To preserve his precious star's perfect hundred-win record, my husband stole my legal files, ensuring I would suffer a devastating defeat in the most important case of my life. He felt no guilt. He just tossed a credit card at me. "The world only needs one top female lawyer, Charlotte. Abby's career can't have a single loss. So, just quit the bar. I'll take care of you from now on." On his orders, I was blacklisted from the entire industry. The next time I appeared in court, it was for a divorce. And I was both the plaintiff and my own counsel. Standing in the courtroom again felt surreal, a ghost of a life I once knew. Across the aisle, Abby Monroe stood in a razor-sharp power suit, her expression dripping with contempt. "No lawyer, Charlotte? Still as overconfident as ever. I made you lose once, I can do it again. You're really going to these lengths just to get Ethan's attention, aren't you?" Ethan Bonerz stood beside her, his face a thundercloud. He just stared at me, his jaw tight, saying nothing. Compared to their bustling legal team, my solitary presence felt stark and cold. I arranged my documents, then met her gaze with a calm, deliberate smile. "Abby, do you really want me to remind everyone here how you actually won that case?" Her arrogant smirk froze on her face. I ignored her, closing my eyes to prepare. It was a ritual I'd maintained since my first day in the profession: arrive early, shut my eyes, and mentally walk through the entire trial. Breathing in the familiar scent of polished wood and old paper that clung to the courtroom, a wave of calm washed over me. But my meditation was rudely shattered. Ethan strode across the aisle, grabbing my wrist and pulling me to my feet. He pursed his lips, still affecting that condescending air of his. "Withdraw the petition. Come home with me, and I'll pretend none of this ever happened." The warmth of his skin against mine was a lie. Underneath it, I could feel a tremor, a faint, almost imperceptible shaking. I wrenched my hand away. "Defendant, please respect the plaintiff." He stared into my eyes, rooted to the spot. After a long moment, a bitter, self-mocking smile twisted his lips. "You'll regret this, Charlotte." In the business world, he was known for his bold, decisive moves. Here, in the courtroom, he was a man of few words, letting Abby do all the talking. She acted as his sole representative, her questions coming like a volley of arrows. Seeing my silence, she seemed to smell victory, landing her final blow with a sneer. "You haven't improved at all." When it was my turn, I wasted no time on speeches. I presented my evidence directly. "The defendant is the at-fault party due to adultery during the marriage. Pursuant to state family law, I request an immediate, final decree of divorce." A murmur rippled through the gallery. Across the aisle, the defendant's party lost their composure. Ethan shot to his feet, his voice laced with panic. "Abby and I were just living together so I could take care of her and the child! Nothing happened between us. That's not proof! I don't agree to the divorce!" I pointed out, my voice steady and clear, "The defendant has just admitted, on the record, to cohabitating with another woman during our marriage." … The gavel fell. Divorce granted. Outside the courthouse, Abby blocked my path. In over a decade of practice, this was likely her first loss. She spoke through gritted teeth, "The only case you'll ever win is your own divorce. After what happened, who in New York would dare hire you?" "I would. I dare." The voice came before the man. A figure stepped between us, shielding me from Abby's glare. He was smiling, a picture of easy confidence. Abby recognized him instantly. In the New York legal world, everyone knew Gary Vance, the man who had built a ten-firm empire from the ground up. "Ms. Monroe," Gary said, his smile widening. "First, my warmest congratulations on your loss. Second, I've already extended a formal offer to Charlotte. Starting tomorrow, she will be my firm's new ace attorney and partner." Abby stared, incredulous. "Mr. Vance, you… you two…" I didn't know when Ethan had come to stand behind me, but his voice was a low, almost spectral murmur. "Charlotte, you didn't have to do all this—the fake divorce, hiring this guy just to make me angry. The case is in the past. You only lost your job, it's not the end of the world. Why can't you be magnanimous like Abby? Why can't you just move on?" Gary started to speak, but I held up a hand to stop him. "Fine," I said, my voice dripping with ice. "I'll be magnanimous. I'll move on." "Here's how. You issue a public statement, right now. Admit that you stole my materials for the Westgate Construction case, causing my appeal to fail. Admit that your actions led the plaintiff to take his own life, destroying his family. You do that, and I'll move on." The