My grandfather is hit by a car, and his skull is shattered. I take the driver to court.

That's when I find out my husband, Stuart Creed, who was supposedly abroad on a business trip, is suddenly at the hospital.

He looks at me coldly and snaps, "Do you have any idea how important Maddy’s valedictorian announcement is? Her future can't be ruined by some car accident! Drop the case right now, or I'll cut off all your credit cards and have your grandfather kicked out of the VIP ward!"

He slams the door and storms out. Before that, he snarls, "Come home when you agree. Until then, forget about calling yourself Mrs. Creed!"

While I'm out desperately trying to gather money for my grandfather's surgery, a team of lawyers contacts me. Turns out the patent my grandfather once authorized to Creed Group has expired.

And now, I'm the new legal owner.

After failing to make the payment at the hospital, I immediately took a cab to Creed Group.

"Stuart, did you really freeze all my credit cards because of an outsider? Don't you know that Grandpa urgently needs brain surgery? How could you do this after everything he did for you?" I fumed at Stuart Creed, my husband.

Thinking about how cold and indifferent he had been at the hospital, my eyes burned with rage.

Stuart turned to glare at me furiously like I were some hysterical woman making a scene.

He scolded, "Veronica, look at what you've become! What's the point of throwing a tantrum now? What's done is done!"

His cold words made it sound like my grandfather, Alfred Gallagher, was just dealing with a common cold and not waiting for brain surgery.

I stared at the man I'd been married to for over a decade, feeling my heart sink drastically.

"Have you forgotten how Creed Group was built from the ground up? Have you forgotten it was Grandpa who took a knife for you when you were kidnapped? The wound from then still hurts from time to time for him!

"And now, you cut off his only chance to survive all for an intern? How can you be so inhumane?"

After I started dating Stuart, Grandpa used all his connections to assist him when he started up his company. He eagerly helped Stuart so that he wouldn't need to deal with unnecessary obstacles.

Grandpa even let Stuart have his patent that brought in over 100 million dollars in annual profits for Creed Group. He only charged Stuart a fee of a couple of hundred dollars.

I wouldn't be exaggerating if I said that Creed Group reached its market leader status today thanks to Grandpa.

He had given Stuart everything, and this was how things turned out.

After my furious tirade, Stuart's expression went from indifferent to absolutely livid.

He hurled the wine glass he was holding at my feet. A shard of broken glass flew up from the ground and sliced across the top of my foot, drawing blood.

"You keep bringing up the same old shit. Don't you ever get tired of it? Right now, all you need to do is drop the case and tell everyone your grandfather fell down the stairs himself. Do that, and this will be over.

"If you insist on dragging this out because of Maddy and delaying the surgery, you'll be the one who caused Alfred's death!"

I glared at Stuart, whom I'd been married to for over a decade. At the moment, he felt like a complete stranger to me.

When we first started dating, he'd pick me up from work no matter how far it was. He stayed by my bedside all night whenever I was sick.

He was scared that he wasn't good enough for me, as I came from a learned and well-to-do family. So, he worked himself to the bone to give me the best life. He even respected my wish not to have children.

But now, it felt like I was seeing his true colors for the first time.

Observing my silence, he smirked coldly. "Veronica, you shouldn't have gone after Maddy out of jealousy. Your little stunt was pathetic. You've been Mrs. Creed for over a decade. Isn't that enough for you?"

He had the gall to ask me to be content with what I have. What a joke!

I stopped arguing and turned to leave.

What mattered most now was paying Grandpa's surgery fee. So, I left Creed Group and reached out to several close girlfriends.

They usually greeted me with warm smiles, but today they acted like I was the plague.

"Veronica, you're wholly dependent on Mr. Creed now. Going against him won't end well for you."

"Don't hold on to the car accident. You don't even have evidence. You ought not to be so stubborn. Just apologize to Mr. Creed, and this will blow over."

"Mr. Creed is such a powerful man. Even if we wanted to help you, we wouldn't be able to."

Even though the sun blazed overhead, I felt cold all over. The humiliation and anger came crashing down on me in waves.

When I was still in a daze, my phone rang.

"I'm giving you one day to drop the case. Otherwise, you'll suffer the consequences even if you're my wife. Maddy still needs to go abroad for an academic conference. You hear me?"

"Stuart."

A voice came through from the other end. It was Madison Rogan.

She said, "I don't mind suffering a little if it helps Veronica calm down. It's just… I hate to waste all the years you spent nurturing me and supporting my studies."

