Goodbye, Mr. Regret

It was Herbert.

Jessica had fainted, and Timothy had taken her away-though his attitude was anything but gentle. Worried, Herbert had followed them, never expecting that Timothy would simply abandon Jessica, taking their son and Sheila with him.

Herbert climbed out of his car.

"Little Mute."

Jessica forced a smile and signed, "What are you doing here?"

He took a deep breath, pressed his lips together, and arched an eyebrow. "If you don't want to smile, then don't do it. That smile of yours doesn't suit you at all."

He could see right through her. She was pretending, and he knew it.

Exposed, Jessica's expression faltered. She tried to explain, "It's not what you think, I... he..."

gestures, searching desperately for some

"You don't have to explain. I

putting yourself through this. I could help you

raised a hand, signaling him to

bracing herself, her pretty face suddenly grew serious. She signed: "Herbert, I wanted a divorce because I acted on impulse. There's just a little friction between Timothy and me, but he's really good to me. If you keep coming to see me, you'll only make things worse between us. I love him. I don't really want a divorce. When I asked you to help me find a lawyer, I just wanted to scare him

times. That's why he left me behind just now. I didn't think things

Jessica turned and

midair. The words "Little Mute" almost escaped his lips, but he

could fool him-least of all her. She

rely on. And now, if she was even pushing him away, how was she supposed to

No matter what it took, he wouldn't abandon

not even sure where she could go. But one thing was certain-she wasn't going back to The Gilded Whisper

lawyer dared take her case, she'd file on her own. She planned to go to the courthouse and