00:00At three months pregnant, my husband, Elijah Hale, handed me divorce papers.
00:04He accused me of cheating.
00:07Cheating?
00:08Elijah, I go to work.
00:10I come home. That's it.
00:12How could you say that when I'm harrying your baby?
00:17How could I? Easy.
00:25They scattered across the floor.
00:28Photos of me in another man's arms.
00:31My baby, don't try to pin some other man's bastard on me.
00:37I froze.
00:38For a second, I couldn't even breathe.
00:41Just a few weeks ago, he'd cried over the positive pregnancy test.
00:45Elijah was St. Matthew's youngest chief of cardiothoracal surgeon.
00:49His hands never shook in the OR.
00:52But that morning, they did.
00:56After that, he canceled his out-of-state consults and built his days around me.
01:00He came to every prenatal appointment, made breakfast before his rounds, and brewed ginger tea for my nausus.
01:07Even at night, he woke before I did, just to help me to the bathroom.
01:11Now, it was all gone.
01:13Monday. Family court. Lawyer up, Ava.
01:17Maybe a good attorney can squeeze a little more out of the settlement for you.
01:20I didn't know what to say. I'd never cheated on him. Not once. And he knew it.
01:26Those photos were from last month, my business trip to Chicago.
01:29In the hotel lobby, my blood sugar crashed and I nearly fainted.
01:32Mark, a co-worker, caught me by the arm.
01:34But from that angle, it was damning.
01:36It looked like I was falling into his arms.
01:39This is your proof? I almost passed out. Mark just caught me.
01:42You know my blood sugar drops in early pregnancy?
01:45Judges go by evidence, not sob stories.
01:47So to divorce me, you hired a PI to tail me?
01:50I knew you wouldn't admit it. I needed leverage.
01:55Elijah, what happened to you?
01:57Last week, you said once the baby was born, you'd take us to Alaska to see the Northern Lights.
02:01Now you're using one cropped photo to call me a cheater?
02:09Four years pretending to be the perfect husband. I'm done.
02:13You're kidding, right? You think the baby isn't yours?
02:16We can do a paternity test. Anything. I can prove it.
02:19No need. I don't care whose it is. It disgusts me.
02:27That line snapped something inside me. I raised my hand to slap him.
02:32Let go!
02:33Save your strength, Ava.
02:37The lock clicked. My best friend, Madison, stood in the doorway with a bag of maternity stuff.
02:43What the hell is going on here?
02:45Elisha Hale, are you out of your mind?
02:48Madison, this is between Ava and me.
02:51Between Ava and you?
02:53Ava turned down a major promotion in New York for you.
02:56She's carrying your baby, and now you're calling her a cheater?
02:59What the hell is wrong with you?
03:01She knows whose baby it is.
03:04Say that again. I dare you.
03:07Tomorrow morning, I'm going straight to the hospital board,
03:09and everyone will know exactly how St. Matthew's Golden Boy Surgeon it treats his pregnant wife.
03:15Go ahead. Tell them my wife cheated on me while you're at it.
03:19Madison was too furious to speak.
03:21My lawyer will call tomorrow about the settlement.
03:24Elijah, if you walk out that door right now, we're over!
03:27Ava, don't tell me you actually thought any of this was real.
03:36What the hell got into him? Is he cheating on you?
03:39Madison, I... I don't know.
03:43That was the part that gutted me.
03:45If he just wanted out, he wouldn't need to tail me or fake evidence.
03:49It felt like he was trying to erase me from his life.
03:51The next morning, I went to St. Matthew's Medical Center.
03:56I couldn't believe he'd change like this out of nowhere.
03:59I needed to hear it from him.
04:02Outside the cardiothoracic surgery wing, I waited three whole hours.
04:06Ava, Dr. Hale is in the OR all day. Please, go home.
04:09I just need two minutes. Then I'll leave.
04:12The double doors finally opened.
04:14Elijah walked out in his white coat, a few residents trailing behind him.
04:18He saw me. He didn't even slow down.
04:21Elijah, we need to talk.
04:23If you're going to condemn me, at least tell me what I'm guilty of!
04:27Ava, this is a hospital. Don't make a scene.
04:30I'm making a scene?
04:32Yesterday, you filed for divorce and called me a cheater over one misleading photo,
04:36and now I'm the one making a scene?
04:38That's her.
04:39Word is the baby isn't even Dr. Hale's.
04:42You told them that?
04:46If you were worried about your reputation, you shouldn't have done it.
04:50Just to force this divorce, you'd destroy my name too?
04:54Security! There's a disturbance here!
04:58Escort this woman out. She isn't allowed back on this floor without an appointment.
05:09Ma'am, please cooperate.
05:11Elijah! Just tell me the truth, and I'll believe you!
05:15Ava! Keep this up and I'll call the police!
05:18Suddenly, I stopped fighting. I let the guards walk me out.
05:28Cold rain was falling. It hit my face, but I couldn't feel the sting.
05:33My phone buzzed. It was Madison.
05:38Ava, get home right now.
05:39What is it?
05:40Building management just called.
05:42Elijah's having your key fob deactivated, and he sent movers to the condo.
05:46My mind went completely blank.
05:49That Lakeview condo was ours.
05:51We bought it right after we got married, and my name is also on the deed.
05:58What are you doing?
06:00Ava White? We got a work order from Dr. Hale's attorney to clear out your belongings.
06:05This is my home too!
06:07Ma'am, we just moved the boxes. If there's a dispute, take it up with your lawyer.
06:11A young mooper behind him carefully placed my prenatal records and vitamins into a separate toke bag.
06:15It felt like a sick joke.
06:17A complete stranger was showing me more care than my own husband.
06:21I pulled out my phone and called Elijah.
06:24Straight to voicemail.
06:26I called again. Voicemail.
06:28That was when I knew.
06:29He'd blocked my number.
06:31I forced myself to stay calm and opened a hotel app to book a room for the night.
06:35But the payment screen flashed red.
06:37Transaction declined.
06:38I opened my banking app.
06:40The screen displayed a single line.
06:42Account restricted by temporary court order.
06:51Elijah.
06:54How far are you going to push me?
07:03By the time Madison arrived, I'd been sitting by the entrance of the apartment building for ages.
07:09Jesus!
07:10That absolute bastard!
07:12Is he trying to destroy you?
07:15Stay with me.
07:17Tomorrow, we find you a lawyer.
07:18The next day, I took the divorce papers, the deed, and the account notice to a top family law firm
07:24downtown.
07:25Ms. White, I'm sorry. Our firm can't take this case.
07:29Why not?
07:30My name's on the deed.
07:31What gives him the right to lock me out and freeze my money?
07:34We represent St. Matthews, and Dr. Hale sits on the hospital foundation board.
07:38Taking your case would be a conflict.
07:40Our hands are tied.
07:42So I can't even hire a lawyer without running into his network?
07:44I sat there, cold to the bone.
07:46I tried four more firms. Every single one heard me out, and then turned me down with the exact same
07:51line.
07:51Conflict of interest.
07:53That was when it hit me.
07:54Elijah had mapped this all out.
07:55He didn't just want me homeless and broke.
07:57He wanted me unable to fight back.
08:00My phone rang. It was Mom.
08:02Ava, what's going on between you and Elijah?
08:05Mom, what happened?
08:07A lawyer just called.
08:09He said there's an issue with the title on your father's storefront.
08:12Elijah helped my parents buy that storefront last year.
08:15They lived off the rental income.
08:16They said the Hale lawyers are trying to take the storefront back.
08:19Your father's blood pressure just spiked.
08:22He's beside himself.
08:26Mom.
08:27Mom.
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