near them, and both of them were frozen in their place like statues.

Just when it looked like the car would definitely hit them, the sound of brakes echoed, and the car came to a stop barely a few inches away.

The door opened and Ellen's Guard captain stepped out of the car, catching Sam completely off guard.

Just moments ago, he was ready to march towards the car and take his anger out on this fool who was driving so recklessly, and punch some sense into him.

But he halted in his tracks as he hadn't expected a woman to come out of the car, let alone such a gorgeous one.

His jaw practically fell open, but the Guard captain paid no attention to Sam's reaction at all.

Instead, she walked confidently past him and towards Ellen. Without hesitating, she hooked her arm around his, and gave him a sly smile.

She then looked at the two people who were still looking at her in shock and disbelief, and said innocently;

"Oh, hi Marlene! I didn't realize you were still here. How nice, is this your father?"

Her sizzling insult cut through the air as she referred to Sam as Marlene's dad, exposing the truth behind the snobbery and vanity that Marlene had proudly displayed moments ago.