I've worked hard to sponsor my husband, Zachary Sanders, through his PhD studies for eight years. In order for our daughter, Penelope Sanders, to get into a prestigious elementary school, I've visited the local registry office ten times. Yet, my applications keep getting rejected all the time.

On my tenth visit, the helpless employee decides to reveal the truth to me.

"Ma'am, I told you that something's wrong with the paperwork you brought! Three children have already used the permanent address you provided to enroll in our school. You can't use the address for the fourth time according to the rules."

After that, the employee turns the monitor in my direction to show me the information.

To my shock, those three children's mother is Zachary's first love, Amelia Norris.

Unable to believe my eyes, I call Zachary on the spot.

But he tells me nonchalantly, "Yeah, I did use our permanent address. I did this so that Amelia's children can get enrolled into good schools. It's very difficult for a single mother like her to raise all three children on her own, you know.

"Besides, Penelope is still very young. She can just get enrolled into a regular elementary school. Once Amelia's children have graduated, Penelope can use a slot meant for the prestigious elementary school."

I do my best to suppress my rage as I retort, "No need for that. My daughter will not be waiting for hand-me-downs."

Then, I call my assistant right away.

"Tell the admissions office to void all three enrollment slots that are tied to my property in the school district. Also, I want you to suspend the funding of his project in that research institute!"

When I got home, the living room was a disaster. My daughter's favorite Lego castle had been smashed into pieces, and three filthy boys were stomping over the debris.

A woman in a white dress sat calmly on the couch.

It was Zachary Sanders' first love, Amelia Norris.

Zachary walked out of the kitchen carrying a platter of sliced fruit and thoughtfully handed Amelia a fork.

When he saw me standing at the door, he froze for a moment, but he quickly went back to acting like he was in the right.

"Perfect timing. Amy just moved into the neighborhood next to ours, so she brought the kids over so they could get to know each other."

Amelia stood and rubbed her hands nervously.

"Rebecca, I'm really sorry for the disturbance. Zachary said you're usually busy with work and don't have time to keep Penelope company, so I thought I'd bring my kids over to play with her."

I looked at the shattered Lego pieces on the floor and then pointed at the three boys who were still running around.

"Is this what you call playing with my daughter?"

Zachary frowned and set the fruit platter down heavily on the coffee table.

"Rebecca, what's with that attitude? There's nothing wrong with being lively. Besides, it's just a toy. I'll buy her another one. Do you really have to put on a sour face in front of our guests?"

I walked up to him and held his gaze.

"Guests? They could use our permanent address, and you're telling me they're merely guests?"

His expression shifted, and he instinctively looked away before straightening again.

"Since you already know, there's no point in hiding it anymore. Amy's raising three kids alone in this city. She doesn't even have local residency. Without residency, the kids can't enroll in school. What's wrong with me helping her out?"

I laughed in disbelief.

"You're helping her out? You used all the enrollment slots tied to the school district property I bought to help her. Do you even realize our daughter is starting elementary school this year?"

Zachary waved me off impatiently.

"I told you over the phone—Penelope's only six. Starting school a year later won't hurt her. Amy's oldest is already ten. If he waits any longer, he won't even make it into middle school. You're a mother. How can you have so little compassion?"

Amelia's eyes reddened, and right on cue, her tears began to fall.

"Rebecca, if anyone's at fault, it's me. Don't blame Zachary. He only did this because he felt sorry for me. If you're uncomfortable with this, I'll revert everything to its original state tomorrow. I'll even take the kids back to the countryside and have them work on the farm instead."

Zachary immediately grabbed her arm, his expression softening with pity.

"What are you talking about? I'm the one calling the shots here!"

With that, he turned and glared at me.

"Rebecca, I'm warning you. Stop being unreasonable. I just got a call from the admissions office. Someone reported that Amy's children falsified their enrollment records. Was that you?" Zachary questioned.

I looked at him and Amelia steadily.

"Yes, it was. Not only that, but I notified the principal and had all three of their enrollments revoked."

Zachary froze for a moment before bursting into laughter.

"Rebecca, have you lost your mind? You notified the principal? That's the best elementary school in the city. Even with my academic qualifications, the principal barely gives me the time of day. Why would he listen to you? If you're going to lie, at least make it believable."

Amelia let out a breath of relief and pressed her hand to her chest.

"Rebecca, you scared me back there. I know you're mad at me, but you can't joke about our kids' futures."

Watching their little act made my stomach churn with disgust.

For eight years, I had protected Zachary so well that he had no idea that my company had fully funded the prestigious elementary school he admired.

He also had no idea that my company was the largest sponsor of the top research institute he worked for.

I couldn't be bothered to argue with him, so I pointed at the door, and said, "Take her and her three bastards and get out of my house."

Zachary flew into a rage and jabbed a finger at me. "Watch your mouth! What do you mean by bastards? They're Amy's kids! I live here, and I'm the man of this house. What right do you have to kick us out?"

I scoffed. "The man of the house? My name is on the deed. Did you even contribute a single dollar to this property? In fact, for the past eight years, every cent of your tuition and your living expenses came from me."

