PART 1: THE FINAL STRAW

Chapter 1: The Uninvited Guest

Eighteen hours of labor pains had drained the very last ounce of my strength. I lay on the hospital bed at Mount Sinai, sweat plastering my blonde hair to my forehead, my breath still coming in ragged gasps. Beside me, in a transparent plastic bassinet, was Leo – the little angel who had just cried his first cry. He was red, tiny, the crystallization of a five-year marriage that I once thought was perfect with Alan.

The hospital room door burst open. No knock. No gentleness necessary for a woman who had just given birth.

The sound of high heels clicking against the tiled floor echoed clack, clack piercingly. The strong scent of Chanel No. 5 wafted in, overpowering the smell of antiseptic and the faint scent of colostrum.

I struggled to open my eyes. Standing there was not a nurse, nor was it Alan with the bouquet of roses he had promised.

It was Haley.

She was wearing a bright red Versace dress, hugging her hot figure, her face made up meticulously as if she were going to an Oscars party. And standing right behind her, with a cold expression and avoiding my gaze, was Alan – my husband.

“Well, you look terrible, Jessica,” Haley spoke up, her voice high-pitched and full of mockery. She took off her sunglasses, looking at me as if looking at a pile of trash.

“What are you doing here?” I wheezed, my hand instinctively reaching toward Leo’s bassinet.

“Here to pick up my son, of course,” Haley smiled, the baring-teeth smile of a predator.

She walked quickly to the bassinet. Before I could scream or press the nurse call button, Haley had scooped Leo up. The baby, who was sleeping peacefully, suddenly startled and screamed.

“Don’t touch my child!” I roared, trying to sit up, but the pain from the incision made me flop back onto the pillow. “Alan! What are you standing there for? Tell her to put the baby down!”

Alan took a step forward, adjusting his tie. He didn’t look at me; he looked at the paper in his hand.

“Jessica, listen,” Alan’s voice was monotone, emotionless like a machine. “Haley isn’t joking. She will be the one taking care of Leo from now on.”

“Are you crazy?” Tears streamed down my face from anger and pain. “I just gave birth to him! He is my son!”

“And he is the heir to the Sterling line,” Alan cut in, his voice icy. “My lawyer has completed the paperwork. The court has granted me temporary custody based on your psychological medical records.”

“Psychological records?” I was stunned. “I am completely normal!”

“Oh, no darling,” Haley interjected, rocking Leo clumsily, making him cry even louder. “You have prenatal depression, violent tendencies, and emotional instability. Alan’s private doctor confirmed it. Who do you think will believe a woman who has just gone through a ‘delusional’ labor like you?”

I looked at Alan. The man I had loved, poured all my capital and intellect into helping him build the Sterling real estate empire, was now standing there, conspiring with his mistress to steal the most precious thing I had. It turned out those times he took me to see a psychologist “to reduce pregnancy stress” were the trap. He had been fabricating fake medical records for the past 6 months.

Haley looked at me, her eyes full of victory. She threw a file onto my bed.

“You should start preparing the divorce papers gradually. I will raise your child. He will call me mother, and he will forget who you are before he learns to walk.”

Alan approached Haley, wrapping his arm around her waist. “Let’s go, honey. The driver is waiting. Don’t keep Leo here too long; the hospital air isn’t good for him.”

They turned and walked away. Leo’s crying faded into the distance, tearing my heart apart.

I lay there, alone in the cold room. The physical pain was nothing compared to the pain of betrayal and deprivation. I wanted to scream, to smash things, to run after them. But I couldn’t.

However, they had made a mistake. A fatal mistake.

They thought Jessica Evans was a weak lamb who only knew how to rely on her husband. They forgot who I was before becoming Mrs. Sterling.

I wiped my tears. Not with weakness, but with ruthless determination. I reached for the phone hidden under the pillow – the thing Alan thought I had left in the handbag he confiscated.

I dialed a familiar number.

“Hello?” A warm male voice rang out on the other end.

“Robert,” I said, my voice hoarse but enunciating every word clearly. “Activate ‘Protocol Medusa’. Immediately.”

The other end was silent for a second, then the answer rang out, sharp as a razor: “Understood, boss. The game begins.”

Chapter 2: The Terrifying Silence

Three days later.

Alan and Haley were enjoying their victory in the $20 million penthouse on the Upper East Side. The New York tabloids were full of news about “Billionaire Alan Sterling welcomes firstborn son” and fabricated articles about the “psychologically unstable ex-wife” being unfit to raise the child.

