Chapter 1

"Look at you. You don't even hold a candle to Natalie. Aside from riding my coattails, what are you even worth?"

My husband, Julian Sterling, slammed the awards gala gift box onto my vanity table.

I stared at his twisted, venomous face.

My mind drifted back to three days ago, when I was organizing the safe at home and unearthed a hidden file.

It was a paternity test.

The mother of his five-year-old secret son was none other than Natalie Ross—my bitter college rival, the girl who was forever stuck in second place behind me.

It turned out she hadn't taken a leave of absence to study abroad all those years ago. She had gone abroad to bear Julian's child.

"You're right," I said quietly. "I really don't measure up to her."

Julian froze. He clearly hadn't expected me to be so submissive.

I didn't smash anything. I didn't scream or demand answers.

I simply turned around, walked away, and dialed my lawyer's number.

Julian, Natalie... I'm about to hand both of you a parting gift that will cost you everything.

"Aside from leeching off my clout, what can you actually do?"

Julian violently unfastened his designer tie as the gift box shattered the cosmetics on the vanity.

Ten minutes ago, under the dazzling red-carpet spotlights, he had held me by the waist. In front of a swarm of flashing cameras, he had gazed into my eyes and declared that I was the greatest treasure of his life.

Now, with just the two of us behind closed doors, he didn't even bother hiding his utter disgust.

I stood quietly in place, watching the shattered glass on the floor.

"What are you looking at? If it weren't to maintain the company's power-couple image, do you think I'd ever bring you to an event like this?"

Julian scoffed, pointing a finger straight at my face.

"Look at you. You don't even hold a candle to Natalie."

"Aside from living on the scraps I throw your way, what are you even worth?"

Natalie.

Hearing that name didn't make me cry or fight back like I used to.

I merely looked up and stared at the man I had been married to for three years with icy calm.

Julian had built his empire on my family's connections and my public relations mastery.

Lumina Tech, the startup he founded, received its very first angel investment because of my grandfather.

Every single major client he had today was won over dinners where I sat beside him, matching executives drink for drink until deals were signed.

Because of that, Lumina Tech's valuation skyrocketed tenfold in just two years.

Once the company grew, he became the golden boy of the tech world.

That was when he pushed me out of the spotlight, trapping me inside the suffocating cage of a "doting husband's trophy wife."

Out in the world, he was basking in glory. At home, he degraded and belittled me every single day.

I used to think he was just under immense stress.

Until three days ago, when I helped him sort through our family trust files in the safe.

Hidden at the very bottom was an overseas trust agreement.

The beneficiary was a five-year-old boy named Leo Sterling.

Every single month, six figures were wired from Julian's personal account into that overseas trust.

Tucked inside the folder was an official paternity test. It confirmed beyond a shadow of a doubt that Julian was the biological father.

And under the mother's name, two words were printed in bold: Natalie Ross.

Natalie had been my college rival.

Back when we were both in the broadcast journalism department, whenever I competed, she was perpetually stuck in second place.

She envied everything I had. Then, in our senior year, she abruptly dropped out and went overseas, disappearing without a trace.

She hadn't gone abroad for graduate school. She had gone abroad to bear Julian's child.

I pulled my gaze away from the glass shards and looked straight into Julian's hostile eyes.

"You're right," I said flatly. "I really don't measure up to her."

Julian paused, visibly caught off guard by my compliance.

Usually, the mere mention of Natalie's name would spark a screaming match.

Seeing me this calm seemed to prick at his pride, leaving his anger with nowhere to land. He aggressively straightened his shirt cuffs.

"Glad you know your place," he sneered. "Tomorrow the company releases our third-quarter financial report. Make sure you retweet it from your personal accounts."

"Don't screw this up for me."

With that, he slammed the door and stormed out.

The deafening slam echoed through the private dressing room, quickly swallowed by the soundproof walls.

I stood in place, staring at the closed door for ten whole seconds.

Only when the last sliver of shadow under the door vanished did I slowly pull out my phone.

When I dialed Sean Miller, my hand was so steady it felt foreign even to me.

"Did you find everything?" I asked.

Sean's voice came through, cool and composed. "I did."

"Julian pursued you back then because Lumina Tech desperately needed that prime commercial plot owned by your uncle for their R&D center."

"Furthermore, before Natalie left the country, she made a promise: unless he had a net worth of at least a hundred million, she would never bring the boy back."

"He married you not just for your resources, but because your profile looks strikingly like Natalie's."

"You were nothing more than his ATM and a stand-in."

My grip tightened around the phone until my knuckles turned white.

"Evelyn, what's your plan?" Sean asked.

I walked up to the floor-to-ceiling window, gazing out at the sprawling, glittering skyline beneath my feet. The reflection in the glass showed eyes as cold as frost.

"Gather the evidence. Liquidate the assets. I'm going to make him spit out every dime he ever took from me—with interest."