Hearing that, Stuart's tone grew even colder as he chastised, "Veronica, did you really have to make a scene and embarrass everyone? You think your grandfather would want to see you tearing down a talented academic like this?

"I'm warning you. Even if you disagree with withdrawing the case, I have other ways to make you!"

The call ended abruptly.

I clenched my fists as I thought of Grandpa, who was still in the ICU. I felt utterly powerless.

All those vows and promises of love were nothing after the passage of time.

Soon, my phone rang again. To my surprise, it was Grandpa's legal team calling me.

"Ms. Yancey, the patent license your grandfather granted to Creed Group has expired. Three months ago, he instructed us to transfer the ownership rights to you."

As Creed Group continued to gain prominence in the industry, Stuart had long forgotten that it was Grandpa's exclusive pharmaceutical patent that helped him claw his way to the top among the big corporations.

The man who had once obediently followed Grandpa around doing experiments and brought me candy was gone. All that was left was the powerful CEO of Creed Group.

Looking at Grandpa lying in the ICU and covered in tubes, I hated Stuart to the core. How could he so shamelessly protect the person who hit his mentor?

I would never let Madison get away with this! They would have to pay the price.

The legal team told me that Grandpa had prepared the patent transfer documents for me even before my marriage. Therefore, it was essentially my personal premarital property.

Grandpa had made this arrangement in anticipation of such a situation.

So, even though I had married Stuart, he wouldn't get Grandpa's patent.

By the time I got back to the villa, it was already 3:00 pm. I had gone back to pick up some documents. But lo and behold, Madison and Stuart were sitting together on the living room couch.

Madison was holding the guardian angel figurine that Grandpa had gone out of his way to get for me.

I lost my temper right away. "Who said you could touch my stuff? Put that down and get out of my house!"

Startled, Madison quickly hid behind Stuart. She looked like she was about to cry.

She mumbled pitifully, "Veronica, rumors are already spreading at the university that you're blaming me for the car accident. I can't stay there anymore."

As she spoke, she got up to leave. "I shouldn't have come. I'll just head back to the university."

Stuart grabbed her arm and pushed her back down onto the couch. Then, they sat even closer than before I came in.

"Veronica, I've already given you a way out. Withdraw the case today! Otherwise, there's no place in the Creed family for a woman as unreasonable as you!" he spat.

The way Stuart twisted the truth made me feel so nauseated that I could vomit.

I didn't want to argue anymore, so I stormed upstairs and gathered the important evidence to keep them safe.

"Listen here, Stuart. I'm the one leaving you!" I exclaimed.

Upon hearing that, he let go of Madison and hurried forward to grab my wrist. "What do you mean by that?"

I gave him a mocking smile. "I don't do hand-me-downs."

"Say that again!" Stuart's eyes were bloodshot, and his voice was terrifyingly cold.

Madison flinched, and the guardian angel figurine fell from her hand and shattered into pieces upon hitting the floor.

I was absolutely enraged at the sight of this. "You did that on purpose, didn't you?"

Tears welled up in Madison's eyes as she waved her hands frantically. "Stuart, I was startled by Veronica. I'll apologize."

But Stuart shielded her behind him without hesitation. "It's just a cheap ceramic doll. You don't need to apologize."

He knew full well that Grandpa had spent a whole month praying at a church to get me that figurine. Yet, he made it sound like it was just some cheap souvenir.

I straightened my back and took several deep breaths. "Isn't it best that I leave? That way, I can make room for you two. Soon enough, the title of Mrs. Creed will be up for grabs. Whoever wants it can have it."

Stuart caught the sarcasm in my voice. Overcome with fury, he slapped me hard enough to knock me to the ground.

He bellowed indignantly, "What nonsense are you spouting? Maddy is a student I sponsored. I've always treated her like a younger sister. How can you insinuate such a filthy scenario?"

I held my face. The fury that had just risen within me vanished completely. It was replaced by utter numbness.

After all these years, this was the first time he'd ever hit me—and it was for Madison.

With a few large strides, Stuart made his way to the front door and threw my suitcase out.

He warned, "Veronica, don't think you can manipulate me. I don't care where you go. I'll say this one last time. You have half a day left to withdraw the case!"

The door slammed shut in my face. I stared at it for a moment before silently picking up my suitcase. I then took a cab to the law firm to collect the patent transfer documents.