Leo was entrusted to a team of professional nannies in a gold-plated nursery. Haley, of course, never touched a diaper or mixed formula. She was busy trying on new dresses to prepare for the upcoming lavish one-month celebration party.

“Honey,” Haley whined, snuggling into Alan’s lap as he sat reading financial news. “I want to trade the Porsche for a new Bentley. The color of that one doesn’t match Leo’s destiny.”

Alan laughed, kissing his mistress’s forehead. “Sure, baby. Anything you want. Now I control Leo’s entire trust fund. That boy is our skeleton key.”

Yes, that was why Alan needed custody so urgently. According to Alan’s grandfather’s will, 40% of Sterling Group’s shares would be transferred to the great-grandson as soon as he was born, and the legal guardian would have the right to manage those shares until the child turned 18.

Alan thought he had won. He thought I would collapse, go crazy in the hospital, or beg him to see the child.

But I was silent.

My silence began to make Alan uneasy. No lawyer contacted him. No lawsuit was filed in court. I disappeared from the hospital that very night like a ghost.

“What is that bitch plotting?” Alan muttered, tapping his fingers on the mahogany table.

“She’s probably scared,” Haley smirked. “She has no money, no power, her family is all the way in Texas. What can she do to us?”

Suddenly, Alan’s phone rang. It was the Group’s Chief Financial Officer (CFO).

“Mr. Sterling, we have a problem.” His voice trembled.

“What problem? Stocks down?”

“No, sir. It’s the bank accounts. All company accounts and your personal accounts… have been frozen.”

Alan sprang up, knocking Haley off the sofa. “What the hell? Who dares to freeze my accounts?”

“It’s the Swiss Central Bank and the IRS. They received an anonymous file accusing of money laundering and large-scale tax evasion. Accompanied by… an emergency asset freezing order from the Supreme Court.”

“Absurd! I run a clean business!” Alan shouted, sweat starting to bead on his forehead.

“And one more thing…” The CFO hesitated. “The group’s server system is under attack. A malicious code is wiping out data from the ‘Skyline’ project – the billion-dollar project you just signed.”

Alan froze. The Skyline project was his blood and sweat for 5 years, the goose that laid the golden eggs.

“Stop it! Call the IT team immediately!”

“We can’t. This malware… it requires the retinal code of the original security system founder.”

Alan dropped the phone.

The founder of the security system for Sterling Group 5 years ago… was Jessica.

Before retreating to be his wife, I was one of Silicon Valley’s top cybersecurity experts. He had forgotten that. He thought I was just a housewife who knew how to cook and choose curtains.

“Jessica…” Alan hissed through his teeth.

Haley, seeing Alan’s pale face, panicked. “What’s wrong?”

“Shut up!” Alan shouted. “Prepare the car! We have to go to the hospital to find that bitch right now!”

But he didn’t know that I was no longer at the hospital.

I was sitting in a discreet office on the 40th floor of the building opposite, looking through binoculars into their penthouse. Beside me was Robert – the best lawyer in New York and also my close friend from college.

“Step 1 is complete,” Robert said, hands gliding over the iPad keyboard. “Assets frozen. Data locked. Currently, he can’t withdraw even a cent to buy diapers for his son.”

I took a sip of hot tea, feeling the bitterness on the tip of my tongue. I was still in pain, the incision still throbbed, and my breasts engorged with milk made me feverish with missing my child. But I did not allow myself to be weak.

“Proceed to Step 2,” I ordered coldly. “Let Haley know what being a ‘real’ mother is like.”

Chapter 3: The Nanny’s Nightmare

That night, at Alan’s penthouse.

The smart electrical system of the house suddenly malfunctioned. Lights went out completely. The heating system stopped working in the middle of the freezing New York winter.

And worse, the entire team of nannies and maids resigned simultaneously.

“Are you all crazy?” Haley screamed at the housekeeper. “I pay double the market rate!”

“I’m sorry, Miss Haley,” the housekeeper replied, her face apologetic but firm. “We just received notice that if we continue working for the Sterling family, we will be blacklisted by the High-End Service Labor Association. We cannot risk our careers.”

They left, leaving Alan and Haley alone with the darkness, the cold, and a newborn baby crying relentlessly from hunger and cold.

