CHAPTER 3

Vivian's pov

Five years passed and while still in Switzerland, my daughter grew strong and healthy, filling my life with joy. But back home in Northport, I spent every single day planning my move.

The night when my daughter was born. While Adrian was off celebrating his new deal, my grandfather’s people were already moving fast.

Arthur Sinclair was not just a rich man, he was one of the most powerful leaders in the world. With a few phone calls, my grandfather replaced the hospital staff with his own trusted doctors. Together, we created fake medical reports showing that my baby girl had passed away.

At three in the morning, a silent medical helicopter landed on the hospital roof.

The nurses carefully carried my tiny daughter inside a heated travel pod, flying her far away to an elite private hospital in Switzerland. She would be safe there, surrounded by the best doctors in the world.

The next morning, a messenger delivered the fake death certificate straight to Adrian's desk. But there was no response from him.

When I asked the messenger about it, he simply said, he read the death certificate and went back to work.

The audacity of this man! He didn't even ask to hold a funeral, he just simply went back to work, completely unaware that his daughter was alive and that I was coming for everything he owned.

On the surface, Adrian’s company, Lancaster Enterprises, looked bigger and richer than ever. But underneath, he wasn't aware that there was an invisible trap was closing in on him. An anonymous global investment group had been quietly buying up all of Adrian’s company debts, mortgage loans, and extra stock.

Adrian thought he was safe at the top of the world. He had no idea that a mysterious ghost was slowly buying up his entire life piece by piece.

And I had just started getting back at him. I gave everything I had to Adrian while I was married to him and he betrayed me in the worst possible way. I promised myself that I wouldn't let myself sulk over what Adrian lost.

When I received the invitation to be at the elite winter Gala inside the Grand Palais, I knew I had to be there because Adrian was going to be there as well.

I would make my first appearance while my trap sprung into full motion.

When I arrived at the Gala, the room was packed with billionaires, politicians, and news reporters.

Adrian was standing near the bar in his expensive suit, laughing with a group of investors and holding a crystal glass of scotch.

I waited until the heavy doors swung open before I lifted the edge of my dress and stepped down the stairs.

The entire ballroom fell dead silent as my presence filled the room.

I held my head high, refusing to look upon anyone's face. I wore a striking green silk dress that looked like liquid emerald. My hair was styled like a crown, and diamonds sparkled around my neck. But what made everyone gasp wasn't just my beauty, it was my pregnancy bump that was evident through the dress.

Mild whispers instantly spread through the crowd like wildfire. "Is that Vivian Sinclair? Is she pregnant? I thought she had separated from her husband, so who is now the father of her child?"

Across the room, Adrian’s smile completely vanished when he saw me. His hand shook so hard that his glass of scotch slipped from his fingers, crashing onto the floor and shattering into a hundred pieces.

He looked down briefly at the shattered glasses before his eyes found mine again. His gaze dropped down to my belly and remained there for more than a minute. I saw the look of terror spread slowly on his countenance as he took in my pregnant belly.

I couldn't hold back the smile that crept onto my face.

He left the investors he had been discussing with before I walked in and started striding towards me but I turned and walked away before he could reach me.

His call for me drifted across the room drowning in the soft music but I paid him no heed.

For five years, Adrian had lived with the quiet thought that I was broken, sad, and alone. Seeing me stand there looking richer, more powerful, and carrying what looked like another man's child made him completely lose his mind.

The rumor of my pregnancy spread through the city of Northport like wildfire. Within twenty-four hours, every gossip magazine, television station, and elite social club was talking about nothing else. The headlines screamed across every screen: 'The Sinclair heiress is back, and she's carrying another man's child.'

I knew Adrian Lancaster will lose his mind completely, he was the jealous type and seeing me again with another man's child will make his head spin.

I knew it would happen. Adrian was a man who needed to control everything around him.

The idea that I had moved on, that I had found happiness, and that another man’s baby was growing inside me was going to drive him utterly insane.

Knowing Adrian, he wouldn't be able to focus on his corporate meetings, he will lose his sleep and he will definitely spend a fortune hiring the most expensive private investigators in the country, tasking them with tracking my every move, finding my doctors, and uncovering the identity of my supposed new partner.

The game had only begun for me. I was going to torment Adrian in every way possible and make him pay. Now it was on to the next phase of my plan.