Chapter 2: Unmasking the Snakes

"Divorce?"

Julien stared at Mira, his fingers still pressed against his throbbing, beet-red cheek. For three agonizing seconds, the bedroom fell dead silent, save for his mother's low groans on the floor and Chloe's muffled sobbing. Then, a harsh, mocking laugh escaped Julien's lips.

"Divorce," Julien spat out, his eyes flashing with contempt. "Have you completely lost your mind, Mira? You hit my mother, you put your hands on Chloe, and now you're talking about a divorce? Look at yourself. You're an infertile, useless woman who relies on my family for every roof over your head and every bite of food you eat. Where the hell do you think you're going to go?"

He took a menacing step toward her, pointing an aggressive finger at her face. "Get on your knees right now. Apologize to my mother, apologize to Chloe, and maybe, just maybe, I'll overlook this episode of madness."

Mira didn't flinch. She didn't cry. She didn't even blink.

She just stood there, looking at him with eyes as cold and empty as a winter graveyard. A faint, sickening smile touched the corner of her lips.

"An infertile, useless woman," Mira repeated softly, her voice carrying a terrifying chill that made Julien's skin crawl. She turned her head slowly, her gaze sliding from Julien to Chloe, who was cowering near the bedside table. "Tell me, Julien. How is our adopted son doing downstairs?"

Julien frowned, annoyed. "What does Leo have to do with this? I brought him home because you couldn't even fulfill the basic duty of giving me an heir."

"Right. You brought him home out of the kindness of your heart," Mira said, stepping closer to Chloe. Chloe visibly flinched, pulling her silk robe tighter around herself. "And you, Chloe. You've been so supportive of your dear brother adopting a child, haven't you? So supportive that you spend every weekend in his bed while I'm out buying groceries."

It was as if a lightning bolt had struck the room.

Julien's face drained of all color in an instant. Chloe's breath hitched in her throat, her jaw dropping open in horror. Even Mrs. Vance stopped her groaning, her eyes bulging as she stared at Mira in disbelief.

"What are you talking about?" Julien stammered, his confident demeanor shattering into desperate pieces. "You're crazy. She's my sister."

"Your sister," Mira sneered, her voice cutting through his lies like a surgical knife. "She isn't blood-related to you, Julien. She was taken in by your family when she was ten years old. Do you really think I don't know? Do you really think I don't know that Leo isn't adopted at all?"

Mira leaned in close to Chloe, whose entire body was shaking like a leaf in a hurricane.

"Leo is your biological son," Mira whispered, every word dripping with lethal poison. "You carried him, you gave birth to him in secret at a private clinic three miles out of town, and then you and Julien dumped him in my arms, watching me slave away to raise your child while you two slept together behind my back."

"Stop it! Shut up!" Chloe shrieked, bursting into hysterical tears as she hid her face in her hands.

Julien's hands trembled violently. His mind was racing, consumed by panic. How did she find out? She was never supposed to know. If this got out, his reputation, his family's standing, his entire life would be ruined.

Looking at Mira's dead, knowing eyes, Julien realized there was no recovering from this. The guilt-ridden, submissive wife who had obeyed his every command for years was gone. The woman standing before him was a predator waiting to tear him apart.

Pride and panic surged through Julien's chest. He had to regain control. He had to cover this up.

"Fine," Julien roared, trying to mask his terror behind a wall of blind fury. "You want to throw a fit? You want a divorce? Fine. We'll get divorced. But don't you dare think you're getting a single penny from me, Mira. You're leaving this house with nothing but the clothes on your back."

He stepped right up to her, his face twisted in a vengeful sneer. He was convinced she was bluffing. In his mind, no woman with zero income and no family could survive on her own. She was just throwing a bitter tantrum because she found out about the affair.

"I'll sign the papers today," Julien barked, glaring down at her. "And when you're sleeping on the streets, starving and begging for scraps, don't you dare come crawling back on your knees to ask for my forgiveness. I won't take you back."

Mira looked at him, feeling an overwhelming sense of irony. Beg him? Crawl back to him? He had no idea that the world he knew was going to end in thirty days. He had no idea that he was standing in front of a woman who held a fortune that could buy his entire existence ten times over.

"Agreed," Mira said, her voice completely smooth and emotionless. "Let's sign it right now."

Julien blinked, caught off guard by how fast she accepted. "What..."

Without wasting a second, Mira pulled her phone from her pocket and hit speed dial. She didn't call just any lawyer. She dialed Mr. Harrison, her late adoptive father's personal high-profile attorney, who was already holding her maturation funds.

"Mr. Harrison," Mira said clearly into the speaker. "Draft an immediate, mutual divorce agreement. Zero spousal support, zero division of marital assets, full relinquishment of all financial claims between both parties. Send a legal courier to my current address within twenty minutes. Double his f*e."

The speed of her actions left Julien completely stunned. Before he or his mother could process what was happening, a sleek black sedan pulled up outside the gates. A sharp-dressed legal courier marched up the stairs, carrying a fresh, legally binding divorce contract stamped by the top law firm in the city.

"Here are the documents, Mrs. Vance," the courier said professionally, placing the thick folder on the nightstand.

Mira picked up the pen, flipped to the back page, and signed her name, Mira Lin, with swift, unwavering precision. She slid the folder over to Julien.

Julien's heart pounded against his ribs. A strange, uneasy pit formed in his stomach as he held the pen. Something felt terribly wrong, but his bloated ego pushed the doubt away. Let her suffer, he told himself. She's an infertile nobody. She'll be broke by tonight.

With a harsh scrawl, Julien signed his name at the bottom, slammed the folder shut, and threw the pen at the floor.

"Get your trash and get out of my house," Julien snarled.

Mira picked up the signed contract, handed the copy back to the courier, and watched the man leave. The moment the door clicked shut, her phone vibrated in her hand. A formal notification popped up on her screen from Mr. Harrison.

[Status Update: Marital Status updated to Single. Legal hold removed. $45,000,000 USD successfully transferred to your private personal account.]

Mira looked down at the eight-figure balance resting safely in her private bank account, completely untouched, completely untraceable, and forever out of Julien's reach.

She turned her back on the scum family, pulled her small suitcase out of the closet, and walked out the door without looking back once.