color drained from both their faces. A few months ago, I had taken on a monumental wrongful conviction case, one that had captured the city's attention. Driven by a lawyer's sense of duty, I stepped in. It was a losing battle. Everyone knew the construction worker was innocent, yet he was saddled with millions in damages and a decades-long prison sentence. The case was the most-watched trial in New York in a decade, for one simple reason: the plaintiff's counsel was the legal world's undefeated legend, Abby Monroe. The defendant's counsel was me, the rising star. This was Abby's hundredth case. She had publicly boasted that she would make me suffer a humiliating defeat. At the time, Ethan and I were still newlyweds. I was drowning, juggling work and home life, poring over legal texts until my hair fell out in clumps. But I found it—the key piece of evidence that could overturn the whole case. I was ecstatic. I called the victim's family, worked with them to convince a key witness to testify. Everything was finally turning in our favor. I couldn't wait to tell Ethan. He was reviewing financial reports, and his hand paused mid-air. He looked up slowly, but there was no joy for me in his eyes. "Charlotte, stop digging. You're exhausted." I didn't catch the hidden meaning in his words. I went to him, taking his hand, my voice full of the warmth of a new bride. "Honey, this is the most important case of my life. No matter how hard it is, I have to clear my client's name. The trial is tomorrow. You have to wish me luck!" He shot up from his chair, yanking his hand from mine without a word. The next morning, I knew something was wrong. The key evidence was gone. The digital backup had been wiped. A cold sweat broke out on my skin. I couldn't imagine who could have cracked my password. It was too late to call the police; I had no choice but to go to court and fight with what I had left. What shattered me completely was the witness. On the stand, he recanted his testimony. In that instant, my mind went blank. The judge's voice upholding the original verdict was a distant drone. I don't remember how I left the defendant's table under Abby's mocking gaze, or how I pushed through the swarm of reporters outside the courthouse. All I remember is snapping back to reality with my client's wife and daughter collapsed at my feet, their wails tearing through the air as they asked me why. Why? I fled, disoriented and panicked, and stumbled right into Ethan and Abby. She was hooking a finger in his tie, pulling him close, the air thick with intimacy. Her voice was a sultry whisper, a warm breath against his ear. "Ethan, darling. Thank you for destroying the evidence for me. And for giving me the witness's information. It's the only way I could have won. I'll be sure to reward you properly." Ethan stroked her hair, his voice gentle. "Her winning or losing is nothing compared to your perfect record." The sight of them, so cozy and triumphant, made my stomach turn. As far as I knew, Abby was ten years our senior, divorced, with a child. A small sound escaped my lips, and they both turned. They saw me standing there, pale as a ghost. "Charlotte..." Ethan started towards me, but Abby held him back. She looked at me, a triumphant smirk on her face, and made a thumbs-down gesture. Then, with a sickeningly sweet smile, she mouthed a single word. "Loser." Ethan seemed to think he'd done nothing wrong. I screamed, my voice raw with hysteria, demanding an explanation. He just waved a dismissive hand, his tone detached, as if he were a mere spectator. "Abby helped me out of a tough spot once. This is just a small thing for you, Charlotte, but for her, it's her hundred-win reputation. You should know what's more important." "A small thing?" A laugh, sharp and brittle, escaped my lips. "The breadwinner of a family is wrongfully imprisoned, and you call that a small thing?" "The hopes of countless other workers are crushed, and you call that a small thing?" "In your eyes, Abby Monroe's reputation is the only thing that matters?" Perhaps the raw disappointment in my eyes provoked him. His face darkened with irritation. "What else? Let me be clear. To me, Abby is more important than anyone else. She helped my mother escape a gambling-addicted husband. She helped me get away from my deadbeat father. There's nothing she could do that I wouldn't forgive." He continued, his voice hardening, "Just quit being a lawyer, Charlotte. The world only needs one top female attorney, and Abby's career can't have a single loss. I will clear every obstacle from her path. From now on, you'll stay home and take care of me. I'll provide for you." He tossed a credit card at my feet, and without a backward glance at the broken woman I had become, he turned and walked away. From the window, I watched him go. I saw Abby run to him, throwing herself into his arms. They