Chapter 4-Desperate Times

Caroline's POV:

I nearly stumbled over my own feet entering the police station. I entered the building, about to rush to the front desk. I could hear a slew of pings from my phone, no doubt all from William trying to find out where I was. We were supposed to be registering for our divorce, but my father came first.

“Excuse me,” I announced to the woman at the front desk. “I think there was some kind of mistake! I’m here to see Thomas West?”

The woman furrowed her brow before seemingly recognizing the name. “Oh! You must be Caroline,” she greeted. “Is there a problem?”

“Yes, I was told he was arrested,” I explained, wringing my hands nervously. “There must be some sort of misunderstanding.”

She shook her head. “No misunderstanding here,” she replied. “Your father has been arrested for an outstanding debt he owes to a government entity.” 

My lips parted in shock. “What does he owe?” I asked, my hands shaking as they gripped the counter. “Whatever it is, I’ll cover it. I swear.”

The front desk woman looked through her computer with a hum. “It says here it’ll be several million dollars. Do you think you’ll be able to pay that?” 

Five million dollars. Only a few days ago, that would have been nothing to me. William was a billionaire, after all. He could cover almost everything. Now cut off from him, however, I realized I had almost nothing. I couldn’t even help my own father from a fate in a cold jail cell.

“I… I’ll figure something out,” I promised. “In the meantime, can I see him? Please?”

The woman agreed and an officer came to bring me to see my father. As soon as I saw him, I cried out with relief. We embraced, and I made sure to let him know just how much I loved him.

My father looked at me with tired eyes that still sparked with hope. “Everything will be okay, Caroline,” he told me, and I didn’t have the heart to tell him that nothing would be okay for me ever again.

“I’ll get you out,” I promised him, grabbing his hand and giving it a tight squeeze. “I’ll come up with the money. Just hang in tight.”

The rest of the visit was filled with me checking in on his health and making sure that he was alright. He smiled at how much I doted over him and kept telling me that he was alright.

It was midway through our conversation that I suddenly got a call. It was from William. Realizing that he had been left waiting for me to arrive, I quickly left the room and answered the phone.

“William—”

“Where were you?” my husband demanded. I could hear the absolute fury in his voice, making me tear up. “You told me you were willing to go through with this and you lied to me. Why are you always making things so difficult?”

I didn’t answer. I couldn’t. If I did, I would surely break out into sobs.

William growled with frustration on the other end. “What? Not even going to say anything? Are you that shameless, Caroline?”

By now, tears were flowing down my cheeks. I could hardly get a word out without sobbing, and yet somehow I managed to say, “My… my dad. He’s in jail.”

There was silence on the other end. 

“William, I need a sum of money,” I begged, desperate to see that my father was free. “Please, that's all I ask. I need to pay off his debt and get him out of there.”

The next time William spoke, I could hear the hatred in his voice. “Why am I even surprised?” he said with a humorless laugh. “You’re just looking for ways out of divorcing me, aren’t you?” 

My eyes widened at the accusation. “What? No!”

“Yes, you are! All you really cared about was my money, Caroline!” he yelled over the phone, so loud that many in the precinct could hear it. “You and your father have always been awful people. If you think I’m going to lift even a finger for that man, you’ve got another thing coming.”

I was in tears, unable to respond as I choked out my cries. I couldn’t understand why he hated my father so much.

“I can’t believe you, Caroline. You and your father both need to grow up. Come up with the money yourself, but if I were you, I wouldn’t even bother. Your father deserves to be in there.”

With that, William hung up. I collapsed onto the floor, choking out a sob. How could William be so cruel towards me? What did I ever do to deserve this?

It took a long while for the people in the station to calm me down, but once they did, they kindly escorted me out. I could see the pity in their eyes, knowing that I was yet another desperate soul with no one to turn to. I said goodbye to my father one last time before I headed out, trying to see where I could scrounge up some money to free my father.

I had little to no money of my own. William had taken care of me, after all. With him, I never had to worry. He gifted me with many expensive luxuries, but they were all in the villa we’d once shared. All that I had of him now was the jewelry on my body and the ring on my finger.

When I tearfully realized I had to sell the jewelry my husband had gifted to me in order to help my father out of jail, I nearly broke down again. Despite my reluctance, I still went out to find a jeweler that would take what I had.

When I offered my wedding ring to the jeweler behind the counter, she observed the piece with a smile. “This can fetch you quite a bit of money,” she told me, offering  the ring back to me. “I’ll take it off your hands, if you’d like. How about it?” 

I looked down at my ring, in conflict with myself. The ring was nice, yes, but it was so much more than just a piece of jewelry. It was a testament to the love and commitment I’d shared with William before he so callously ripped it away. It symbolized her devotion to the first man she’d ever truly loved.

The ring shook in my hand. I opened my mouth to answer, but just as I hesitated, William and Sophia walked in.