CHAPTER 3: THE SECRET THE MISTRESS NEVER KNEW
Daniel finally turned toward the woman beside him.
Sabrina.
The woman he had risked everything for.
She looked nervous now.
Uneasy.
As though the fantasy was collapsing around her.
Then Victoria smiled sadly.
A smile that confused everyone.
Including Sabrina.
"There's something you should know."
Sabrina frowned.
"What?"
Victoria reached into her purse.
And pulled out a folder.
Daniel's heart stopped.
Because he recognized it instantly.
Private financial records.
Records nobody should have seen.
Victoria handed them directly to Sabrina.
"Read page four."
The mistress hesitated.
Then opened the folder.
Seconds later, her face went white.
"What is this?"
Daniel closed his eyes.
Because he already knew.
Sabrina flipped through the pages faster.
More panic appeared with every document.
"Daniel?"
No answer.
"Daniel, what is this?"
Still silence.
Then Victoria delivered the final blow.
"The company is bankrupt."
Gasps erupted throughout the ballroom.
Sabrina stared at Daniel.
"That's impossible."
"It isn't."
Victoria's voice remained calm.
"The investors pulled out months ago."
"The banks are preparing legal action."
"The houses are mortgaged."
"The accounts are frozen."
Daniel looked defeated.
Because every word was true.
The luxurious life Sabrina believed she was marrying into didn't exist anymore.
It had vanished months earlier.
The only reason the family hadn't collapsed publicly was because Victoria had been secretly keeping the company alive.
Working day and night.
Saving what she could.
While Daniel was busy destroying their marriage.
Sabrina slowly stepped backward.
"No..."
Victoria nodded.
"You weren't in love with a billionaire."
The mistress stared at Daniel.
Horrified.
"You knew?"
Daniel couldn't answer.
Because he had.
And the silence said everything.
Sabrina dropped the folder.
Then walked out of the ballroom without another word.
The doors closed behind her.
And she never looked back.
Daniel stood alone.
His affair gone.
His reputation destroyed.
His family ashamed.
His marriage shattered.
Victoria gently placed a hand over her belly.
Then she looked at him one final time.
Not with anger.
Not with hatred.
But with something far worse.
Disappointment.
"I hope one day our son becomes a better man than his father."
Then she turned and walked away.
The crowd silently parted for her.
And as she disappeared through the ballroom doors, Daniel finally understood a painful truth:
Some mistakes cost money.
Some cost careers.
But some mistakes cost the people you can never replace.
And by the time he realized that...
May you like
She was already gone.
To be continued....
