Chapter 2
The piercing wail of police sirens cut through the quiet night above the hotel.
The party, meant to be a joyful celebration, ended up turning into a complete farce.
The arrival of the police sent the already chaotic scene into utter pandemonium.
"Who called the police? What's going on?" someone chimed in.
Claire stood at the hotel entrance, holding Sophie close as the cold wind whipped around them. She watched the flashing police lights, feeling numb inside.
She never meant for things to spiral out of control like this.
At that moment, she thought calling the police was the only way she could think of to escape.
She needed an outside force to break her free from all of this.
Edward was being questioned by the police, his face ashen and defeated, and all the swagger he'd shown earlier was gone.
Melissa was taken aside as well. She looked like she wanted to protest, but under the officers' stern gaze, she had no choice but to stay silent.
Linda was still causing a ruckus, flailing and shouting on the floor.
"Officer, arrest her! She's the one who disgraced our family name," Linda shouted.
"This is a family matter. You have no right to interfere," she added.
Michael stood off to the side, cold and imposing, guarding Claire like a gatekeeper.
"Officer, we suspect there's been an orgy here, corrupting public morals. Please deal with it properly," Michael said coldly.
The word orgy felt like a stinging slap, smacking Edward and Linda right across the face.
Edward swayed on his feet, barely able to keep himself upright.
"Michael," Claire called out softly, her voice trembling with emotion.
It wasn't fear that made her tremble, but the cold.
A chill that came from deep inside her, straight from her heart.
Michael turned around, took off his suit jacket, and wrapped it around Claire and Sophie.
"Don't be scared. I'm here," he said softly.
The comforting warmth of Michael's presence wrapped around Claire, and for the first time in ages, her tense body began to relax.
Without warning, tears began to fall.
It wasn't for Edward.
It was for all the years of her youth, all the love and effort she had poured into this relationship.
Everything had been wasted.
In the end, since no one was hurt, the police wrote up a report, gave Edward and Melissa a harsh warning, and packed up and left.
But the fallout from all this was only beginning.
Almost as soon as the police cars drove off, reporters from every major media outlet swarmed the hotel entrance, blocking it completely.
Camera flashes went off like crazy, blinding everyone in sight.
"Mr. Shaw, is it true that you kissed your secretary at Sophie's first-month celebration?"
"Mrs. Shaw, what's your take on this? Are you planning to divorce?"
"Ms. Linwood, what's your relationship with Mr. Shaw? Are you the other woman?"
The reporters fired off one tough question after another, not giving anyone a break.
Edward was cornered by the press, looking flustered and helpless. All he could do was repeat no comment.
Melissa looked like the picture of misery, acting as if she were the one who'd been wronged.
With Michael guarding Claire, she was whisked into the car right away.
The car sped off from the hotel, putting all that mess and drama in the rearview mirror.
Silence hung heavy in the car.
Sophie, exhausted from crying, had fallen into a deep sleep in Claire's arms, her little face still streaked with tears.
Claire lowered her head and gently kissed Sophie's forehead.
Sophie was her whole world.
She had to be strong, for Sophie's sake.
"Claire, come back home with me. Don't go back to that dump," Michael said as he drove.
"Okay," Claire answered quietly.
She couldn't stand another second in that place that they called home.
When they got back to her family home, her father Frank Summers and her stepmother Lily Summers were already waiting at the door, worry written all over their faces.
"Claire!" Lily cried, tears welling in her eyes as she rushed forward and hugged her tightly.
"Lily, I'm okay," Claire said, patting Lily's back and managing a weak smile.
"How could you be okay? That bastard Edward! The Summers family must be cursed to the bone," Frank cursed as he slammed his fist on the table, fuming.
"Don't make yourselves sick over this," Claire said softly. "I'll take care of it myself."
Her voice was quiet, but there was a steely determination in it that made it clear she meant business.
Frank and Lily exchanged a look, and in Claire's eyes, they saw a fierce resolve they'd never witnessed before.
That night, Claire locked herself in her room.
She didn't break down or lose herself in sadness.
She grabbed her phone and went through all her chats with Edward from the past few years. Then she went over the company's financial statements and combed through every transaction in their joint account.
