Chapter 3
Kellan's face showed shock, confusion, and slight fear.
"Zara, what are you doing?" he demanded.
"What do I want?" I stared at him. "I want you to know who really rules this house."
This was the first time I stood my ground.
It was just a verbal win, but I knew I'd already thrown this house into chaos.
They were shocked and outraged.
Little did they realize, this was only the beginning.
After the argument, the house fell into uneasy calm.
Mae stopped barking orders at me.
But whenever she looked at me, her eyes showed bitter resentment.
Kellan began trying to "talk" to me.
He bought my favorite cake and invited me for a night walk.
He acted gentle, hoping I'd obey like before.
I just went along with it, playing the game.
I knew he was trying to numb me and lower my guard.
But I was playing him right back.
On Monday night, Kellan brought home a document.
"Honey, this is a mutual aid fund agreement from the company," he said, handing it to me.
"It covers part of the cost if an employee's family member is hospitalized.
"You're about to have the baby, so just sign it, just in case."
I flipped through the document, pretending not to care.
It was just standard clauses.
Nothing appeared wrong.
"Okay," I said, picking up the pen.
A subtle spark of joy flickered in Kellan's eyes.
I pretended not to notice.
I picked up the pen, about to sign.
Suddenly, I let out a sharp cry and clutched my stomach.
"What's wrong?" Kellan asked, worried.
"My stomach hurts," I said, frowning. "Maybe the baby's kicking me.
"I'm lying down. Leave the agreement here; I'll sign it later."
"Alright, go get some rest," he said quickly.
Cradling my back, I slowly made my way to the bedroom.
Once the door closed, my pained expression vanished.
I pulled out my phone and sent a message to Ryan.
[He gave me a document to sign, saying it was for the company's mutual aid fund.]
Ryan called me immediately.
"Don't sign it!" he said seriously.
"Take clear photos of every page and send them to me."
I followed his instructions and sent clear shots of every page.
Five minutes later, he returned my call.
His tone was icy.
"Zara, this isn't a mutual aid fund agreement.
"It's a contract for dividing assets between spouses.
"There's a hidden clause in the fine print.
"Both agree that property owned before marriage becomes marital after marriage.
"Signing this makes your house marital property.
"If you split, he'd get at least half."
My heart sank.
Nice move, Kellan.
Some "understanding" that was.
So that's what he was really after.
He saw I wasn't going to give in, so instead of coming at me head-on, he decided to get sneaky.
If I hadn't stayed sharp and contacted Ryan, I might've actually signed it.
Then his family would drain me, and I'd lose half my house to them.
"Ryan, what should I do?" I asked.
"We'll outplay him," he said calmly.
"He wants you to sign? Give it to him.
"But we'll exchange the agreement.
"I'll draft a new one now. Just find a chance to switch the documents."
"So, what's included in this new contract?" I asked.
Ryan laughed softly.
"Here's what the new agreement says.
"Kellan Thompson waives all claims to Zara Bennett's pre-marital assets.
"He agrees to give all his income to his wife after marriage as compensation."
I froze.
This... this was like signing my life away.
"Would he actually sign this?" I asked, still in shock.
"Trust me, he will," Ryan said calmly. "If he thinks you're signing the one he gave you."
After hanging up, my heart raced.
This was risky as hell.
But damn, it was thrilling.
Thirty minutes later, Ryan sent the new agreement.
The format, font, and punctuation matched Kellan's exactly.
I printed it out on our home printer.
My palms were sweaty as I clutched both contracts.
I took a deep breath and left the bedroom.
Kellan was watching TV in the living room.
"Honey, I feel much better now," I said, walking over.
I placed both documents on the coffee table.
One belonged to him, the other to me.
Mine was at the bottom.
"Where do I sign?" I asked.
I picked up his copy and pretended to read it.
Kellan's eyes were glued to my hand.
I picked up the pen, angling so he couldn't see.
As my pen touched paper, my hand shook—on purpose.
The pen slipped and fell.
I crouched down to grab the pen.
In a blink, I swapped the two contracts.
Mine was now on top.
His ended up on the bottom. Mine on top.
The entire event occurred in less than a second.
I stood calm, showing no nerves.
"Pregnancy really messes with your coordination," I said casually.
I signed the agreement Ryan prepared.
Then I handed it to Kellan.
"Alright, your turn," I said.
He signed the agreement confidently without reading it.
Once he finished signing, he sighed with relief.
He couldn't hide the triumphant expression on his face.
He believed he had won.
He assumed half my valuable house was his.
He didn't realize he'd just signed away everything and would end up penniless and out the door.
I folded the agreement neatly.
"I'll put this away," I said.