They Thought I Was Duped, Unaware I Had Truly Been Reborn Chapter 09

They Thought I Was Duped, Unaware I Had Truly Been Reborn Chapter 09

I made my position crystal clear.

The $6.2 million—every last cent—had to be returned, along with my mother’s bracelet, intact. No mediation. No negotiation.

Wade’s face fell.

With no other options left, he turned to Brynn and demanded that she get the money back from her brother.

He honestly believed she’d stand by him through thick and thin—that she’d bail him out. He was dead wrong.

“Why the hell should I give it back?”

Brynn pointed at me, her face twisted with rage.

“She sent Rudy to prison—she owes me!”

At some point, she and Rudy had clearly reached an agreement.

After his arrest, Rudy changed his story.

He claimed he’d acted alone.

That he’d kidnapped me because he couldn’t control himself.

Brynn’s name disappeared from his statement.

Now it was obvious why. Money.

Wade tried to reason with her.

“Just give the money back for now, or I’ll go to prison.”

—

“Once the house gets bought out, we’ll still have ten million.”

The moment he said that, Brynn dropped the act. The mask finally slipped.

“That ten million belongs to my brother. What’s it got to do with you?”

Wade froze. “What?”

“You told me the property was only in Rudy’s name temporarily.”

“You said it was so Simone wouldn’t find out.”

Brynn looked at him like he was an idiot.

“I spent years sleeping with you without getting anything in return—wanting a house isn’t asking too much, is it?”

She smirked. “Besides, weren’t you the one obsessed with getting Simone’s buyout money?”

“You were terrified people would find out you were living off her.”

“You were stupid enough to believe whatever I told you.”

“And you willingly marked every transfer as a gift.”

Wade stood there in stunned silence.

The person he’d trusted most had just stabbed him in the back.

Then he snapped. He slapped her hard across the face.

Brynn, humiliated and enraged, slapped him right back without hesitation.

—

The next second, they were tearing into each other like wild animals—screaming, cursing, throwing punches.

In the middle of the struggle, Wade shoved her away.

Brynn stumbled backward. Her stomach slammed into the corner of a table.

She let out a piercing scream.

Then grabbed her abdomen. “My baby…”

By the time she reached the hospital, the pregnancy was gone.

I watched the entire disaster unfold with cold indifference.

How utterly ironic—watching them tear each other apart felt like watching two vultures fight over scraps.

Fortunately, the five million dollars Wade had transferred hadn’t yet been used to pay off the mortgage.

Rudy’s arrest had disrupted everything.

The money was recovered quickly.

Once Wade saw Brynn’s true colors, he lost all control.

Never mind that she’d just miscarried—he grabbed her by the throat, demanding she sign the house back.

Brynn called the police. Wade was arrested.

After spending several days in detention, he showed up outside my office again.

—

He looked worse than ever—unshaven, bloodshot eyes, clothes hanging loose on his frame.

When he saw me, his voice cracked.

“Simone… I’m sorry. I know I was wrong. Please forgive me.”

“The five million’s back—we can start over, okay?”

I said nothing.

His voice filled with desperate.

“I’ve cut Brynn out of my life. I swear, I’ll never do it again.”

“Please, just give me a chance to make it up to you.”

I looked down at him. My voice was ice cold.

“No, you don’t know you were wrong.”

“You’ve just hit rock bottom and you’re staring down a prison sentence.”

“And now you’re begging because you think getting back together with me will save you.”

“You want to use a relationship to escape responsibility for stealing my mother’s heirloom sapphire bracelet and transferring my money.”

His eyes reddened.

“No… I really know I was wrong…”

Maybe he did. Maybe he finally understood.

—

But it no longer mattered. Not to me.

Looking at him now, all I felt was disgust.