Chapter 1
My aunt, Helen Fisher, passed away and left me a massive inheritance of three billion dollars.
Sitting at the Legal Affairs Office, I was so thrilled that I nearly dropped my pen.
While the clerk was verifying my identity, she stopped and gave me a hesitant look. "Do you know that your legal status is single?" she asked.
My head spun. "That's impossible. I've been married for eight years."
She pulled up the official record to show me. It was all there in black and white. I had signed a divorce agreement seventy days ago.
It all clicked. Michael told me he was sorting out our tax papers and handed me a huge stack to sign. I didn't bother to look at them back then.
I closed my eyes and took a deep breath. When I opened them again, I couldn't stop myself from smiling.
"Are you okay?" the clerk asked cautiously.
"I'm fine," I said, laughing until tears streamed down my face. "I was just thinking that life has a pretty twisted sense of humor."
*****
The clerk printed out the marriage records and set them in front of me.
Every detail, including the divorce date, agreement number, and our signatures, was crystal clear.
My name, Cheryl Mitchell, stood opposite his, Michael Grant.
I stared at my own signature, thinking back to those two afternoons seventy days ago.
The first time, Michael claimed his office was auditing employee records and needed to verify our tax filings to sync up our joint status.
The second time, he said we were missing a document and asked me to sign again.
When the staff handed me the tablet, he'd kept pushing me.
"Make it fast. I've got a meeting this afternoon," Michael'd urged. "It's all standard paperwork. You only need to sign the last page."
After eight years together, I never doubted him.
I was worried about holding up his work, so I didn't bother to check what I was signing.
Now I realized those trips hadn't been about taxes.
The first one was to file for divorce, and the second was to pick up the final papers after the waiting period.
Jason Scott, the notary, looked over the records and asked, "Do you want to pause the inheritance process?"
"No," I replied.
I picked up the pen and signed the inheritance papers.
Helen's will was clear. All the shares, funds, properties, and cash were left to me alone.
It was a funny coincidence that by the time I started the inheritance process, I had already been divorced for seventy days.
Michael went through all that trouble to push me out of the marriage, and he ended up cutting himself out of my inheritance.
Jason reminded me, "This inheritance is huge. The news won't stay under wraps for long. You should find a lawyer and hire security as soon as possible."
"I understand," I replied.
Once the first round of paperwork was done, I walked out of the Legal Affairs Office.
I had twelve missed calls on my phone.
Seven from Evelyn Grant, my mother-in-law, three from Sophia Grant, my sister-in-law, and two from Michael.
Before I could call back, Evelyn was calling again.
"Cheryl, where the hell have you been?" Evelyn snapped. "We've got guests visiting, and you haven't bought the groceries yet. Michael wants fish soup tonight, so hurry up and get back here."
She paused for a second, and then added, "Sophia's got her eye on a car, but she's short 60 thousand dollars for the down payment. Sell that house your aunt left you and cover it for her."
Helen had only been gone for twelve days.
Evelyn hadn't asked a single thing about the funeral or if I was holding up. All she cared about was that old house Helen left behind.
In their eyes, an old woman who lived alone for years would only leave several hundred thousand dollars and a shabby old house.
What they didn't know was that the company Helen helped start when she was young had already gone public.
Her assets were worth 3.1 billion dollars.
"Did you hear me?" Evelyn's voice shot up.
"I heard you," I replied.
"Then hurry home."
"I'm not selling the house, and I'm not giving her a dime."
There was silence for a few seconds before she suddenly barked, "What did you say?"
I watched the traffic go by, keeping my voice steady. "If Sophia wants a car, she can earn the money herself."
"Cheryl, how dare you defy me! We're family. Why are you splitting everything up like this?"
It was funny to hear that word from a family that had helped Michael hide a divorce from me for seventy days.
"Mrs. Grant, we're not family," I said.
"Mrs. Grant? What's wrong with you? Does Michael know about this?" Evelyn snapped.
"Of course he does." Before she could say more, I hung up and blocked her number.
Then I called the lawyer Helen had listed in her will.
*****
Half an hour later, I met Andrew Stone, the lawyer, at a nearby law firm.
He read through the divorce agreement and frowned. "The agreement says you gave up all marital assets and only took your personal belongings. Your husband Michael kept the marital home, the savings, and the cars."
"My aunt paid the down payment for the marital home," I replied.
"Do you have proof of the transfer?"
"Yes."
"The way this agreement was signed looks like fraud. You can sue to have the property division clause revoked."
I shook my head. "Keep the divorce, but revoke the property clause."
Andrew looked up at me. "Are you sure?"
"Absolutely. If he wants a divorce that badly, I'll give it to him."
I set my phone down on the table.
Michael sent me a message. [Mom says you lost it today. Come home tonight and apologize, or don't blame me if I make you pay for it.]
Right below that was a photo. In the picture, he had his arm around a young woman.
They were standing in a bridal shop, and she was wearing a diamond ring I recognized.
It was the same style I'd fallen for on our eighth anniversary, but I never bought it because it was too expensive.
Michael sent another message. [Since you already know, pack up your stuff tonight. Tomorrow, Jessie and I are getting our marriage certificate.]
After Andrew read the message, he asked, "What are you planning to do now?"
I took a screenshot of his messages. "First, let's go to the place I've called home for eight years," I said.
"To get your stuff?"
"No." I stared at Michael's smug face in the photo. "To get the evidence."