As I looked at the thick stack of papers, I couldn't help but tear up.

These were the results of Grandpa's life's work.

Just then, the lawyer assisting me handed over a contract. "Ms. Yancey, Trevino Group is offering one billion dollars for a five-year exclusive right to the patent. They'd like to know if you're open to negotiations."

That night, I signed the contract with the other party through the legal team Grandpa assigned to me.

Once I received the advance payment, I immediately arranged for Grandpa to be transferred to the best hospital in the city for the surgery.

The next day, I received Trevino Group's invitation to the bidding conference. I didn't expect to run into Stuart and Madison there.

"Veronica, what are you doing here?" Madison's eyes flitted between me and the CEO of Trevino Group, Max Trevino. "Even if Stuart was a little harsh with you yesterday, that's no reason to publicly humiliate him by going out with another man."

She then looked at me with disdain. "And you even found someone who owns a company inferior to Creed Group. How embarrassing!"

Trevino Group had emerged as a rising star in the pharmaceutical industry over the past few years. They were Creed Group's biggest competitor. But because of Grandpa's patent, Creed Group always had an upper hand over them.

I watched Madison run her mouth with an icy and dispassionate gaze.

Thinking she'd hit a nerve, she grew even more brazen with her words. "Veronica, Stuart said if you apologize to me and drop the case, he'll let it go. You blatantly humiliated him in public. You're not worthy of being Mrs. Creed."

Before I could respond, Stuart stepped in front of me with a face full of contempt. "Veronica, don't you think you've gone overboard? Dirty laundry shouldn't be aired in public. Need I remind you of that?

"You're in your 30s, but you're less mature than a university student who's about to graduate. You really should reflect on yourself!"

Max looked puzzled and was about to speak up for me, but I shook my head at him.

I countered, "What I do has nothing to do with you."

Stuart turned his head to the side and scoffed impatiently. "You're the wife of the CEO of Creed Group. How could it have nothing to do with me? Stop being childish. The one-day deadline I gave you is up. If you don't drop the case now, I'll cut off Alfred's medical care."

I responded with a calm smile. "Do as you please."

Stuart froze and frowned hard. "Yesterday, you were ready to fight me to the death for him. Now that you've got yourself a new man, you're tossing him aside? What a good granddaughter you are! Clearly, you're just jealous and picking a fight with me!

"Besides, do you really think Trevino Group can beat Creed Group? Don't forget that Creed Group has Alfred's most valuable medical patent."

Stuart then leaned in and lowered his voice. "As long as you behave from now on, you'll always be Mrs. Creed. Alfred will be just fine, too."

But I no longer cared about being Mrs. Creed.

With reddened eyes, I raised my hand and was ready to slap him for being abhorrently shameless.

Madison suddenly wedged herself between us and splashed the coffee in her hand onto me.

She cried, "How can you try to hit Stuart in public? You're a disgrace to him, Veronica!"

Her unexpected move caught me off guard. I stood stunned, my outfit soaked in coffee.

Stuart just watched uncaringly. Instead of showing concern for me, he pulled out a tissue to gently wipe the coffee from Madison's hand.

"I'm cutting off Alfred's medical care now. Remember, I gave you a chance. You're the one who doomed him," Stuart said darkly.

I ignored him and went straight to the changing room. I changed into a set of clothes I brought as backup. After letting Max know that I was leaving, I walked out.

As I made my way out, I heard many people already congratulating Stuart in advance. It was as if he would surely win the bid like he did in previous years.

I waited by the road for my ride.

Max came to see me off. He couldn't help but ask, "Ms. Yancey, Mr. Creed won't interfere with our deal, will he?"

He was worried that I might still be swayed by Stuart.

I shook my head. Since I'd chosen to let go, there was no turning back.

I opened the car door but couldn't resist glancing back one last time.

Stuart stood some distance away, holding his phone. He met my gaze from afar.

To my surprise, he suddenly rushed toward me in the next moment.

He held the car door open just as it was about to close, still holding his phone, which was in an ongoing call.

The voice of his secretary, Kaylee Jones, came through the receiver. "Mr. Creed, you heard me right. Dr. Gallagher has already been transferred to a new hospital.

"Also, his legal team has officially withdrawn the expired patent. We're no longer eligible to participate in the bidding!"

Kaylee's words came like a bolt from the blue.

Stuart's face instantly turned ashen as he shoved the phone in my face. "Veronica, explain to me what the hell is this?"