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Chapter Nine
Huling Na-update:
2025-04-04 07:07:44
Kaugnay na kabanata
My Ex-wife is a Hidden Heiress! Chapter Ten
A Game of PowerValenticia's Pov:The instant we locked eyes, it seemed to me like the surrounding crowd had disappeared. An odd tension hung in the air between us. But as quickly as our eyes met, he turned away, ending the moment.I blinked, shaking off the moment and returning to the auction.The auctioneer continued to announce bids, his voice filling the room. One after another, luxurious items were auctioned off — rare paintings, and exclusive jewelry, signed by historical figures.Then one item caught my attention.A diamond-encrusted watch.Not just any watch — it was a one-of-a-kind rose gold Virtuoso, decorated with flawless diamonds and made by one of the world’s most renowned luxury watchmakers. Only three were made, making it a collector’s dream.The item was unveiled and a murmur spread in the hall. Then the bidding began.“Twenty million dollars.”“Thirty million!”“Fifty million.”The numbers kept climbing.I laughed as the elites of society clawed over it. A marker of
Huling Na-update : 2025-04-05My Ex-wife is a Hidden Heiress! Chapter Eleven
Hidden SecretsStefan's POV:I was standing in a corner of the dimly lit backstage area, my hands in my pockets. My assistant silently accompanied me as I watched the scene.The woman walked away, her head held high. She should have exuded a quiet confidence, but I’d noticed how her eyes had narrowed during her conversation with that man. I had witnessed the tense set of her shoulders, and the clipped edge of her voice.And I had also seen how the man reacted.His face twisted in something dark — anger, hatred, perhaps even fear.I watched him stand there briefly, his fists clenched by his sides. Then, just as he lost sight of her, he let out an exasperated breath and murmured to himself.“You think you can come and run this company?” his tone low, hatred in every word. “This has always been my company. I won’t see a woman take it from me.”I stayed put, watching him, my eyes glued to him.The man’s jaw hardened.“You think you can just come back and take what’s mine?” he added, his
Huling Na-update : 2025-04-05My Ex-wife is a Hidden Heiress! Chapter Twelve
The ChallengeValenticia's POV:I was going through some reports in my small office when my grandmother’s secretary, Grace, knocked and stuck her head in the door. “Your grandmother wants to see you,” she said, her tone always brisk, never unkind.I rose immediately, smoothing the front of my skirt with my palm, and walked behind her down the hallways that always felt too quiet.The door to my grandmother’s office was already open when I got there, and she was sitting behind her huge mahogany desk, her posture as erect and commanding as ever. The glimmer in her eyes suggested that this wasn’t a social call.I entered quietly and sat across from her, folding my hands in my lap.She didn’t waste time. “How would you feel stepping into the company?”The question came out of nowhere, so I didn’t have time to think of a nice response. Not that she expected one.I stared at her for a second. “Now?”“There’s a lot of eyes on you,” she said, her tone cool and confident. “I’ve trained you. You
Huling Na-update : 2025-04-07My Ex-wife is a Hidden Heiress! Chapter Thirteen
Misjudged Valenticia’s POV:The next morning came with an unfamiliar heaviness. I woke early, the nervous fluttering in my chest forcing me to get out of bed before the sun was even fully up. After a long, warm bath, changing into a minimalist navy-blue dress, tying the hair into a little knot, I did not wear anything flashy no jewelry, no heels, no designer bag. Just me.I padded down the stairs. It was quiet in the house, peaceful. I went to the kitchen and made myself a pot of tea. Green, strong, unsweetened. I drank it slowly, the heat soothing my nerves as I looked out the window. Today wasn't about status. It was about learning. Watching and listening.My grandmother came in soon after. She greeted me with a warm smile, dark eyes flicking up and down my outfit with quiet approval, or maybe disbelief.“Do you want me to go with you?” she inquired, walking into the room.I turned to her, my tea cradled in both hands. "No, Grandma. I want to explore alone today… I want to see thin
Huling Na-update : 2025-04-07My Ex-wife is a Hidden Heiress! Chapter Fourteen
