Because Chloe begged the judge not to force her to see her “scary, distant father,” the court overwhelmingly sided with the mother.
The final divorce decree stripped Michael of absolutely everything. Julianne was awarded full custody of Chloe, with Michael granted only highly restricted, supervised visitation rights that Chloe made clear she would never utilize. He was ordered to pay a exorbitant amount in child support and alimony, calculated based on his peak seventy-hour work week earnings, effectively forcing him to maintain the brutal work schedule just to stay out of jail.
To top it off, Julianne was awarded the Naperville home.
On a bitter, snowy afternoon, Michael stood on the sidewalk outside his former house, holding two cardboard boxes containing the few personal belongings he was permitted to take. Through the large front window, he could see the warm, golden light of the living room.
Julianne was standing there, holding a glass of wine, laughing. Beside her stood Jackson, the personal trainer, wearing a comfortable sweater, his arm wrapped tightly around Julianne’s waist. A moment later, Chloe walked into the frame, smiling warmly as she handed Jackson a plate of food, looking at him with the adoration she used to reserve for her father.
They were a family now. Jackson was living in the house Michael bought, driving the lifestyle Michael funded, and raising the daughter Michael loved, all while Michael was cast out into the freezing Chicago cold, branded by the entire world as a deadbeat, abusive failure.
Michael turned away, walking toward his dented sedan, the heavy snow falling on his shoulders, utterly crushed by the reality that his life’s devotion had been completely erased by a monstrous lie.
