Betrayed by My Trash Husband, Surrender Myself to the Devil-Chapter 6: Dr. Ray Gatlin (II)
Claudia POV
For a moment, anger and resentment burned through me when he said that I was nothing but a test subject to him, because my feelings for him had been real back then.
I was truly a girl in love, and everything about him had seemed picture-perfect, until I realized that he didn’t love me at all.
But maybe that was for the better. Since he felt nothing when we broke up, then he should be able to give me an objective diagnosis.
"Then, since I meant nothing to you, can you help me just this once and declare me mentally sane?" I begged. "I—I really have to check on my daughter. I can’t see her without supervision, and I... I’m afraid Clarissa might have done something to her while I wasn’t there."
"And what would you do next?" Ray asked.
"I—" There was a long pause between us as I realized I hadn’t thought that far. I had tunnel vision when it came to my daughter’s condition.
But once I was declared mentally sane, then—
"You’re going to divorce him, aren’t you?" Ray guessed.
I nodded.
There was nothing else to do except divorce. As painful as it was and knowing that my heart would shatter, I refused to let Aurora linger around Miles and Clarissa.
In fact, I had planned to leave the country with Aurora and move somewhere far away to cut all contact with them.
But Ray seemed to have a different opinion.
"That won’t work," Ray said. "You’ll lose custody of your daughter."
"H-how could that be? I’m her mother, and she’s still a minor. The court should favor me, right?"
"Should," Ray replied. "But you’re facing multiple accusations and will be tried in court after this. Do you really think a divorce court would favor a problematic mother like you?"
Ray grinned as he leaned back in his chair, looking at me as if he enjoyed watching me struggle.
"My stepbrother really cornered you, huh?" Ray assessed. "He and his mistress deliberately set a trap that makes it impossible for you to escape."
"You’ll either go to jail, a mental ward, or agree to whatever proposal they offer. How pitiful."
"Y-you... how could you know all of this? Did Miles tell you his plan?!"
"No," he shrugged. "Based on your reaction and the situation, I can assume it. And it seems I hit the bullseye."
"If you already know everything, then please help me just this once, Ray," I pleaded. "I know you’re a kind man and—"
"Stop the nonsense, Claudia."
Ray cut me off. The fake smile he wore vanished instantly, replaced by obvious rage.
"You were the one who told me I was a cold, unfeeling bastard who deserved to die alone and in agony."
"I—"
I was speechless.
I hadn’t expected him to remember every word I said during our horrible breakup.
The memory dragged up unpleasant fragments from the past. But I quickly shook my head and forced myself to focus on the present.
"Look, I’m sorry for what happened, and I—I’ll do anything to make it up to you. But please, just this once, Doctor. I’m really in a difficult situation right now."
...
"It’s not free, Claudia," Ray said calmly. "I need payment."
I almost blurted out that a man like him wouldn’t need my money at all.
Ray’s work as a psychiatrist was more of a pastime. His wealth came from his family’s long-standing investment empire—Gatlin Gold.
But if he truly wanted money, I still had some savings left.
"T-then tell me how much you want," I asked.
"Not money, of course..." Ray’s gaze slowly traced me from head to toe.
I couldn’t find anything in his eyes except anger. Instinctively, I shrank back like a curling hedgehog when he looked at me as if I were merchandise.
It gave me the sinking feeling that he wanted something far more expensive than money.
Then he scoffed and turned toward the window.
"I’ll declare you mentally sane," he said. "But in exchange, you’ll return to me after you visit your daughter in the hospital."
"By then, I’ll give you a contract that you must sign," he continued, idly playing with the gold pen in his hand. "It will be legally binding, and once you sign it, you won’t be able to escape your responsibility."
I didn’t know what he wanted. But since he was the only person who could decide my fate right now, I agreed without hesitation.
"Anything, so long as I can protect my daughter!"
His lips curled upward again. I couldn’t tell whether it was a genuine smile or a devious smirk.
But whatever he was planning didn’t matter right now.
All I wanted was to see Aurora and protect her from my husband and half-sister.
After getting my answer, Ray stood up and walked to his desk. He wrote something down, slipped it into a document envelope, then gestured for me to come closer with his index finger.
When I stood before the desk, he slid the document toward me. His serpent-like green eyes locked onto mine with a threatening gaze, as if he would strike the moment I tried to break our agreement.
"Don’t try to be clever with me, Claudia," Ray warned. "You’re my prisoner until I say this deal is over. Once you’ve visited your daughter, come find me."
He took a business card from his pocket and handed it to me.
"If you try to run after this," he added calmly, "I’ll make sure you regret it for the rest of your life."
I swallowed hard as I accepted the card. Ray truly hadn’t changed at all, his threat, the way he pressured me to make a deal with him in exchange for something. He really knew how to push your buttons and strike when you were truly desperate, like a true... cold-blooded machine.
"I—I’ll be back," I whispered. "I promise."
I turned around, clutching both the document that proved my sanity and his business card, and left the office.
Yet I couldn’t shake the feeling that Ray was staring at me—unblinking and predatory. 𝗳𝚛𝚎𝚎𝘄𝕖𝕓𝕟𝕠𝚟𝚎𝕝.𝗰𝕠𝐦
Even after I handed the document to the officers outside and followed them to the car, I could still feel his gaze on my back, as if it could pierce through walls and distance.
To distract myself from the unease crawling up my spine, I looked down at the business card in my hand. It seemed more private than a regular one, there was no office number and address, only a personal phone number.
Dr. Ray Gatlin
Psychiatrist
516.122.1992
...
Huh?
5...16...
May 16th?
Wasn’t that the exact date of our first date?
No, no, 516 should be the area code for New York’s phone numbers. It was possible that he registered it there even though we were living in Los Angeles. So it must be a coincidence...
But 12...2...1992?
December 2nd, 1992...
Wasn’t that my birthday?
