Ten Years a Stand-in Wife—Old Money Only Recognizes Me Chapter 16

Ten Years a Stand-in Wife—Old Money Only Recognizes Me Chapter 16

Her lips trembled.

Then she turned her head, stepped into the rain in her heels.

The rain wasn’t heavy.

A thin gray drizzle struck the stone steps, making them glisten under the light.

Valerie’s figure grew smaller in the rain.

Her camel-colored coat darkened as it soaked through, clinging to her shoulders and back.

Linda chased after her with an umbrella, calling out behind her.

“Valerie! Valerie, wait-”

Valerie didn’t stop.

Her heel stepped into a puddle, splashing muddy water up her pant leg.

She didn’t even look down.

She kept walking all the way to the taxi stand.

I stood at the courthouse entrance. Two drops of rain landed on my folder.

Jacob handed me an umbrella.

“Mrs. Shaw, let’s get in the car.”

“Hmm.”

I took it.

But I didn’t leave right away.

I watched Valerie get into a taxi. The engine started. The taillight flickered red in the rain, then

merged into traffic.

Ten years ago, she disappeared the same way.

Clean.

Decisive.

Without looking back.

Only last time, she chose to leave.

This time, she was forced out.

The ruling came three days later.

Claim dismissed.

The reasoning filled three pages.

The core sentence was simple: Given the plaintiff’s fabrication of a death certificate, long-term abandonment of a minor, and the ward’s clear refusal to change guardianship, the court finds no basis to support the plaintiff’s claim.

Valerie did not appeal the verdict.

Because she no longer had the money to pay the filing fee.

And because-her lawyer withdrew after reviewing all the evidence.

“I cannot represent a client who conceals material facts,” the young lawyer said over the phone. “She told me she left due to domestic abuse. She never mentioned the fake death certificate, or the overseas cohabitation. Not a single word.”

Valerie’s entire hand had been exposed.

But it wasn’t over yet.

Because something happened on the Mercer side.

That night the ruling came out, David showed up at Shaw Manor.

Not to make trouble.

He came alone. No Linda. No Valerie.

He wore a washed-out jacket. His hair had turned noticeably grayer since I last saw him.

Nancy brought him into the living room.

He didn’t dare sit on the sofa. He stood by the coffee table, hands hanging at his sides.

I came down from the study.

Adrian followed behind me, but stopped at the doorway and leaned against the frame.

He didn’t come in.

But he was there.

“Dad.”

“Sloane…”

David looked up at me. His mouth opened several times before anything came out. His Adam’s

apple moved up and down.

“I know you hate me.

“I don’t.”

He froze slightly.

“I can’t hate you,” I said.

It was the truth.

Hating someone took energy. I didn’t have any to spare.

There were too many things to deal with. Too many people depending on me.

Ethan had finals in two weeks.

The company’s next-quarter report needed review.

Jenifer’s blood pressure was up at her last checkup and her medication had to be changed.

Hate him?

Not worth it.

“Dad, why are you here?”

David’s lips trembled.

Slowly, he pulled something from his jacket pocket.

A bank card.

He placed it on the coffee table.

“Everything your mother and your sister did behind my back all these years,” his voice sounded like a rusted hinge, grinding out each word, “I only just found out.”

“What things?”

“The first three years after your marriage-your sister’s expenses overseas were paid from money your mother took from the Shaw family.”

I didn’t say anything.

David continued.

“The monthly allowance from the Shaw family to the Mercer family was $80,000 dollars. Your mother cut it in half and transferred it to your sister’s account.”

“$40,000. Three years. $1,440,000.”

His voice grew lower.

“I didn’t know. I really didn’t know. I thought that money was

“Dad.”

He looked up.

“I knew about the $40,000.”