Undercover Pawn Valenticias pov- I stood in the lobby of Clawford Corporation frozen, Rita's poisonous words, “Girls like you, coming in through the backdoor,” rang in my ear. She’d sputtered, her eyes shining with disgust. My cheeks burned, but not with shame, with the gall of her assumption — that I, Valenticia Clawford, was here to charm my way into an undeserved job. Before I could reply, a voice, hard and authoritative, sliced through the tension. “Enough.” I turned to see a man striding toward us, his tailored suit indicating that he was someone to be respected. His badge said Mr. Larson, Senior Manager. Rita’s smirk wavered, but her stance did not falter. “Ms. Valenticia is coming,” Larson said, his tone leaving no room for argument. “Madam Rosanna made her appointment by herself. Is there a problem, Rita?” Rita opened her mouth but no sound emerged. She cast me a look then muttered, “No, sir,” and retreated to the reception desk. Larson’s expression softened somewhat
Huling Na-update : 2025-04-07My Ex-wife is a Hidden Heiress! Chapter Fifteen
Mystery Night Stefan's POV- I leaned back in my leather chair, the Seryne skyline glittering outside my office window. My assistant, Carter, slid a dossier across the polished mahogany desk, his movements crisp, as ever. “Everything on Valenticia Clawford, sir,” he said, his voice short. I opened the folder, and then came her photo — her silver dress, her posture. A strange feeling twisted in my chest, sharp and unwelcome. She wasn’t merely the desperate woman I’d sat down beside in my car, fleeing from abductors in her ripped gown. She was the Clawford heiress. Her brazen gala invitation to dinner — direct and without the usual scheming attached — stuck in my brain. The majority of women who came to me were wanting something—money, influence, a hold in my world. That greed wasn't in Valenticia’s eyes. It was intriguing to me, and I didn’t like being intrigued. My empire, New Dream Corporation, was in a cold war with the Clawford Group. It was a lucrative land deal, prime r
Huling Na-update : 2025-04-09My Ex-wife is a Hidden Heiress! Chapter Sixteen
Shadows of Trust Valenticias POV- My heart pounded in my chest as I huddled under my desk. The shadow whispering in the hall had made my pulse race, but as the footsteps receded, I found it was only a security guard, unaware of my existence. His radio chimed in, a routine call of a flickering light, and I exhaled shakily. My nerves were left shaking from the close call. I couldn’t stay here, not with what I had found. I pocketed the USB drive that still contained the incriminating file on Nexis Solutions. I made my way to the door, peeking into the darkened hallway. Empty. My flats barely made a sound on the polished floor as I made my way. Not even an elevator ding to the stairs. Every creak in the building was an alarm, but I forced myself to go, the evidence still in my pocket. I hailed a cab, my breath visible in the cold. The driver hardly looked at me and I was thankful for his disinterest. As the city blurred by, my thoughts raced. Those payments, millions of th
Huling Na-update : 2025-04-09My Ex-wife is a Hidden Heiress! Chapter Seventeen
Ex-Husband RegretValenticias POV-Dmitri’s frantic shouts cut through the air outside the Clawford estate gates, and my breath caught in my throat. “Valenticia! Please, I’m begging you!” His voice was ragged, filled with panic, nothing at all like that cold, polished ex-husband who once cast me aside like a used tissue.He looked wrecked.His hair was disheveled, his shirt half-tucked, eyes wide, like he hadn’t slept in days. But it was Natasha, emerging from a sleek black car, that coursed ice through my veins. Her face was filled with fury, as her upper lip curled in a snarl, and the metal object in her hand was a knife.My stomach churned, a chill stilling me in place.In a matter of seconds, security swarmed in.Two guards grabbed Dmitri, wrenching his arms behind him as he writhed, his voice cracking. “Val, please! I made a mistake! I need you!” The words burned in my chest, awaking memories of his indifference, the divorce paperwork, the evenings I’d waited without hearing the
Huling Na-update : 2025-04-23
Pinakabagong kabanata
My Ex-wife is a Hidden Heiress! Chapter Thirty
