He Took the Pain With Him When He Left Chapter 03

He Took the Pain With Him When He Left Chapter 03

Derek saw I wasn’t speaking and took it as acceptance. His tone softened.

“After the baby’s born, I’ll give Serena a house and a settlement. She won’t be in your life. You’ll still be Mrs. Hawthorne. Our child will still be the only publicly recognized heir.”

Serena leaned back on the couch, stroking her belly.

“Vivian, Derek loves you most. I’m happy just having him visit once in a while.”

She sounded sweet. But I saw the smugness in her eyes.

In their minds, I was supposed to swallow the humiliation—just like Derek’s mother had done.

I smiled and gave the guards a nod. “Call the legal team. Activate Article Seven of the prenuptial agreement.”

Within moments, a team of lawyers walked in.

The lead attorney handed the documents to Derek.

“Mr. Hawthorne. Ms. Mills’s pregnancy test is sufficient proof that you’ve violated the prenuptial agreement. As of now, thirty-seven percent of your Hawthorne Group shares will be transferred to Ms. Vance. The Vance Group’s cash support for Hawthorne is also officially terminated.”

Derek’s phone rang immediately. It was the chairman. I could hear him yelling even from across the room.

“What the hell did you do? The Vances just pulled their funding. The banks are calling. The board wants you suspended immediately!”

Derek’s face went pale.

“Vivian, we’ve been together for years. Are you really going to destroy everything I have over something this trivial?”

I smiled at him.

“Derek, you love keeping a mistress? Keep her. But the cage, the food, the money you used to keep her—” I took the villa keys from his hand. “All of it is mine now. I’m taking it all.”

I turned and walked out. Behind me, Derek called my name in urgency—the first time he’d ever lowered himself to do so. I didn’t look back.

At the door, I said one last thing to Serena:

“Congratulations. This man, with nothing left to his name, is all yours now.”