looked like lovers. Was this really just about repaying a debt? My heart was a hollow chasm, but I had no time to dwell on it. The damage was done. All I could do now was try to mitigate the fallout and compensate my client's family as best I could. But before I could even begin to form a plan, I received the news that would haunt me for the rest of my life. My client, seeing no hope, had drowned himself in the river. His wife, unable to bear the grief, had tried to follow him. Their daughter had done the same. The daughter was rescued, and was now fighting for her life in the ICU. The moment I got the call, I rushed to the hospital. The traffic was a nightmare. I abandoned my car and ran. I stumbled and scrambled, and just as I neared the hospital intersection, a small figure darted out and shoved me hard, sending me sprawling into the middle of the road. A car screeched to a halt just a foot from my head. The driver rolled down his window, roaring, "Are you blind? If I weren't a good driver, you'd be dead!" I stammered my thanks and grabbed the little girl who had pushed me. "What do you think you're doing?" The girl, seeing she couldn't escape, let her eyes dart around before plopping down on the pavement and bursting into a theatrical wail. "Homewrecker! You're a homewrecker! You stole my daddy! Waaah, you're a bad woman!" Onlookers immediately began to stare and mutter. The driver spat in my direction. "Breaking up families. Would've been better if I'd just hit you." My head was spinning, but I managed to keep some semblance of composure. I pulled out my phone and dialed 911. "You will be held accountable for every word you just said." Seeing me call the police, the girl scrambled up and ran into the arms of a woman standing nearby. It was Abby. And standing right beside her, his face a mask of stone, was Ethan. — In the mediation room, the three of them sat across from me. The little girl, Anna, kept making faces and taunting me. Abby did nothing to stop her, instead stroking her head encouragingly. "She's just a child, Charlotte. Why are you making a big deal out of this?" Ethan's voice cut in, and my eyes burned with unshed tears. "Ethan, I was almost killed!" "But you weren't, were you?" Abby shot me a resentful glance. "Why bully a child? I'll apologize on her behalf, and we can let this go. She's a minor, you can't do anything to us anyway." "No need to apologize," Ethan said, stopping her. A fresh wave of pain washed over me. I looked at the man before me and suddenly, he was a stranger. I remembered a time when I'd gotten a small papercut, and he had fussed over me, carefully applying a bandage. Now, I had narrowly escaped death, and he didn't care at all. He was telling me to let the person who tried to kill me walk free. "Go home, Charlotte. Don't make me say it again." His cold, dismissive tone was like a plunge into an icy abyss. My heart froze over. "Give me an explanation." Ethan looked up, startled. Then, as if he understood something, he frowned. "Anna and Abby are on their own. The little girl is young and doesn't understand. She sees me as a father figure. I happen to like kids, so I've been playing along. That's why she misunderstood our relationship. I'll explain it to her when she's older." I let out a bitter laugh. "You like kids, Ethan, but you never wanted to have one with me, did you?" We were supposed to be in our honeymoon phase, but Ethan was never home. I was shy, but one night I gathered all my courage, my face flushed, and asked him to stay home from work, just for one night. He was surprised, but he agreed. That night, just as passion was building, his phone rang. Without a moment's hesitation, he pulled away and left. Embarrassment, disappointment, shame… a storm of emotions swirled inside me. I sat alone on the bed and cried the entire night. He obviously remembered it too. He stammered, "Anna had a high fever that night." I walked to the window, looking down at the city lights twinkling below, and laughed coldly. "So what you're saying is, Anna has a mother, she has grandparents, she has a family. But the one person she can't live without is a 'father' she has no blood relation to? Is that it?" "Enough!" He strode over to me, grabbing my shoulders and forcing me to look at him. "When did you become so jealous?" His pupils reflected my face, haggard and worn down by the endless turmoil he and Abby had created. And suddenly, I felt so tired. It was all so meaningless. I broke free from his grasp and walked away. My hand was just about to touch the doorknob when his voice, hard as steel, came from behind me. "Stop being a lawyer. Be a housewife. This is a notification, not a negotiation." "Besides, Charlotte, you've already lost the right to be a lawyer." "I've blocked every single one of your escape routes."
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