Chapter 3

I kicked Julian away, ignoring his pathetic groveling, and walked out of the coffee shop.

When I got back to the office lobby, Chloe was still sitting there.

Seeing me, her eyes lit up, but my icy glare froze her in her seat.

"Serena..."

"Shut up."

I walked straight into my private office and slammed the door shut, locking out the world.

My hands were shaking.

Not from fear. From pure, unadulterated rage.

And disgust.

I sat in my leather chair, forcing myself to take deep breaths.

Julian was back. This meant my peaceful life was over.

Faking death for insurance—once this came out, I would be dragged into the investigation.

Even though I knew nothing about it at the time, as the beneficiary, the insurance company would definitely come after me.

More importantly, the five million dollars.

Julian said he spent his money on gambling debts?

That didn't make sense.

The five million was still sitting in my high-yield investment account. I hadn't touched a single cent because it felt like blood money.

So where did he get the money to pay his gambling debts?

And where did he get the money to support a pregnant mistress?

Suddenly, my phone buzzed.

It was Eleanor, Julian’s mother.

Over the past three years, even though I resented Julian for leaving me, I had done everything to take care of his parents.

I sent them monthly allowance checks, took care of them when they were sick, and handled all the arrangements for his father's funeral last year.

I picked up the call, keeping my voice steady.

"Hi, Eleanor."

"Serena!" Eleanor’s voice was incredibly excited, almost shaking. "You need to come home right now! Come to the house! Something wonderful has happened!"

"What is it?"

"Julian! Julian is back!"

Eleanor started sobbing hysterically on the other end. "My boy! He’s not dead! He’s alive! And he brought back a grandson for me! She's still pregnant, but I had a psychic check—it's a boy! Our family name will live on!"

My knuckles turned white as I gripped the phone.

So, they were in on it together.

Julian had just finished his little act with me at the coffee shop, and then he immediately went to his mother so she could pressure me.

And from what Eleanor was saying...

"Eleanor, do you know who that woman is?"

"Oh, who cares who she is! As long as she can give our family a boy, she's a saint!"

Eleanor’s tone was incredibly self-righteous. "Serena, don't blame me for being blunt. You were married to Julian for five years, and your womb was completely dry. Now Julian survived a miracle and brought back an heir. God has answered my prayers!"

"Just come over and sign the divorce papers. We can't keep that poor girl waiting."

My heart felt like it was dropped into ice water and then smashed with a hammer.

Three years of devotion.

Three years of playing the perfect daughter-in-law.

It was worth absolutely nothing compared to an unborn grandson.

And a trashy, scammer son.

I let out a soft chuckle into the phone.

"Sure, Eleanor."

"I'll be right over."

"I'd love to settle the score with Julian."

I hung up, opened my laptop, and pulled up the digital copy of the life insurance policy.

Beneficiary: Serena Miller.

Insured: Julian Miller.

Death certificate, cremation records, official registration—everything was complete.

Eleanor had handed me all these documents himself three years ago. She said she couldn't bear to look at them and asked me to handle the paperwork.

Looking back now, it was full of loopholes.

If Julian was alive, whose body was in that coffin?

If Julian was alive, where had he been hiding for three years?

And Eleanor’s reaction just now was way too fast.

I closed my laptop, grabbed a voice recorder from my desk drawer, and slid it into my purse.

Then, I texted my assistant on WhatsApp:

"Run a check on Julian Miller’s bank accounts for the last three years. Do the same for his mother, Eleanor Miller. Focus on any large cash transfers."

"Also, contact the legal department at the insurance company. Tell them I have major lead on a fraud case."