I sat quietly in the fertility clinic’s waiting area, clutching my purse in both hands. During my last appointment, the doctor had avoided giving me a direct answer, speaking only of extensive trauma and internal scarring. This time, I needed certainty. I had to know whether Damien had stolen more than our unborn child—whether he had also taken away my chance of ever becoming a mother again.
“Mrs. Bennett?”
The receptionist gave me a polite but strained smile.
“Yes?”
“I’m sorry, but your payment didn’t go through.” She slid my platinum card back toward me. “Your card has been declined.”
A knot tightened in my stomach.
“That can’t be right. It’s linked to our joint account.”
“I’ve already run it three times,” she said gently. “Perhaps you should contact your husband?”
My fingers trembled as I pulled out my phone and called Damien.
Voicemail.
I called again.
Voicemail.
A third time.
Nothing.
“I… I’ll reschedule,” I murmured, taking the card back as heat rushed to my face.
As I hurried out, I could feel the eyes of other patients following me. Damien had done it. He had cut off every dollar I could access. He wasn’t merely controlling me anymore—he was making sure I couldn’t survive without him.
Instead of going home, I flagged down a taxi.
“Bennett Tower.”
As the city blurred past, memories surfaced. That building had once belonged to my father. I grew up racing through its hallways, hiding in conference rooms, stealing cookies from the executive lounge while employees pretended not to notice.
When the taxi stopped, I stared at the glass tower.
It looked colder now.
The lobby felt even worse—sleek, expensive, and utterly impersonal.
A young receptionist looked up.
“Good afternoon. How may I help you?”
“I’m here to see my husband.”
“And who is your husband?”
“Damien Bennett.”
She typed something before glancing back.
“Do you have an appointment?”
I stared at her.
“Appointment? I’m his wife.”
“I’m sorry, ma’am. Mr. Bennett is in an important meeting and instructed us not to allow interruptions.”
“I don’t need permission to see my own husband.”
I headed for the elevators, but two security guards stepped into my path.
“Ma’am, please don’t create a disturbance.”
I looked at their unfamiliar faces. They were recent hires. Neither recognized me. Neither knew this building had belonged to my family long before Damien ever became CEO.
I forced a smile.
“Fine. I’ll wait outside.”
I walked out through the revolving doors, waited until they looked away, then circled toward the loading dock. Hidden beside it was an unmarked service entrance that most employees didn’t even know existed.
I reached into my pocket and pulled out my father’s master access card.
I had kept it all these years for sentimental reasons.
The scanner flashed green.
The lock clicked open.
Inside, the hallway was silent. I moved toward a private elevator tucked behind the service corridor, one installed decades ago for my father so he could reach the executive floor unseen.
Apparently, Damien never knew it still worked.
Forty floors passed in silence.
When the doors opened, I stepped into the private hallway leading to the CEO’s suite.
The office door stood slightly ajar.
Then I heard it.
A woman’s breathless moan drifted into the corridor.
“Damien…”
Every muscle in my body froze.
“Right there… don’t stop…”
My pulse thundered as I moved closer, each step muffled by the carpet.
Through the narrow opening, I saw everything.
Vanessa was bent over my father’s old mahogany desk, skirt pushed to her waist. Damien stood behind her, completely consumed by her in a way he had never once been with me.
“Leave her already,” Vanessa gasped. “She’s useless now. You have me.”
Damien gripped her hips.
“You know it’s not that simple.”
“Why not?” she demanded. “You already got rid of the baby. That problem is gone. Why can’t you divorce her?”
I slapped a hand over my mouth to stop the cry rising in my throat.
He didn’t deny it.
Not once.
“She’s still valuable to the board,” Damien said. “The older shareholders still see her as the rightful heir to her family’s legacy. Her name keeps investor confidence. If I divorce her now, stock prices crash. My father would never forgive me.”
Vanessa pouted.
“So we wait?”
Damien kissed her neck.
“Not much longer. Everyone already thinks she’s unstable—grieving, emotional. Accidents happen to fragile people every day.”
My blood turned cold.
“Soon enough,” he murmured, “she’ll disappear too.”
“You promise?”
“I promise.”
I couldn’t watch another second.
I backed away, legs shaking so badly I thought I’d collapse. Somehow, I made it out of the building unnoticed.
The second I reached the alley, I doubled over and vomited.
Again.
And again.
My body rejected the truth before my mind could process it.
Eventually, I drove home.
I went straight to the master bedroom and yanked open my jewelry case.
The diamond necklace from our first anniversary.
The sapphire earrings from my birthday.
The emerald bracelet from our fifth year.
One by one, I threw them into a bag.
Then my gaze landed on my wedding ring.
Without hesitation, I pulled it off and dropped it in.
The ring hit the bag with a hollow sound.
I drove to a pawn shop across town where no one knew the name Vivian Bennett.
An hour later, I walked out with a thick envelope of cash.
One hundred thousand dollars.
Enough to disappear.
Not enough to save Ethan.
I gripped the steering wheel and stared ahead.
Who could I turn to?
I thought of my father’s old friends, but every option collapsed immediately. Mr. Johnson still sat on Bennett Corporation’s board. Anything I said would reach Damien before sunset. Mrs. Lutherford lived for gossip; my misery would become entertainment.
Every path led to the same conclusion.
I was alone.
The envelope felt heavy on my lap as I scrolled through my contacts, desperate for one trustworthy name.
Then my thumb stopped.
Adrian.
I hadn’t deleted his number.
A mutual friend once mentioned he had gone to law school after we broke up. Now he was one of the city’s fiercest criminal defense attorneys—the kind who took cases everyone else feared.
My thumb hovered over his name.
Guilt crushed my chest.
I had broken his heart.
When life forced me to choose, I chose Damien—his power, his wealth, the future he promised—instead of the quiet, unwavering love Adrian offered so freely.
But I had no choices left.
I tapped call.
The phone rang once.
Twice.
On the third ring, someone answered.
“Hello?”
His voice startled me. It was deeper now, roughened by time.
“Adrian?” I whispered.
Tears blurred my vision.
Silence filled the line.
Then—
“Vivian?”
There was no warmth in his voice, only caution.
“It’s me,” I said shakily. “I know I don’t deserve to call after everything I did. I know I hurt you. But I’m in serious trouble, Adrian. Worse than you can imagine.”
“I heard about the accident,” he said quietly. “I was sorry.”
“It wasn’t an accident,” I said immediately. “Damien caused it. He framed Ethan for a crime he didn’t commit, and he’s going to kill me if I stay.”
I heard him exhale slowly.
“Please,” I whispered. “If even a small part of the man who once loved me still exists… help me.”
“Vivian…”
“I’ll do whatever it takes,” I sobbed. “I’ll pay every legal fee. I have cash. I’ll sign anything.”
My voice broke.
“Please.”
I closed my eyes and forced the words out.
“Help me bring Damien down.”
