Semua Bab Betrayed By My Husband, I Married His Billionaire Uncle: Bab 1 - Bab 10

Anika, 25By the time I stepped out of the airport, my entire body ached.The long hours in a cramped seat had left my neck stiff and my shoulders sore, and dragging my luggage behind me only made it worse. I paused for a moment just outside the terminal, adjusting my grip and scanning the area out of habit.I leaned against my suitcase, closing my eyes for a second. I had spent two weeks in New Orleans, cleaning up the mess Merrick’s local directors had made. I was the one who balanced the ledgers; I was the one who settled the strikes. Without me, the company was a house of cards waiting for a breeze.But I wasn't even worth a seat on my own husband’s private jet."The jet was needed to fetch Miss Karla’s favorite chef from Italy, Ma’am," Merrick’s secretary had told me over the phone with a voice like cold stone. "Mr. Sterling says you can find your own way back. It’s just a flight, after all."A flight. In a cramped seat, while I was already running on fumes.I pulled out my phon

Anika The icy rain was no longer just a weather condition; it felt like a thousand needles sewing me into my own coffin as I stood there, paralyzed, watching them. The sound of their laughter, so warm and intimate, sliced through the rhythmic drumming of the storm until my own heartbeat sounded like a death knell in my ears. I couldn't move, couldn't breathe, not until Merrick’s head turned and his dark eyes found mine.The laughter didn't stop—it just transformed into something pretentious. He tapped Karla’s shoulder, and they both stood up with a synchronized grace that told me they had practiced this dance for years while I was away, working myself to the bone."Anika?" My sister’s voice was like honey laced with arsenic, that innocent, wide-eyed look she always used to get her way perfectly in place. "You're here? Goodness, how long have you been standing there getting drenched? I got better so quickly, and the doctors said I should rest at home. I hope you don't mind, your husb

AnikaThe first thing that returned to me was the smell. It was a sharp, biting scent of bleach and medicine, a cold odor that made my stomach turn before I could even open my eyes. My eyelids felt like they had been glued shut. When I finally forced them apart, a blinding, harsh white light flooded my vision, making my head throb with an intense, pulsing ache.I tried to lift my hand to block the light, but my arm felt like lead. It was pinned down by tubes and wires."Oh my god, she is awake! She is opening her eyes!"The sudden, piercing scream came from somewhere to my right. It vibrated straight through my skull, causing me to wince and pull back. I turned my head slowly, my vision blurry and swimming. A young woman in scrubs was scrambling away from the side of the bed, her face wide with shock as she rushed toward the door."Get the doctor! Tell them the patient in VIP one is conscious!" she yelled out into the hallway.My heart began to throb hard against my ribs. Where was I?

Icelyn, 38I stared down at the bold hazel eyes looking up at me from the edge of the hospital bed.For the last few years, those eyes had always looked away shyly anytime I stared too long or anytime our paths crossed at family gatherings. She used to be a lively, bright lady before she made the absolute mistake of marrying my worthless nephew. Over the years, I had watched her slowly shrink, becoming a mere shadow of herself just to fit into Merrick’s pathetic world. But right now, the shyness was entirely gone. The woman sitting before me was angry, desperate, and fiercely determined.I knew everything that had happened to her. Every single damn thing.I had tried my best not to meddle. I had tried not to warn her, telling myself to stay out of it and let her see the truth on her own. But I could not stay away. I had followed her from the airport when she left for New Orleans. I had bought a ticket on that same commercial flight, sitting just five seats away from her in the coach

ANIKAA year had passed since the accident. Three hundred and sixty-five days since my old life burned to the ground.The reflection staring back at me in the dark glass belonged to a stranger. Gone was the naive, sweet girl who believed her family actually loved her. In her place stood a woman clad in a tailored black blazer and a sharp pencil skirt, with a spine made of steel. My own mother and sister had taken my trusting heart and crushed it without a second thought. They threw me into a freezing river to stage my suicide so they could steal my grandfather’s company. I survived. And over the past twelve months, I had weaponized my grief.Hiding under the radar had become my second nature. Building a fashion and lifestyle empire from scratch required a ruthless level of focus. My brand represented traditional elegance, but the foundation of my business was built on pure spite and the need for justice. It was a cutthroat industry. Sharks circled every new launch, waiting for weakn