Divorced and Devoured: Wanted by my Ex-Husband and His Rival

2

Jessica

Divorce. After years of me loving him, of worshiping the ground he walked on, he was throwing it all away like I was nothing but garbage.

"Why?" I asked, my voice cracking as the tears I had been desperately fighting finally spilled over my cheeks. "Are you throwing our whole life away for her? You wanted Hailey? Is that why…"

My mind was spinning, trying to connect the man sitting in front of me with the husband I thought I knew.

"You did not even come for Janet’s funeral!" I yelled, the heartbreak tearing through my chest. "She treated you like family, Michael! She gave you everything!" I stepped closer to the desk, my hands shaking. "And Edward? How can you just trust the board over him? He is family. You know he didn't steal anything!"

He didn't flinch, just stared into my eyes with zero emotion. Slowly, the handsome face I had kissed a thousand times hardened into a cruel and unrecognisable mask.

"You know absolutely nothing, you stupid and spoiled girl," he said, his tone dripping with disgust.

Then, Michael leaned forward, resting his elbows on the polished glass, and delivered the final and devastating blow that shattered my reality into dust.

"Our marriage was never real, Jessica. I used you."

My mind went completely blank, refusing to process the words. "That can't be true," I stammered, shaking my head frantically. "You took care of me. You gave me everything I ever wanted… You loved me. When I fell apart, you held me. You put up with my every whim, every tantrum…"

"I had to play my part, Jessica," Michael laughed, "Janet was brilliant, sharp, and dangerous. She would have seen right through me if I tried to attack her directly. But you? You were a spoiled, lazy, arrogant socialite."

"By giving you everything you wanted, by acting like your devotee, I kept you blind, dumb, and utterly useless," he continued. "It was the perfect cover."

"What are you talking about?" I whispered, trembling from head to toe. My legs felt like they were going to give out beneath me.

"I needed a way inside this company," Michael said. "Janet trusted me because I kept her annoying little sister completely dependent and safely out of her way. You were nothing but a brainless trophy on my shelf. While you were out shopping, throwing parties, and living in your perfect little bubble, I slowly took control of the board. And now, with Janet and Edward gone, this company finally belongs to me."

"You stole the company," I breathed out, sickened by the realization. "You plotted against my family for stealing a company."

He laughed again, as if I had just told a naive joke. "Stealing? Why don’t you ask Edward who actually stole this company, and from whom?"

He picked up a file from his desk and threw it at me. It hit my chest before falling to the floor, papers spilling out across the carpet. My trembling hands reached down and picked up an old, faded photograph.

It was a picture of a young couple standing proudly in front of this very building, long before it was renovated.

"My parents. John and Rachel Smith," Michael whispered. "They built this company from the ground up. Your parents stole it. They stole their ideas, their formulas, their years of blood and sweat. And when my parents threatened to expose them…" He paused, his jaw clenching so hard it looked like it might snap. "Your parents killed mine to keep it all. So, I spent my entire life plotting this revenge to finally get what actually belonged to me all these years."

My body went completely stiff. The photograph slipped from my fingers. The luxurious life I had lived, the clothes on my back, the food I ate—it was all paid for with the blood of his parents. And my marriage... my beautiful, perfect marriage... had just been a long-con execution.

"So in all those years..." I choked out, staring at the monster I had shared a bed with. "You never loved me? Not even for a second? You just used me to avenge your family?"

Michael looked at me, and for the first time, there was pure hatred burning in his eyes.

"Yes," he spat. "I avenged my parents."

"You can keep the penthouse," Michael said as he pushed the divorce papers across the glass desk. "And you can keep the bar."

"The bar?"

"The Onyx Lounge," he replied, leaning back in his chair. "I will transfer full ownership to you."

He had bought me that exclusive downtown nightclub three years ago. I threw big, wild parties there, invited all my rich friends, and lost millions of dollars a year running it into the ground. People in our social circle used to say that Michael loved me so much he didn't even care about the financial losses, as long as I was having fun and smiling.

But looking at his cold and calculating eyes right now, the truth finally clicked in my brain.

