Chapter 3

I drove through the night straight to the poolside estate.

When the elderly butler opened the gates and saw me, sheer shock flashed across his eyes.

"Miss Chloe? What are you doing here? Didn't you say the estate was reserved for Dr. Vance to host a private medical gala tonight? He had the entire regular household staff cleared out for the evening."

A surge of rage burned through my veins.

Before I could answer, Julian's call buzzed on my phone.

"Hey babe, I'm stuck in an international medical board symposium right now. As soon as we wrap up, I'll head home to be with you."

Before I could reply, a sickeningly sweet female voice drifted faintly through the background.

"Julian, does this dress look pretty on me?"

The next second, Julian's muffled voice sounded as he moved away from the phone. "Got to go, the board is reconvening."

Almost simultaneously, the ornate wrought-iron gates swung open. A fleet of luxury sports cars filed into the fountain courtyard.

Scores of unfamiliar guests were ushered into the grand ballroom. I pulled down my cap and slipped into a shadowy, secluded booth in the corner.

Once everyone was seated, Sophie stepped onto the elevated platform wearing a flaming-red couture evening gown, dripping with smug arrogance.

"Allow me to introduce myself. I am the new mistress of this estate, Sophie Moore."

"Julian made it very clear: the pool, the private wine cellar, down to every single rose in the garden—it all belongs to me now!"

"To celebrate, tonight's top-shelf cellar is entirely on the house! Consider it my welcome gift to all of you!"

On the house? She was certainly generous with things that weren't hers. The cheapest vintage in that cellar cost tens of thousands of dollars a bottle.

Several were rare auction collector items that I had hesitated to uncork even for private galas!

The butler, who had watched me grow up, was trembling with fury beside me.

"When on earth did this mansion become hers?!" he hissed. "And Julian... he dared to bring a mistress into your family home?! Has he lost his mind?!"

I reached out and placed a calming hand on his arm, shaking my head. Now wasn't the moment to cut the curtain.

I needed Julian to step onto that stage and declare his relationship with Sophie publicly. Only then would their destruction be absolute.

Moments later, the double doors parted again. Julian walked in, looking dashing in a tailored bespoke tuxedo.

The moment she saw him, Sophie threw herself into his arms, giggling and swaying against him.

"Julian, see? I told you this designer looks best on you."

Julian's body visibly stiffened for a second, but he kept his composure and nodded with a forced smile.

Meanwhile, my blood boiled. The fashion house behind that suit was founded by the bitterest corporate rival of my family.

My father had been swindled into a brutal legal battle by that very syndicate, which worsened his illness until he passed away.

Julian knew that history better than anyone. Yet here he was, wearing their label in my house to please his whore.

Just as I was about to step out, Julian's circle of sycophants crowded around them.

"Dr. Vance, your new lady is stunning! So young, so vibrant!"

"Sophie, our boy Julian gifted you a nine-figure private estate just like that! Where else on earth are you going to find a man like this?"

"This mansion bears the name Moore now! How are you going to reward Dr. Vance tonight, huh?"

Amidst the raucous laughter, Sophie ducked her head, blushing with faux modesty.

Right then, the estate's property manager, who had arrived to oversee the wine service, froze in confusion.

"What do you mean it bears the name Moore? Didn't Dr. Vance borrow this estate from our Miss Chloe for the evening?"

The ballroom fell dead silent. Guests exchanged bewildered glances, whispering among themselves.

"What's going on?"

"I always heard this estate belonged to Mrs. Vance... but isn't Mrs. Vance an heiress?"

"Wait, her last name is Moore... is she a fake?"

The manager's face twisted with indignation.

"Julian Vance! How dare you pull a stunt like this behind Miss Chloe's back!"

He pulled out his phone to call me on the spot.

Before he could dial, Julian's private bodyguards surged forward, tackling the manager and forcing him to his knees.

Julian's gaze swept over the crowd, cold as ice.

"Shut his mouth. Teach him what happens when you speak out of turn."

His voice wasn't loud, but it carried the ruthless chill of someone accustomed to absolute control. The ballroom fell pin-drop silent.

Julian didn't even spare the manager another glance. His fingers casually caressed Sophie's cheek.

"Sophie Moore is the one and only Mrs. Vance. Chloe is nothing more than an orderly working the back shifts at my hospital."

An orderly?

I almost laughed out loud from sheer disbelief.

It seemed Julian had truly forgotten who pulled him out of the gutter and engineered his rise to the top.

If it weren't for me, he would still be running from loan sharks in an alleyway!

I stood by him for ten grueling years. I took two stab wounds to the chest protecting him from his past creditors. I made my brother pull strings in the shadows to build his empire.

When I was hovering between life and death on an operating table, my only thought was how to clear the path for his medical career.

And now, in his mouth, I was reduced to a mere "orderly."

Nobody in the room dared to cross Julian. The sycophants quickly chimed in.

"Oh, so that's what happened! Dr. Vance's real wife is far too generous, letting an orderly run around town using the Vance family name!"

Someone even turned to advise Sophie.

"Mrs. Vance, orderlies like that are dangerous. She's probably just looking for an opening to seduce Dr. Vance."

"You have to be careful. I say fire her immediately!"

"A woman with motives that vile should be thrown into the harbor!"

Sophie couldn't conceal the smug triumph spreading across her face.

The manager, pale and bruised, fought desperately as he was dragged away.

"I need to speak to Miss Chloe! She is the true Mrs. Vance!"

The guests sneered with utter disdain.

"That orderly is insidious. She even brainwashed the property manager!"

"Ungrateful leech. Dr. Vance, you can't let her off easy."

Julian's chilling gaze swept across the room. He parted his thin lips.

"I will say this once. Sophie Moore is my only wife. If anyone dares disrespect her, you answer to me."

The room was dead silent—until the sound of slow, rhythmic clapping broke through the stillness.

Everyone whipped around.

I took off my cap, stepped into the light, and looked straight at them.

"Then please enlighten me, Julian. If she is your wife... then who am I?"