Fractured ShieldsStefan's POV~The theft of Gideon’s USB drive, our evidence of Galden’s patent theft and crime, had blown a hole through our plan, leaving us hanging out there on a line. My office had become a graveyard of broken monitors. Anger raged through me but Valenticia's silent panic forced me to break out. I led her to a seat, my hand resting on her shoulder, an unspoken promise to save Clara amidst the madness.Her fear shattered something in me. The engagement announcement had been intended to be a strategy— a fortress for Clawford and New Dream against Galden’s charge. But her courage, her defiance in the face of Natasha’s video threat, turned it into something greater. I saw her, holding Gideon’s bloody USB, her scream when he dropped. She wasn’t a piece to be moved around... she was a partner, and I certainly wouldn’t have Galen take her or take Clara.Memories clutched at me — my mother’s face, white and blank, her death when I was twelve that had taught me, that love
My Ex-wife is a Hidden Heiress! Chapter Twenty Nine
Cries for RetributionValenticias POV~The video of Clara, bound and gagged, played repeatedly in my brain, Natasha’s venomous hiss, you step down, or she pays, twisting in my gut. I hesitated in the library back at the estate, the trembling in my hands worsening as I held onto my phone. It was my fault all my fault. I’d been suspended from the board, Natasha’s forged emails calling me a thief had weakened me, and now she’d hit me where it hurt most, the people who worked for us. Gideon’s USB, covered in his blood, was the only thing I had, but it was also my curse, bringing me closer to Victor Galden and the threats he carried.Grandmother's voice cut through my confusion, “Valenticia, we must act. Inform Stefan of the wedding and let him announce it to the public. It’s a shield between Natasha and Galden as they will not so readily aim at a unified Clawford and New Dream.”My heart revolted, and I counted the contract marriage as a shackle I’d slowly let be tied around my ankle.“
My Ex-wife is a Hidden Heiress! Chapter Twenty Eight
Threads of TreasonGregor's POV~The drone footage played on a replay in my mind as I sat in the safehouse, its moldy walls suffocating, the laptop screen dark but seared with the image of me on Clawford Corporation’s rooftop, Natasha’s venomous smile beside me as we schemed against Valenticia. The drone had captured it all, exposing my every word, my betrayal. Vance’s treachery, slipping files to a hooded figure in that alley, had broken my trust, and now this footage threatened to bury me. My pulse bit fast, a traitor’s anthem, as I fought to hold myself together.Victor Galden’s call had come at dawn, his voice cold through the phone. “Valenticia’s still a problem, Clawford,” he snarled. “Remove her, or I leak your Nexus dealings. You’ll be seen as a traitor which you are.”Galden’s ruthlessness was legendary, his empire built on the bones of those who’d crossed him. I’d funneled millions to Nexus Ventures, his machine to dismantle the Clawfords, believing it would crown me king.
My Ex-wife is a Hidden Heiress! Chapter Twenty Seven
Blood and BondsValenticias POV~Gideon’s blood remained damp and clung to my skin. The USB drive felt like a cold lump in my hand, slick and red with his blood. I stood in the hospital’s sterile corridor, my lungs burning with that antiseptic smell, paramedics shouting as they raced Gideon into surgery. Stefan steadied me, his arm holding me up with a firm grip just as he had done back at the pier when he’d protected me from the masked attackers. That act of protection, etched my heart, marriage contract or not. The next vehicle had been police, the sirens a distant salvation, but the attackers had disappeared, leaving only Gideon’s broken body and my breaking resolve.I blamed myself. It was my search for Victor Galden that had led Gideon to that pier; his loyalty to Stefan left him losing blood that night. My hands shook. I had gone too far, and now a man was dying for it. “He’ll be all right,” Stefan said, but the tension in his jaw betrayed his certainty. “Gideon’s loyal to
My Ex-wife is a Hidden Heiress! Chapter Twenty Six
Sting of BetrayalStefan's POV~The marriage draft rested atop my desk, the scrawl of Valenticia’s signature slashing starkly against the blank copy. Her fire at dinner. The sparkle of her eyes demanding equality had cracked at my core, awakening an admiration I could not afford. I sat back in my chair, the city’s neon pulse seeping through the office window as a reminder of the stakes. Seryne was a warzone and Valenticia Clawford was an asset and a risk. The penthouse fire, two nights before that, had cost me more than walls. New Dream’s servers were limping, critical data gone to ash. I was losing my hold, and Victor Galden was winning.Carter’s call split the silence, his tone strained. “Gideon’s gone rogue, Boss. He’s seeing Valenticia at the pier—midnight. Says he’s showing her evidence of Galden’s patent theft.”My gut clenched. “I told him to keep his head down,” I snarled, punching the desk. “What the hell is he doing risking it?”“He feels like he owes her,” Carter said. “Thi
