Chapter 2

"Will, I'll be straight with you. Your ex has been picked up by someone big, and now she's got backing. She wants to make her new boyfriend a star.

"If you kick up a fuss, it's going to hurt Leo. As an old friend, let me give you some advice: take the money and walk away. Don't go up against whoever's behind her."

Someone behind her?

I let out a cold laugh.

Who could possibly have more pull than me?

For years, I'd been the one secretly pulling the strings, and Laura had never once known what I was actually capable of.

All because she'd once asked me if I'd leave her behind if I ever made it big. I was afraid that if she knew who I really was, it would make her feel insecure. So for years, I'd deliberately kept myself small and lifted her up from the shadows, all so that one day we could stand as equals.

Just as I was about to call my people, the hospital rang.

"Mr. Chappell! Your father's being mobbed in his hospital room by a crowd of angry fans! You need to get here now!"

"That's the mongrel's father! That mongrel harassed Laura and smeared Leo. His father can't be any better. Don't let him off easy!"

By the time I reached the hospital, Laura's fans had already packed the entire hallway.

Hospital security couldn't even force their way through.

I brought my bodyguards and physically tore a path through the crowd until I finally found Dad, hiding in his room, covered in blood.

"The mongrel has some nerve showing his face! Everyone, get him!"

"We've been shipping Laura and Leo for three years, you piece of trash. Who do you think you are, sticking yourself to her like this?"

Just as their phones were about to come down on me, Dad, bloody as he was, tried to shield me with his own body.

Then the police showed up.

"Police! Everyone, put it down!"

Only then did the weapons in their hands stop short of hitting me.

They rushed Dad off to get treated. Furious, I called Laura.

"You told those fans where Dad was, didn't you? You and I were the only two people who knew which hospital he was at."

Laura went quiet for a moment first.

Then she spoke.

"Maybe one of the fans dug up the information themselves. I know you're upset that your dad got hurt, but you can't just go around accusing me."

She hung up before I could answer.

What she didn't know was that I still had her account password.

I logged into her account.

In her fan group chat, I found the message where she'd posted Dad's address and information herself, and my hands started shaking.

Dad had treated her like his own daughter. After her own parents died, every time he cooked, he'd always set aside a bowl for her too.

Before I could even take a screenshot, I got kicked offline by force.

I knew Laura had noticed.

There wasn't even time to be angry, because the doctor sent me a warning.

Dad was elderly, and the beating had left him bleeding heavily. He needed to be transferred to a better hospital right away.

"Then transfer him!"

I was frantic.

"But... Mr. Chappell, there's no money left in your account to transfer."

I froze.

Dad's medical account was tied to my own private bank card.

It had nine digits on it, at least.

There was no way it could be empty.

I made call after call.

Finally, a friend at the IRS told me what had happened.

"Someone reported you for suspected money laundering. All your accounts have been frozen for emergency review. Don't worry, if the review clears you, they'll unfreeze it."

I felt like I'd been dropped straight into ice water.

My friend hadn't told me exactly who had filed the report. But whoever it was had been able to fabricate evidence of money laundering against me.

The only person with that kind of access was the woman who'd shared my bed for six years.