PART 2
As soon as security officers escorted Austin and Christina out of the hospital, Megan closed the door behind them.
“How much longer were you planning to hide who you really are?” Megan asked softly.
Three years earlier, when I married Austin, I had retired from the day-to-day operations of Pinnacle Global Group, where I was the founder, chair of the board, and majority shareholder, though I intentionally avoided public interviews and photographs. Apex Logistics, the very company where Austin boasted of being regional director, actually belonged to the conglomerate I had built long before I ever met him. My shares were fully protected by a prenuptial agreement and a separation of property agreement that Austin had signed alongside his own lawyer, back when he swore he did not need my money and only wanted my love.
Cynthia was very clear about our legal strategy. “The divorce proceedings and the corporate audit should be handled completely separately so no one can accuse you of using the company for personal revenge.”
Austin’s employment file quickly revealed abnormally high corporate expense accounts, personal vacation trips charged directly to the business, and lucrative contracts awarded to Horizon Distributing, a private vendor secretly owned by his cousin Spencer. Furthermore, there were three anonymous complaints from junior employees who had been pressured by Austin to falsify financial receipts. I immediately ordered that the whistleblowers be fully protected and that all digital evidence be secured.
The very next day, the Parker family flooded social media with hateful posts accusing me of faking my traffic accident just to abandon my family and steal Austin’s hard-earned assets. I chose not to respond publicly, but instead saved every single screenshot into a legal folder titled “Defamation.”
Late that night, Christina called me from an unknown phone number, claiming she was in the cardiology department and promising to return important personal documents if I came alone to meet her. Megan quickly verified the claim with the hospital staff, who confirmed that no patient by that name was admitted. Five minutes later, a neighbor alerted me that a moving truck was parked right outside my residential apartment.
Megan arrived at the apartment alongside police officers and recorded everything on video. My bedroom had been turned upside down, and my passport, credit cards, fine jewelry, copies of the prenuptial agreement, and a confidential binder containing corporate documents had all disappeared.
A few hours later, Austin sent me a text message: “If you want your personal items back, withdraw your legal complaint immediately and stop pressuring me.”
Cynthia smiled coldly when she read the text. “He just foolishly admitted to the theft in writing.”
Two days later, Christina was forced to hand the stolen items over to the police, and when officers searched her closet, they also recovered the corporate folder. At that moment, Christina realized that I possessed vastly more wealth than her family had ever imagined, which prompted Austin to call me eighteen times in a row.
“What exactly is Pinnacle Global Group, and how many shares do you own in it?” Austin demanded frantically over the phone.
“That is none of your business anymore,” I replied coldly.
“I am still your husband!” he shouted.
“And yet you never told me that you forced your employees to falsify expenses, or that you funneled contracts to your cousin’s company,” I countered.
Austin remained completely silent on the line.
The internal audit began promptly on Monday morning, and while Austin initially thought auditors would only review a few business meals, the team seized computers, GPS routes, official invoices, and system access logs. That very night, Austin attempted to alter three financial reports from his personal laptop and pressured a junior finance assistant named Cindy Ritchie to back up his fraudulent changes, but Cindy immediately requested corporate protection from executive management.
The following morning, a mandatory videoconference was scheduled with all regional directors, and Austin called Jonathan in a panic over the depth of the investigation.
“Who authorized this absurd review?” Austin demanded aggressively.
“Tomorrow morning you will meet the person who presides over the entire group,” Jonathan answered smoothly.
When the meeting started, Austin appeared on screen wearing his best designer suit, still smiling with arrogant confidence. But his smile vanished when the heavy doors of the main boardroom opened, and the camera pivoted to reveal a woman walking in slowly while leaning on a crutch.
As soon as my full name was announced across the conference line, Austin’s face lost every bit of its color.