My Ex-wife is a Hidden Heiress! Chapter Twenty Five
Unveiled Valenticia's POV~I held the crumpled note in my hand, Meet me at midnight. I know Galden’s next move. The words offered information on what Victor Galden planned to do, but there was danger woven through them, a snare I could not dismiss. I was in the estate's library, the air hung thick with the odor of old leather and wax, and last night’s red rose was still sitting on the table, its thorns pointed like an unsaid accusation. I had smashed Natasha’s tracking device with my heel at the auction, but her obsession was shackling me.My grandmother's voice sharp and hard pierced through my thoughts. “Valenticia, you’re going to meet Stefan Myles tonight. Let’s talk about the contract marriage.”My heart dropped, and a familiar ache started. Another loveless transaction, like Dmitri’s betrayal, the starry promises that had turned to ash. “Grandmother, I can’t. Not another cage.”Grandmother's gaze softened but her tone was firm. “This isn’t about love, child. It’s about surviva
My Ex-wife is a Hidden Heiress! Chapter Twenty Four
Web of DeceitGregor's POV~I paced with the crushed note in my fist”Your moves are observed”.When I had found it an hour ago and read it, its jagged script had taunted every step of mine. The black sedan that had followed me through Seryne’s rain-slicked streets last night was gone, but its shadow hung in my memory. Somebody was getting close—Valenticia, Stefan, or a player I had yet to identify.My pulse thrummed. I’d made my way to the brink of seizing control of Clawford Corporation, but the higher I climbed, the more the ground moved from under me.Victor Galden’s call had been a tightening noose this morning. "Get rid of the heiress," he had snarled. “She’s a liability.” Galden had been not just a partner, but a predator, and I had attached myself to him. The money I had been shipping to Nexus Ventures his cover for the Clawfords' takedown was supposed to guarantee that I stayed on top. But then his silence afterward scared the hell out of me, an absence where promises had be
My Ex-wife is a Hidden Heiress! Chapter Twenty Three
Mystery ManValenticia’s POV~The red rose rested on the library table. Back at the office, my computer screen had shown a live feed of my face, as seen from some unknown angle — maybe a camera in the ceiling or the vents. And then the image was gone as quickly as it had shown followed by a disturbing phone call: “You’re digging too deep, heiress.” It served as a reminder that nowhere was safe. Grandmother walked in, her hair catching the lamplight, face a mixture of determination and worry. “Valenticia, the security caught Dmitri. And he demands to speak with you only.”I nodded, suddenly aware of the pounding of my heart. Dmitri. What could he want now? “Let him in.”The security brought him in, and I could hardly recognize the shell of a man standing before me. His eyes were red, his finely tailored suit baggy, and it was as if guilt had carved away his insides. Memories rushed in — nights spent dreaming of a life together, his promises now ash. Rosanna stood by the fireplace,
My Ex-wife is a Hidden Heiress! Chapter Twenty Two
Shadows of Vengeance Stefans POV~I leaned against the floor-to-ceiling windows, with a glass of bourbon in my hand, the sting of the gas explosion that raged in my chest. Valenticia. Carter’s voice an hour ago had assured me, that she was alive, shaken, but unharmed in the gas leak. A miracle, he’d said. I didn’t believe in miracles. The gas leak wasn’t random. Nor was the server crash at Clawford Enterprises two days earlier, or the cryptic threats that had been whispered through back channels. Someone was playing pieces in a game I was not yet ready to dive into, and Valenticia was at the centre of it. My hand tightened around the glass, the bourbon rattling. I didn’t allow myself to use that word, but it knotted in my gut, disguised as anger. And if they laid a finger on her, and gods help them and they did, I would burn their world to ash.I put the glass down and walked back and forth, memory fragments clicking together. Rosanna’s offer of a marriage of convenience for