He hadn't funded that bar out of love but to keep me distracted. It was an expensive, shiny toy he bought to make sure I stayed busy partying and never, ever stepped foot inside the company headquarters while he was plotting to steal it.

"I have also set up an irrevocable trust fund for you," Michael continued, tapping a pen on the desk. "You are a prodigy at burning through money, Jessica, and you have zero survival skills in the real world. This fund guarantees you a very generous monthly allowance for the rest of your life. You will never have to work. You will never go hungry. Just sign the papers, don't contest the divorce, and walk away."

I stared at the stack of papers.

It was this twisted, arrogant kind of care from his side, treating me like a helpless stray pet he was releasing back into the wild.

Somehow, that hurt more than his hatred. He truly believed I was pathetic.

And that was the exact moment my heartbreak evaporated, instantly replaced by a blinding, white-hot rage. I had always possessed a notoriously huge temper, but right now, I was one fire.

I was not going to be his crying victim.

"f**k off, Michael," I snarled.

He blinked, clearly startled by my sudden shift in tone. "Jessica, be reasonable—"

"I said f**k off!" I screamed, grabbing the stack of divorce papers and throwing them into his face. The pages scattered everywhere, raining down over his stolen office. "Do you think I want your bloody pity money? Do you think you can just pay me off after destroying my family?"

"I am trying to make sure you don't end up on the streets!" he snapped, his cold mask finally slipping to reveal his own frustration.

"Keep your penthouse! Keep your bar! Keep your f*****g allowance!" I slammed my hands down on the desk, leaning in close so he could see the pure venom in my eyes. "I hope this company burns to the ground with you inside it. I never want to see your f*****g face again!"

I didn't give him a chance to respond. I turned on my heel and stormed out of the office, slamming the doors so hard the glass walls rattled.

An hour later, I was back at the penthouse, tearing through my walk-in closet like a hurricane. I was ripping designer dresses off their hangers and throwing them into a leather suitcase.

I needed to run far away from this city, from Michael, and from the shattered remains of my life.

"What are you doing?"

I spun around and found Ava standing in the doorway.

"I'm packing," I said sharply, zipping up a bag with trembling hands. "And you should too, Ava. We're leaving."

"Leaving?" Ava frowned, stepping into the room. "Jessica, how can you just leave? What about Janet? What about my brother?"

"There is nothing we can do!" I yelled, "Michael won. He took the company. He planned it from the very beginning."

Ava grabbed my arms, forcing me to look at her. "Then we fight him! Janet and Edward raised you! They gave you everything you ever wanted. You can't just abandon Edward!"

"My parents killed his parents, Ava!" I screamed, the horrible truth finally bursting from my chest.

Ava froze. Her grip on my arms loosened. "What?"

“Who is Nancy?” Ava asked me, “Isn’t she his mom?”

I fell to my knees on the closet floor, my anger suddenly turning into shame. "I don’t know, Ava. She can be his guardian. Michael told me that years ago, my parents stole the original formulas from Michael's parents. And when they tried to speak up, my parents had them killed. Michael spent his entire life planning this. He married me for revenge. We are the bad guys, Ava. My family deserved it."

Ava stood in silence for a long time. But then, she knelt down on the floor next to me.

"I understand why he did it," Ava said. "That explains his anger. But it does not excuse it."

I looked up at her, wiping my face.

"Your parents committed a terrible crime," Ava said. "But Janet didn't kill anyone. And Edward didn't kill anyone. My brother is sitting in prison right now on fake charges that Michael invented. Michael became the exact monster he was trying to destroy."

"I don't want revenge, Ava," I whispered, shaking my head. "I just want to disappear."

"I don't care about the company, and I don't care about revenge either," Ava said fiercely, gripping my hands. "But I care about my brother. Edward is an innocent man. He loved you like his own daughter, Jessica. We cannot leave this city until we expose Michael's lies and free Edward from those fake charges."

I stared at her. My entire life, I had been lazy, spoiled, and dependent on everyone else to fight my battles.

"I don't know how to fight him," I admitted, my voice trembling. "He thinks I'm stupid and useless."

Ava's eyes flashed with a dangerous spark. "Then we use that against him. He expects you to run away and hide. Let's show him what happens when a spoiled brat finally decides to bite back."