“Do something, Alan!” Haley covered her ears, screaming. “He’s crying too loud! My head is splitting!”

“You’re a woman, you soothe him!” Alan was also furious; he had just tried calling the bank but no one picked up. “Make some milk!”

“I don’t know how! I’ve never done it!” Haley stomped her foot. “I thought you said I only had to be a mother in name!”

Leo’s cries tore through the luxurious but fake night. The boy was hungry. The boy needed warmth. But those two selfish people only knew how to blame each other.

Alan clumsily held the formula tin, spilling powder all over the floor. He didn’t know the water ratio, didn’t know what temperature was right. He mixed a random bottle, shoved it into Leo’s mouth. The boy choked, vomiting it all up onto Haley’s Versace dress.

“Ahhhh! Disgusting!” Haley screamed, pushing Leo away as if he were a monster.

Leo cried even louder, his face turning purple.

In the dark, Alan looked at the son he considered a treasure key. Now, he was just a noisy debt. He couldn’t hire people, couldn’t use money to solve the problem because the credit cards were locked.

“Call Jessica,” Alan said, voice trembling with helplessness. “Only she knows how to soothe him.”

“You plan to beg her?” Haley’s eyes widened.

“What else can you do? Look at you, you’re more useless than a diaper!” Alan shouted in his mistress’s face.

He grabbed the phone, dialed my number.

I watched the phone screen light up. I let it ring. Once. Twice. Three times.

Then I picked up.

“Jessica! Help! Your son is crying to death!” Alan screamed immediately.

“Oh?” I replied, voice terrifyingly calm. “I thought Miss Haley declared she would raise him? She told me to prepare the divorce papers?”

“Jessica, stop joking! I beg you! My money is locked, the servants all left… Leo is feverish, I think he’s feverish!”

My heart tightened hearing my son was feverish. Maternal instinct wanted me to rush there immediately. But reason held me back. I had to end this once and for all.

“Alan,” I said slowly. “You want me to come back? Fine. But the price will be very high.”

“How much? How much do you want?”

“I don’t need your money,” I smirked. “I want you to open the door. Right now. I’m in the lobby. And I’m not alone.”

PART 2: SWEET REVENGE

Chapter 4: The Midnight Raid

The thick mahogany door of the penthouse opened. Alan stood there, hair disheveled, face gaunt from lack of sleep and panic. He looked at me, then at the formidable team standing behind me: Robert, four large bodyguards, two police officers, and a social worker.

“Jessica…” Alan stammered, his voice trembling with none of yesterday’s arrogance remaining. “You… you brought the police?”

I didn’t answer him. I walked straight into the house, brushing him aside like a meaningless obstacle.

The house reeked of sour milk, dirty diapers, and chaos. Belongings were scattered everywhere. On the expensive Italian leather sofa, Haley was curled up, hands covering her ears, eyes swollen from crying. And Leo – my little son – was screaming himself hoarse in the bassinet placed in the middle of the cold living room.

My heart clenched. I rushed to the bassinet, scooping my son up. The boy was burning up, his diaper soaked and heavy.

“Oh my baby,” I whispered, tears welling up. I quickly removed the dirty diaper, used wet wipes to clean him, and warmed him with my own body heat. Leo felt his mother’s warmth, his cries gradually subsiding into choking sobs.

“What the hell did you do to my son?” I turned to yell at Haley. My gaze at that moment must have been terrifying enough to make the mistress shrink back.

“I… I didn’t know…” Haley sobbed. “He kept crying… I tried giving him sugar water but he vomited it all up…”

“Sugar water?” The social worker exclaimed in horror, hurriedly taking notes in her notebook. “Giving a newborn sugar water without a prescription? In these poor sanitary conditions?”

Robert stepped forward, placing an order on the coffee table.

“Mr. Alan Sterling, this is an emergency Family Court order. Based on evidence of child neglect, unsafe living conditions (power cut, heating), and the unstable mental state of the current guardian, custody of baby Leo Sterling is immediately returned to the biological mother, Mrs. Jessica Sterling.”

“Impossible!” Alan shouted, trying to salvage a last bit of dignity. “I am his father! I have money! This is just a temporary utility outage!”

“Money?” I smirked, patting Leo on the shoulder. “Try swiping your card, see if you can afford a can of formula? Alan, you are bankrupt.”

Chapter 5: The Veil of Secrets

Alan froze. “You… you did that.”

