Chapter 3

The Russo Manor's living room was ablaze with light. Lawrence sat in the head chair, his expression grim.

When I walked in, soaked from head to toe, Margaret rushed over. "My goodness. How could that bastard dump you in a place like that?"

Margaret grabbed my hand and wrapped a warm cashmere blanket around me. Her face was twisted with worry. "David, call the doctor right now. Valerie needs a full check-up."

Lawrence struck the floor with his cane. "Where is that bastard now?"

David kept his head down, voice trembling. "Damian used the family's emergency fund to bail those troublemakers out of the police station. H-he said he couldn't let Miss Hart get frightened."

Lawrence slammed his hand down on the coffee table, making the cups clatter.

"For a cheap actress, he not only abandoned his pregnant wife but also had the nerve to use the family's emergency fund to bail out those lowlifes. Go drag him back here, now!" he roared.

I gave a couple of well-timed coughs, my face pale as I leaned weakly against Margaret. "Damian cares too much about the people he knows. Please don't blame him, Lawrence."

Margaret immediately fastened the heirloom ruby necklace, the symbol of the matriarch, around my neck. "Sweetheart, you've suffered enough.

"From now on, the security around your master bedroom will be top-level. Not even Damian is allowed to set foot inside unless you say so."

For the next two weeks, I stayed at the Russo Manor, using my pregnancy as the perfect excuse.

With Lawrence's disappointment in Damian at its peak, I moved swiftly to take control of all the Russo family's household purchases and spending approvals.

The first thing I did was cut all of Damian's freeloading friends off the family accounts.

One afternoon, Margaret held her coffee cup and eyed me carefully. "Damian's been strapped for cash lately. I heard he's been borrowing a lot of money. Maybe you could tighten his allowance a bit and see if he shapes up."

I quickly set my cup aside and got up to refill Margaret's coffee.

"How can I do that?" I replied, my tone gentle, with the right amount of understanding. "Damian is the heir to the family, after all. Out there, a man's reputation is worth more than anything.

"Whatever he's done, we can deal with it privately. But in public, we can't let anyone mock the Russo family."

Margaret's eyes changed instantly, filled with deep satisfaction and approval. "Good. You're sensible enough to know what's best for the family."

She immediately took a set of keys from the safe and pressed them into my palm. "These are the keys to the shops in the five shopping districts owned by the family. From now on, you have full authority over their management and rent collection."

I bowed my head and accepted the keys respectfully. "Thank you for your trust."

I returned to my room and opened social media. Damian was publicly showing off with Lily.

Lily had posted nine photos, all taken on a luxury yacht.

The most eye-catching thing was the custom crocodile-skin bag she carried, stamped with the Russo family's exclusive crest.

Her caption was: [A true rich man never holds back when it comes to spoiling his true love.]

The comments were full of people who were jealous that she was about to marry into a rich family.

I scrolled through the feed with a cold look and casually wired 300 thousand dollars to my crew.

I typed: [Trace the source of that bag and reveal it to everyone. Make it look like Damian skimmed money off those five shopping districts, took kickbacks, and bought it for her. I want all the family elders to see it.]

Once everything was settled, I pulled open a drawer and took out a thick ledger.

I glanced at the secret stash that I had accumulated day by day: money that was completely under my control. And in two weeks, I won over the entire household staff at the Russo Manor.

I locked the now-yellowed prenatal checkup report away in the deepest part of the safe.