To orchestrate my revenge without blowing my cover, I needed a venue that matched the billion-dollar inheritance he was about to steal.
I forged an email on my laptop, printing it out on cheap paper to make it look authentic.
I ran into our freezing living room, my face flushed, faking tears of absolute hysteria.
"Sebastian! Look!" I gasped, shoving the paper into his hands. "I entered a contest online months ago and forgot about it. I won. Sebastian, I won the Platinum Bridal Sweepstakes!"
He snatched the paper, his eyes scanning the fake certificate. The prize was an all-expenses-paid luxury wedding at the Rosewood Estate—the most elite, exclusive venue in the state, a place that usually required a million-dollar deposit and a two-year waiting list.
Sebastian’s eyes lit up with a greedy, predatory excitement.
He spun me around, laughing loudly, praising my "incredible luck."
Later that evening, while I pretended to sleep, I watched the glow of his phone screen illuminate the dark bedroom. I knew exactly what he was doing.
He was furiously texting Chloe, gloating about how he was getting a high-society wedding for absolutely free. It was the perfect setup.
He would get the lavish stage he needed for his trust fund to clear, without having to spend a dime of his hidden fortune.
In reality, there was no sweepstakes.
While Sebastian slept, I was on my encrypted laptop, quietly liquidating half a million dollars of my own tech stocks.
I wired the funds through a shell corporation directly to the Rosewood Estate, paying for the venue, the imported orchids, the crystal chandeliers, and the Michelin-star catering in full.
The next day, I took charge of the invitations. I sat at our chipped kitchen table, playing the role of the sweet, accommodating bride.
"Since the package covers two hundred guests, we should really invite your extended family," I told him, looking up innocently from my stack of envelopes.
Sebastian waved me off dismissively, handing me a hastily scribbled list of fake names and burner addresses.
"Just invite whoever, Leah. My family is distant. They probably won't even show up."
"I'll track them down," I promised sweetly. "I want everyone to see how much we love each other."
And I did track them down.
Using the elite private investigator's dossier, I bypassed his fake list entirely. I went straight for the jugular.
I ordered heavy, gold-embossed invitations and hired a master calligrapher.
I addressed the first envelope to the chief executors of his grandfather’s estate. The next went to the entire board of trustees of the Holls corporate empire.
Then, the senior partners of their family law firm. I even sent invitations to the major shareholders who were voting on his upcoming ascension to CEO.
I ensured they were all given VIP RSVPs and seated in the very front row.
Three days before the wedding, the trap was fully set. I just needed the final nail in the coffin.
"I'm just putting together a photo slideshow for the reception," I called out to Sebastian as he stepped into the bathroom for his shower.
The moment the water started running, my demeanor shifted. I bypassed the slideshow software and hacked directly into his synced cloud drive one last time.
I needed to download his latest text logs with Chloe to add to my AV presentation.
But as the files mirrored onto my hard drive, I noticed an anomaly. A hidden, heavily encrypted folder buried deep in his system files.
It took my decryption software three minutes to crack it.
Inside was a single document. A draft letter.
I clicked it open, the harsh blue light of the screen reflecting in my cold eyes.
To my son or daughter, the letter began.
My breath hitched, but I forced myself to keep reading.
I am writing this to you on the eve of my final victory. I can't wait to shed this poverty disguise and finally get rid of my charity-case wife. She is a pathetic, broken thing, but she served her purpose. The second the trust clears tomorrow, I'm coming home to you and your mother. I'll finally be a real father, and we'll never have to look at her depressing face again. Tomorrow, I inherit the world, and I will give it all to you.
I sat in the silence of the apartment, the sound of the shower drumming in the background.
Chloe was pregnant.
He was starting a family with his mistress, writing loving letters to his unborn child, while simultaneously referring to me as a "depressing face" to be discarded the moment he got his billions.
I didn't cry. My eyes were bone dry.
The night before the wedding, we sat in our rundown apartment for the last time.
The heater was still broken. We were eating cheap, lukewarm Chinese takeout out of cardboard boxes.
Sebastian reached across the small table and took my hand. He looked deep into my eyes, his expression a flawless, sickening mask of humble devotion.
"I know these seven years have been hard, Leah," he whispered, his thumb gently stroking my knuckles. "I know I haven't been able to give you much. But your loyalty through our poverty has meant everything to me. You stayed by my side when I had nothing. You're my rock."
I looked around the miserable, ice-cold room I had trapped myself in to protect his pride. I looked at the man who had weaponized my dead mother, stolen my youth, and laughed at my pain to win a trust fund.
I smiled.
My eyes were dead, reflecting nothing but the cold, black abyss he had pushed me into.
"I know," I whispered softly, squeezing his hand back. "Tomorrow, you're going to get exactly what you deserve."
