Chapter 4

My in-laws had hidden the child quickly and thoroughly. Finding any trace of it wasn't going to be easy.

I kept my expression neutral. "Mom, Matthew needs his diploma and certificates for the shareholder meeting the day after tomorrow, and we can't find them anywhere. I came to check if they're here."

"Oh no, that's important!"

The two scrambled, pulling open drawers and rummaging through cabinets. I walked into the living room and let my eyes sweep across every corner. There was no sign that a child lived here.

I was about to try a different approach when I noticed a few thin, wispy strands of hair caught in the gap between the couch cushions. They were so fine that they could only belong to a small child.

I crouched down, picked them up, and slipped them into my pocket.

The moment I straightened up, the front door swung open. Matthew rushed in looking panicked, but the second he saw me, a smile spread across his face.

"Honey, what are you doing here this late?"

I smiled back. "Your paperwork is missing, and the shareholder meeting is the day after tomorrow. I didn't want anything holding it up."

He walked over and draped his arm around my shoulders, his voice gentle. "You must have forgotten. I already submitted everything."

His eyes stayed locked on me, watching carefully, as if he was terrified I might have seen something I shouldn't have.

"You must be exhausted. Let's go home?"

"Yes, yes!" His parents chimed in right away. "Vivienne, go home and get some rest!"

I nodded and let him lead me out.

This entire family was putting on an act, and all of it was designed to take what was mine. But with what I had in my pocket, there was no way I was letting that happen.

The next morning, I sent the strands of hair along with samples from Matthew's toothbrush and comb to a paternity testing lab and paid extra for expedited processing. I posted a photo of the receipt on social media, and it blew up instantly.

"I meant what I said. I'm not just leaving him. I'm going to make sure he regrets every second of it."

The comments poured in.

"Holy shit, she actually got evidence! What an absolute scumbag!"

"Go pull his bank records next. This is a war of preparation now, and whoever's more thorough wins."

"This is enough for a divorce, but not enough to make him walk away with nothing. Think about it. What do you have that would force him to agree to your terms?"

I paused, then typed a reply. "Is exposing who he really is not enough?"

The response came immediately.

"You have no idea how shameless people can be. You need real leverage over him. Otherwise, he'll flip it around and use your desperation to leave against you."

"Exactly. Even if you have to play dirty, so what? He did it first."

I thought it over for a moment, and then a plan formed in my mind. I replied with a single word. "Done."

…

The day of the shareholder meeting, Matthew showed up early in a crisp suit, looking like he owned the room. I watched him greet the executives as they filed in one by one, all smiles and confidence, and all I could see was the performance underneath.

Maybe this was what he'd been calculating from the very beginning, from the moment he so "selflessly" quit his job two years ago to take care of me.

The meeting started, but I stayed outside. I waited until my assistant came jogging over with the document I'd been expecting, and I flipped straight to the last page.

"Probability of paternal relationship: 99.99%."

Now it was irrefutable.

I took a deep breath and called my lawyer. "I want Matthew to leave this marriage with nothing. Lock down every asset. Don't let them move a single cent."

Then I pushed open the conference room doors. Every head turned toward me.

Matthew sat beside the head of the table, looking like a man on top of the world. He smiled and waved me over.

The moderator was mid-sentence. "It has been decided to grant Mr. Matthew Channing equity in—"

"I object." I walked to the front of the conference table and slammed the paternity report down on it.

"Matthew Channing carried on an affair during our marriage, fathered a child with another woman, and hid it right under my nose. His parents helped raise the baby, and neither of them felt an ounce of shame about it.

"If someone like that becomes a shareholder, what happens when this gets out? How far does the stock price drop? What will our partners think of us?

"As CEO, I am asking everyone here to review this evidence. I am formally requesting that Matthew's equity grant be revoked and that he be removed from all positions, effective immediately."

The smile froze on Matthew's face. All the color drained from it in an instant.