“Yes,” I admitted, looking straight into his eyes. “Did you think I was just a doll in a glass case? Did you forget who wrote the source code for your underground trading system years ago? Not only do I know where you hide your money, I also know how much you embezzled from the employee pension fund.”

I signaled to the police officer.

“Officer, I want to report Mr. Alan Sterling for financial fraud, tax evasion, and money laundering. This is the USB containing all the evidence.” Robert handed the silver USB drive to the police.

“And Miss Haley here,” I turned to the trembling mistress. “You aren’t innocent either. Your name is on three shell companies used to launder money for Alan. Congratulations, you’re about to be more famous than expected.”

Haley screamed, rushing to scratch Alan. “You tricked me! You said everything was legal! You said you would take care of me!”

“Let go of me!” Alan pushed Haley hard, knocking her to the floor. The scene was so chaotic and pathetic I felt disgusted. Were these the people who arrogantly stole my child away?

The police stepped forward, reading Alan his rights. The sound of handcuffs clicking rang out, cold and decisive.

“Jessica! You can’t do this to me!” Alan screamed as he was led away. “We are husband and wife! I love you! I was just seduced by that woman!”

“Save that for the judge,” I said coldly, not bothering to look back.

I carried Leo out of the penthouse – once a symbol of their vanity, now just a crime scene.

Robert walked beside me, draping a coat over both of our shoulders.

“You did well, Jess,” he said softly. “You won.”

“Not yet Robert,” I looked at my son sleeping soundly in my arms. “I’ve only just taken back what belongs to me. Making them pay for Leo’s pain… has only just begun.”

Chapter 6: Total Collapse

One month later.

The Sterling Group scandal shook Wall Street. Stocks plummeted without braking. Alan not only faced up to 20 years in prison but was also sued by shareholders for hundreds of millions of dollars in damages.

Haley, to escape punishment, made a deal with the prosecution to be a witness against Alan. She confessed all the tricks, the dirty business deals, and even the plan to fabricate fake psychological records to steal custody from me.

But the fate of the traitor wasn’t good either. Exposed by the media for her past as a “high-end escort,” boycotted by society, Haley had to flee back to the countryside, living on unemployment benefits.

I sat in my new office at Sterling Group. Yes, I had returned.

As a major shareholder (thanks to Leo’s shares) and the only person holding the decryption key to the locked data system, the Board of Directors had to kneel and invite me back to run the company to salvage the situation.

The office door opened. The secretary entered.

“Madam Chairwoman, there is someone who wants to see you. He says he is your ex-husband.”

“Let him in,” I said, not looking up from the file.

Alan walked in. He was out on bail pending trial thanks to posting a huge bail amount (hot loans from the mob, I knew that well). He looked ten years older, hair white, clothes disheveled.

“Jessica…” He stood in front of the desk, voice hoarse.

“You have 2 minutes,” I said, signing a termination document for senior personnel – the ones who were his henchmen.

“I came to ask you… ask you to withdraw the lawsuit. If you withdraw, I will serve less time. I promise to go far away, never to bother you and our son again.”

I looked up, looking at the man I once called husband. In my eyes now there was no hatred, only pity for a failure.

“Alan, do you still not understand? I’m not suing you out of personal vendetta. I’m suing you because you are a danger to society, and more importantly, to my son. I want that when Leo grows up, he knows that his mother did not tolerate evil, even if that evil bore the name of father.”

“But I have nothing left! Loan sharks are hunting me! Are you trying to drive me to death?” He knelt down, tears in his eyes.

I stood up, walked around the desk, standing in front of him.

“When you took Leo away, did you think about driving me to death? When you left your son hungry in the dark, did you think about it?”

I leaned down, whispering into his ear the final words:

“Death is too easy, Alan. You have to live. Live to see Leo grow up, successful and happy without you. Live to see me rebuild this empire more brilliant than ever on the ashes you left behind. That is the punishment for you.”

I pressed the button to call security.

“Escort the guest out.”

Alan was dragged out, his begging fading behind the heavy wooden door.

I turned back, looking out the floor-to-ceiling window. New York below was still noisy and bustling. But in my heart now was a strange peace.

The phone rang. It was the nanny reporting that Leo was awake and asking for mom.

I smiled, taking off the power suit jacket, grabbing my handbag. Work was done. Now it was time for me to return to the most important role of my life: Being a mother.

Because the greatest victory is not defeating the enemy, but protecting those you love.

THE END