Chapter 2
The comments section was full of envy.
[Paulina, Amanda married into a rich family.]
[Your brother spoils you so much!]
Paulina replied smugly: [Of course. My brother's card has no limit.]
I turned off my phone and poured myself a glass of red wine.
I knew what this wedding cost, down to the last dollar.
The total cost of the venue, the banquet, the wedding planner, the jewelry, and the dresses easily hit eight figures.
That was a crazy amount of money, at least for ordinary people.
Back then, Steven wouldn't have blinked at that amount.
But now, it was a real headache for him.
As the wedding drew to a close, the host took the stage and announced the banquet was officially over.
The hotel's manager of Guest Relations walked over to Steven, wearing a professional smile as he handed him the bill and the payment terminal.
He said, "Mr. Taylor, congratulations on your wedding. Here's the total for the banquet. Would you like to settle up now?"
Steven was on top of the world, radiating confidence and joy.
He smiled, wrapped his arm around Amanda's waist, and planted a kiss on her cheek.
With a suave flourish, he pulled out that familiar black card from his suit pocket.
"Swipe it," he said.
He handed over the card, his tone full of the swagger of someone who spent money like water.
Everyone in the room was watching, their eyes filled with envy and admiration.
This was his moment, the high point of his life.
The hotel manager took the card and swiped it through the POS machine.
A soft beep echoed.
But nothing happened.
The staff member's smile stiffened for a second.
"Sorry, Mr. Taylor, maybe there's a network issue. Let me try again," the manager said, forcing a smile.
He tried the card again, a little more carefully this time.
It beeped again.
But the machine stayed silent, still nothing.
Sweat began to bead on his forehead.
The air in the room seemed to freeze.
The guests' eyes, once full of envy, shifted to curiosity and confusion.
Steven's smile faded. "What's wrong?"
"Let me try another machine!" the hotel manager said, his voice tight with nerves.
He personally brought over a brand-new POS machine.
He swiped the card for the third time.
After a long, shrill beep, a line of red text flashed on the screen. [Invalid Card]
The Director's face drained of color. He tried to keep his voice low, but the news was loud enough for everyone nearby to hear.
The hotel manager said, "Mr. Taylor, I'm sorry, but the system shows...
"It shows the card's been permanently canceled by the owner. It's no longer usable."
The room went dead silent.
All the color drained from Steven's face in an instant.
It was like he'd been slapped in front of everyone.
He stood there, frozen, his face as white as a sheet.
My phone rang.
Steven's name flashed on the screen.
I answered, put it on speaker, and set it down on the table.
At first, there was only dead silence on the line, and then came the sound of Steven's ragged breathing, barely holding back his fury.
"Christina!" Steven yelled. "What did you do?"
I picked up my glass, swirling the red wine inside.
"Didn't you see it all with your own eyes?" I replied, my tone cool and unbothered.
Steven shouted, "You did this on purpose. You wanted to embarrass me in front of everyone.
"The wedding bill is about three million dollars. How am I supposed to show my face now?"
His voice was trembling with rage.
I could picture his face, twisted with rage, but it was almost laughable.
"Mr. Steven Taylor," I said, my voice calm and steady.
I called him by his full name, making sure he heard every syllable.
I continued, "We're divorced.
"Who you marry, where you marry, how much you spend on your wedding, none of that has anything to do with me anymore.
"I took back what was mine."
"Yours?" Steven snorted, as if I'd told him the funniest joke in the world.
He snapped, "Christina, don't you forget I gave you that card. Every dollar in it came from my hard work!"
"Oh, really?" I replied, my voice light and laced with a hint of amusement.
I smirked. "The name on that black card? Mine. The personal ID? Also mine.
"The phone number tied to the card? That's mine, too.
"Legally, I'm the only one with real authority over it.
"You, your mom, and your sister all had secondary cards under my account.
"I have every right to shut them off whenever it suits me.
"And right now? It suits me just fine."
There was dead silence on the other end of the line.
Steven was stunned by my words.
All these years, he'd been throwing his weight around with that card, treating it like his own personal property.
He either forgot or maybe he never cared who owned that card.
"You, you heartless bitch!" Steven finally spat out, his voice shaking with rage.
He finally found something to call me, a new insult to throw my way.
He barked, "We were married for eight years. Is this how you treat me?"
I sneered, "Eight years of marriage?" I let out a cold laugh. "Steven, the moment you brought Amanda into our home and asked me to let you two be together, those eight years were gone.
"Now you want to talk about feelings?
"Don't you think that's laughable?"
Once again, Steven got shut down by me.
"What about the money? What happened to the money on the card?" Steven demanded, his voice urgent.
"Oh, that money?" I replied, my tone casual.
"When I had the card canceled, I asked Quentin to help me transfer all the funds over.
"Now it's all sitting in my new account.
"Not a single dollar is missing."
"You!" Steven shouted, his voice cracking with rage.
I could hear him suck in a sharp breath, like someone had squeezed his heart in their hand.
"Christina, give me back the money. That's my company's working capital. I have a payment due next week," Steven yelled.
"Your company?" I said.
I couldn't help but laugh again.
I added, "Steven, have you forgotten? Your company's account was set up using my personal information, too."