The Forgotten Heir's Payback

Chapter 18: Stripped of Everything

The bright yellow eviction paper felt heavy and ice cold in Chloe hands. She stood frozen outside the boardroom, watching Lucas walk past her without giving her a single glance.

His long dark coat swayed gently as he moved down the hallway, surrounded by security guards and respectful board members.

Chloe stumbled back into her big CEO office. Tears poured down her pale cheeks, ruining her foundation and leaving dark lines under her eyes.

She looked around the spacious room that used to be her pride. The leather executive chair, the glass desk, the glossy framed awards on the wall, and the view of the city skyline all belonged to her just ten minutes ago. Now, none of it was hers.

Two tall female security guards stepped into the room, standing silently by the door.

"Miss Vance," one guard said coldly. "Your ten minutes started three minutes ago. Please pack your personal items quickly."

Chloe felt a deep wave of humiliation burn through her body. She grabbed a small brown cardboard box from under the shelf with shaking fingers. She began throwing her personal things inside without care. Her crystal pen set, her glass flower vase, her designer desk calendar, and a small picture frame of her family all went into the box.

Every time she looked at an item, she remembered how she used to show off to her friends. She used to boast that she was the youngest female CEO in the district. Now, she was getting kicked out of her own building like a thief caught in the act.

She picked up the cardboard box and walked out into the main hallway. Her high heels made slow, clicking sounds against the marble floor.

All the company workers were standing outside their office cubicles, watching her walk past. People who used to bow to her and bring her fresh coffee every morning were now leaning together, whispering and pointing at her messy hair and tear-stained face.

"Look at her," a female secretary whispered loudly to a coworker. "She got kicked out by her own board. She treated her husband like trash, and now he owns the whole company."

"She deserves every bit of it," another worker sneered. "She was always yelling at us while her stay-at-home husband was secretly protecting the business."

Chloe pressed the box tight against her chest, her face burning with pure shame. She wanted to yell at them to stop talking, but she had no power left to say a word.

Near the glass elevator doors, Lucas was standing with Victoria Thorne, reviewing a stack of financial reports.

Chloe stopped right in front of him, her body shaking from head to toe. She looked into his dark eyes, her voice breaking into a high, pitiful sob.

"Lucas!" Chloe cried out, stepping forward. "How can you do this to me? How can you be so heartless and cruel? We were husband and wife for three long years! I gave you a roof over your head! I gave you a home when you had nothing!"

Lucas stopped reading the paper in his hand. He handed the file to Victoria and turned his body slowly to face Chloe. He looked at her cardboard box, then looked up into her tearful eyes.

His face remained completely calm, but his dark eyes turned as sharp as a razor.

"A roof over my head?" Lucas asked softly, his voice echoing clearly down the silent hallway. "You mean the cold floor in the corner of your laundry room where your mother made me sleep on a thin mat?"

Chloe opened her mouth to argue, but no words came out.

"You speak about three years of marriage, Chloe," Lucas continued, taking one slow step toward her. "Do you remember what you gave me for those three years? Every single morning, your mother threw dirty dishes into the sink and shouted at me like I was a dog on the street. Every single afternoon, you ignored my calls because you were busy having expensive lunches with Julian Sterling."

Chloe squeezed her eyes shut, fresh tears spilling onto her red dress. "Lucas, I was stupid! I made mistakes, but I never—"

"You never cared," Lucas interrupted her firmly. "You thought I was a poor loser who depended on your charity. But while you were out at fancy parties with Julian, showing off fake luxury, do you know who saved your company from going bankrupt two years ago?"

Chloe blinked through her tears, looking at him in total confusion. "What do you mean?"

"Two years ago, your main logistics fleet was seized at the southern border," Lucas stated coldly. "Your father was crying in his study because the family was about to lose five million dollars overnight. You thought Director Miller helped you out of kindness. But the truth was, I made one single phone call to Grand Dragon Financial to clear your debt in secret."

Chloe gasped out loud, dropping her head in shock.

"One year ago," Lucas added, his voice dropping even deeper, "your largest shipping partner tried to cancel your master contract. You came home stressed and yelled at me for burning your dinner. That night, while you slept softly in your warm bed, I stayed up till four in the morning approving a ten million dollar bank investment for that partner just so they would keep signing contracts with Vance Logistics."

Chloe felt as if a heavy stone had hit her chest. All those times her company magically survived big crises, she had boasted to her friends that it was her brilliant business mind. She had never known that her quiet, stay-at-home husband was the hidden guardian angel holding her family up from behind the scenes.

"I gave you my loyalty, my patience, and three full years of my life," Lucas said, his eyes filled with total indifference. "And how did you repay me? On the exact night my three-year promise ended, you slapped a divorce paper on my chest and threw three thousand dollars at my face."

"Lucas... I was wrong! I am so sorry!" Chloe wept out loud, dropping her cardboard box onto the floor. Her crystal pen set smashed onto the marble tiles, but she did not care. She reached out her hands, trying to grab Lucas arm. "Please give me another chance! I will do anything! I will be a good wife!"

Lucas stepped back, dodging her wet hands effortlessly.

"You threw away a gold crown for a piece of cheap brass, Chloe," Lucas said coldly. "Now, carry your box and leave my building."

Victoria Thorne stepped between them, gesturing to the security guards. "Escort Miss Vance out of the premises immediately."

The two big guards grabbed Chloe by her arms, dragging her back as she wept and screamed Lucas name down the hallway. The elevator doors opened, and they pushed her inside, closing the doors on her hysterical crying.

Chloe stumbled out of the ground floor lobby into the bright afternoon sun. People on the busy street stared at her as she sat down on the stone steps outside the building, clutching her broken cardboard box in her lap.

She had lost her title. She had lost her power. She had lost her respect. She was stripped of everything she had worked for, all because of her own endless greed.

Suddenly, her phone rang loudly in her purse.

Chloe pulled out her phone with shaking, bloody fingers, seeing her mother name flash on the screen. She picked up the call, hoping for a single piece of comfort.

"Chloe!" Beatrice shrieked through the speaker, her voice filled with pure, chaotic terror. "Come home right now! The police and the bank officers are here with heavy trucks! Grand Dragon Financial just started foreclosure proceedings on our family mansion!"