She needed to stay calm.
The messier things got, the more she needed to keep her head.
At midnight, her phone started buzzing like crazy.
It was Edward.
She swiped to answer, but stayed silent.
Edward's voice came through, urgent and full of regret.
"Claire, please let me explain. It's not what you think. Melissa, she drugged me," Edward shouted.
Claire was left speechless.
She couldn't help but sneer inside.
What a lame, overused excuse that was.
"I drank the wine she gave me, and then I felt dizzy. I have no idea what happened after that. Claire, you have to believe me, okay?" Edward pleaded.
"I swear, you and Sophie are the only ones I love," he insisted.
Claire stayed silent, listening.
She listened to Edward weaving his shameless lies, acting like he meant every word.
When Claire kept quiet, Edward started to panic more.
He pleaded, "Claire, say something. I don't care if you yell at me or hit me, please don't ignore me.
"Tell me where you are. I'll come to you. Let's talk in person, okay?"
"Oh?" Claire finally said, her voice cold as ice.
She added, "What do you want to talk about in person?
"You want to talk about how you and your secretary put on a live sex act at Sophie's first-month celebration, right in front of everyone?
"Edward, what's left to say?"
"No, that's not it, Claire," Edward stammered, his voice trembling.
"Edward," Claire cut him off, her voice calm. "I want a divorce."
She said it like it was nothing, her tone so steady that it was almost scary.
That unnatural calm made Edward feel a cold fear grip his heart on the other end of the line.
"No, I won't agree to this. Over my dead body will I let you divorce me," Edward screamed.
"Claire, you can't do this to me. We built that company together. You can't walk out on me like this," he yelled.
Claire gave a cold, mocking laugh.
"The company?" Claire echoed, her voice thick with sarcasm.
She sneered, "Edward, have you forgotten? The initial funding came from Frank. The key tech patents? They're all under my name. And our biggest client? Michael landed that deal.
"So what do you have?
"You're the front man the Summers family put up for show."
She'd never dared to say any of this out loud before.
She loved him, so she always put his pride first and made sure he looked like a big shot in front of everyone.
But now, she didn't have to do that for him anymore.
On the other end, there was a dead silence.
After a long stretch, Edward spoke, his voice colder and more sinister than before.
"Claire, don't force my hand," he warned, his words edged with threat.
He continued, "Even if the company is your family's, I'm still the one listed as CEO, and I own forty percent of the shares. You really think a divorce is enough to cut me out?
"And don't forget Sophie is a Shaw too."
That was a threat, plain and simple.
Claire's heart wrenched with pain.
He was using their daughter to threaten her.
Edward had fallen to such depths of shamelessness.
"Edward," Claire said, each word icy and clear, "you're going to regret this."
She hung up, but her hand wouldn't stop shaking.
She drew in a deep breath, trying to steady herself.
I couldn't panic.
She fired up her laptop and started drafting paperwork, her mind focused.
It was an asset transfer certificate and a nominee shareholding agreement.
Thankfully, back then, Edward signed it out of trust and a touch of business strategy.
The agreement stated that forty percent of the shares under Edward's name were held by him for Claire, and that the real owner was her all along.
But that agreement had been gathering dust in the safe for years. Edward had probably forgotten it existed.
Once she was done, she picked up her phone and made another call.
"Hello, is this Mr. Richard Grant?" she asked.
"This is Claire," she said. "I need your help. I want a divorce, and I want him to walk away with nothing."
Richard was the most renowned divorce lawyer in Rivergate.
He'd never lost a case.
He had a reputation for handling high-stakes divorces among the rich and powerful, always fighting to secure the biggest win for his clients.
Early the next morning, Richard showed up at the Summers family home.
He was dressed in a perfectly tailored gray suit, his eyes sharp and cool behind those gold-rimmed glasses.
"Ms. Summers, my condolences," he said.
He skipped the usual pleasantries, offering no greeting at all and going straight to "my condolences".
To him, the death of a marriage was something that deserved to be mourned.
Claire liked that he didn't waste time with small talk and got straight to the point.