The Year I Stopped Being His novel Chapter 49

Outside, the rain had started to fall. What began as a light drizzle had quickly turned into a freezing, torrential downpour.

Garrison sat in his car, the windshield blurred by the relentless rain as the wipers lashed frantically back and forth. The cold, mechanical voice of the operator echoed through his phone speaker: "The number you have dialed is currently powered off..."

The image of those cold divorce papers instantly flashed in Garrison's mind, and an unprecedented wave of intense irritation seized him.

He realized with a sinking feeling that Sloane had completely moved out.

And worse, he had absolutely no idea where she could have gone—he knew nothing of her current living situation, her friends, or her social circle...

The freezing rain battered the windows. Garrison gripped the steering wheel so tightly his knuckles turned stark white. Suddenly, an address he had almost entirely forgotten popped into his head—Sloane's family home.

Garrison lowered his head in silence for a brief second before wrenching the steering wheel hard. The tires screeched against the slick asphalt as the car tore through the sheets of rain, merging into the glowing, neon-lit skyline of the city.

*

The rain lashed violently against the window bars, creating a loud, chaotic rhythm.

This was the penthouse suite at The Platinum Heights, an ultra-luxurious district in the city's east. The sprawling four-thousand-square-foot space had been decorated by a renowned designer in a style of modern contemporary opulence.

Jackson Taylor was brewing a pot of premium roast coffee, sitting comfortably by the window watching the storm, feeling quite pleased with himself. A decade ago, he was nothing more than a struggling factory owner on the verge of bankruptcy. But ever since his eldest daughter, Sloane, had married into the prestigious Foster family, Jackson leveraged their elite network and reputation. His company, Taylor Manufacturing Corp, skyrocketed, and he now owned three massive, state-of-the-art facilities specializing in high-end medical supplies and manufacturing.

The smart doorbell screen suddenly lit up with a loud chime.

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