My words struck a nerve, and his face instantly flushed red.

"Stop throwing your money in my face! I'm a scientist. My mind is worth more than any price tag. Once my new project gets its funding, I could buy ten of these places without batting an eye! Come on, Amy. Let's go. I'm done with this dump anyway!"

He pulled Amelia along, called for the three boys, and slammed the door behind them.

Before leaving, Amelia turned back and shot me a triumphant look. Gone was the damsel in distress from moments ago as malice flickered in her eyes.

…

Early the next morning, I transferred Penelope to a better private academy.

As soon as I arrived at the office, my assistant, Linda Flint, knocked and stepped in.

"Ms. Tanner, Mr. Preston Zimmer from Creston Elementary School just called. He said that a man and a woman brought three children to the school this morning and caused a scene.

"The man claimed that he held a PhD and was working for a renowned research institute. He insisted that the school enroll the children."

I took a sip of coffee and asked, "How did Mr. Zimmer handle it?"

Linda struggled to stifle a laugh. "He had security throw them out on their ears. The man was still making a scene at the gates, raving about his connections in the Department of Education and threatening to have Mr. Zimmer fired.

"But per your instructions, Mr. Zimmer has already blacklisted all three children from every top-tier elementary school in the city."

I nodded, satisfied. "What about the research institute?"

Linda flipped open a file. "Mr. Winston Yates has been notified. We've officially pulled all funding for Zachary's team. Mr. Yates was alarmed and said he would handle it this morning."

I set my coffee cup down and looked out at the traffic below.

Zachary believed that his brain was priceless, but I wanted to see how much it would be worth without my money.

When it was almost noon, my phone rang. Zachary's name flashed across the screen.

I answered the call.

"Rebecca Tanner, what on earth did you do? Why did the admissions office say that Amy's children have been blacklisted from every school in the city?"

I held the phone further away and replied calmly, "I told you last night. I did it."

Zachary was breathing hard on the other end of the line, clearly furious.

"Cut the crap. You spend all day hovering around the stove. Since when do you have that kind of pull? You must've gone to the school and made a scene, dragging my name through the mud.

"Rebecca Tanner, I was wrong about you. You've turned into a complete shrew. You'd better get to the school immediately and apologize to the admissions office. Fix this situation, or I'm filing for a divorce today!"

Hearing him use divorce as a threat finally broke my composure, and I laughed out loud.

"Fine. I'll see you at the courthouse at 2:00 pm. Don't chicken out."

Before he could respond, I ended the call and blocked his number.

At 2:00 pm sharp, I arrived at the courthouse. I waited for 30 minutes, but Zachary never showed.

I wasn't surprised.

Zachary was flat broke. If we really got a divorce, he wouldn't even have a place to stay.

Whenever he brought up divorce, he was counting on the fact that, for the past eight years, I had yielded to him every time. Unfortunately for him, that lovestruck version of me was gone.

I turned and went back to the office, continuing to work through the stack of pending files.

Meanwhile, Zachary was standing outside the gates of the research institute, sweating under the sun.

He had gone there that morning to follow up on a major project, only to discover that his access card no longer worked. The security guard stopped him and informed him that his credentials had been revoked.

Zachary immediately began making a scene, accusing the guard of looking down on him.

In the middle of the commotion, his direct superior, Winston, hurried out.

"Mr. Yates, you're finally here," Zachary said as he scurried over to greet him. "This guard won't let me in. My project is at a critical stage. Who's going to take the fall if our progress is delayed?

Winston shot him an icy look. "Don't bother coming in, Zachary. Your project has been suspended indefinitely."

Zachary froze, disbelief written all over his face. "Suspended? Why? This project was on track for a national award!"

Winston sneered. "An award? With what funding? Our largest sponsor withdrew their investment this morning, and they were very specific about their reasons. They're pulling the plug because of you!"

Zachary was stunned. "Which sponsor? I've never even met them. How could I have offended anyone?"

Winston jabbed a finger at his face, shouting, "How the hell should I know? Her assistant called us personally. She said that you're a man of poor character and even worse morals! I don't care what kind of mess you've gotten yourself into, Zachary, but the sponsor's attending our annual gala tonight.

"You'd better figure out a way to get on her good side and convince her to reinstate the funding. Otherwise, you can pack your bags and be out by tomorrow morning!"

With that, Winston turned and walked away, leaving Zachary standing there, his mind buzzing.

He couldn't wrap his mind around it. How did a respected researcher like himself suddenly offend a sponsor he had never even met?

Just then, Amelia called.

"Zachary, where are you? How did the school situation go? I just checked, and they said we need the actual deed to a house in the school district."

Fuming and on edge, Zachary snapped, "The deed's with Rebecca. I don't know what's gotten into that lunatic today, but she's even blocked my number."

On the other end of the line, Amelia began crying.

"Then what are we going to do? Are my kids going to end up in one of those low-end schools? Zachary, you have a PhD. You're brilliant, so surely you can figure something out, right?"

Her flattery successfully stroked his pride.