Divorced! Then Became the Billionaire's Sole Heir

Light spilled from every window of the Wright family estate, illuminating a glittering procession of designer gowns and jewel-draped guests.

The occasion was Hugh Wright's eightieth birthday celebration, an event grand enough to draw nearly every prominent figure in the city.

"Ahh! Somebody help!"

Without warning, a woman's shriek ripped through the rear garden. The orchestra was instantly drowned out, and startled guests whipped toward the sound.

"Something happened back there!" someone yelled.

Alarm swept through the Wright family. They hurried for the garden, with the rest of the guests pouring after them in a restless wave.

At the center of the commotion, the sprawling heated outdoor pool had erupted into chaos, water splashing wildly over its surface.

Two women struggled desperately in the deep end. One was Arabella Wright, Greyson Wright's wife. The other was Corinne Wright, widow of Greyson's deceased older brother.

"Out of my way!" The command ripped through the commotion as a tall, lean man shoved his way past the stunned onlookers.

Greyson didn't even bother taking off his jacket. He plunged straight into the pool.

Cutting through the water at full speed, he swam right past Arabella and made straight for Corinne. He locked an arm around her waist, bracing her securely against him as he pulled her toward the edge.

"Greyson..." Corinne gasped, drenched from head to toe. Her face had gone frighteningly white. "My stomach... It hurts so much..."

"Don't be scared. I won't let anything happen to you or the baby!" Eyes blazing red, Greyson swept Corinne into his arms and carried her out of the pool. Then he turned sharply toward the bodyguards standing nearby and bellowed, "What the hell are you staring at? Bring the car around! We're going to the hospital. Now!"

Not once did Greyson look back at Arabella, even as she continued fighting to keep her head above water.

It wasn't until he'd disappeared into the night with Corinne that the bodyguards finally came to their senses. By then, Arabella had already begun sinking beneath the surface. They rushed in and dragged her out.

The icy night air sliced straight through her.

Drenched from head to toe, Arabella stood shivering as streams of water ran from her tangled hair and soaked clothes.

Chaos had swallowed the sprawling Wright estate. Every member of the family had followed Corinne to the hospital, abandoning Arabella without a second thought.

Alone, she made her way back toward the mansion, each step slower and heavier than the last.

As she passed the servants, their whispers carried openly through the night. No one even tried to keep their voices down.

"How can anyone be that cruel? Mrs. Wright is pregnant, and she still shoved her into the pool."

"That child is the only thing Mr. Wright left behind. She'd even go after an innocent baby..."

Cruel?

Arabella's lips curved as a hollow, bitter laugh slipped out.

The whole thing had been Corinne's setup. She'd called Arabella over, and then pulled her straight into the pool.

By the time Arabella finally stumbled back to her bedroom, chills wracked her body and her head swam with dizziness.

She forced herself through a steaming shower, changed into fresh clothes, and then crawled beneath the blankets. She had barely settled in when scorching heat suddenly swept through her.

The fever hit her all at once, turning her thoughts hazy and dragging her toward unconsciousness.

Without warning, the bedroom door flew inward beneath a savage kick.

Greyson stormed inside, his entire presence sharpened by a cold, barely contained rage.

"Get up!" he snarled.

With that, he tore the blankets off her. His fingers locked around her slender wrist, and with no concern for her condition, he wrenched her out of bed.

"Greyson, what the hell are you doing?"

Fever had already drained the strength from her body. Caught completely unprepared, Arabella lost her balance and slammed onto the floor.

"You want to know what I'm doing?" Greyson huffed derisively. He loomed over her, anger twisting his handsome features into something vicious. "Arabella, you're a goddamn snake. What the hell did Corinne ever do to you? Why were you so determined to kill her?"

Arabella fought through the dizzy haze and lifted her face to him. Her jaw clenched, but there was no trace of yielding in her eyes. "How many times do I have to say it? I never pushed her. She went into that pool on her own."

A humorless laugh cut from Greyson's throat. "On her own? You seriously expect me to buy that bullshit? That Corinne would endanger herself-and her own baby-just to set you up?"

His fingers clamped around Arabella's chin, digging in hard enough to hurt. "Enough with your filthy lies, Arabella! She lost the baby! My brother's child is dead because of you!"

Corinne had miscarried?

Arabella's eyes widened in shock. "How..." The word barely escaped her lips.

None of it made sense. Why would Corinne go so far as to sacrifice her own unborn child simply to ruin her?

"Shut up!" Greyson's face remained cold. "You're coming with me."

Before Arabella could get another word out, he clamped a hand around her arm and hauled her toward the door.

"Where the hell are you taking me?" she demanded, struggling against his grip. "Get your hands off me!"

"The family chapel."

The mention of the chapel sent Arabella's entire body stiff with terror, cold seeping straight into her bones.

Aside from its religious purposes, that place also served as the Wright family's private court, where punishment was handed down behind closed doors.

Rumor had it that even strong, full-grown men barely made it back out alive.

"No! I'm not going!" Arabella fought against Greyson's grip with everything she had. "I didn't do anything! Why should I be punished?"

Greyson gave her no response, simply hauling her through the corridor without slowing.

She had no shoes on, and the fever left her stumbling helplessly behind him. The rough gravel path tore at her bare soles until they were scraped open and bleeding, yet he never so much as glanced over his shoulder.

Light flooded every corner of the family chapel.

Two rigid lines of Wright family's elders filled the hall, each wearing the same grim expression. They had gathered for her-and judging by their faces, her guilt had already been decided long before she arrived.

Hugh occupied the chair in the center, his posture rigid.

As soon as Greyson dragged Arabella into view, fury twisted the old man's features. His hand shot toward the cup beside him, and without a word, he seized it and flung it straight at her.

With a violent crash, porcelain burst apart at Arabella's feet, sending hot coffee splattering everywhere.

One jagged fragment caught her ankle, carving through the skin. Fresh blood immediately beaded along the cut.

"You rotten bitch!" Hugh's bellow shook the chapel. "Get on your damn knees!"

Every face in the hall seemed to accuse her. The Wright family's collective rage pressed in from all sides, but Arabella refused to shrink beneath it.

Every second on her injured ankle hurt, and the fever left her lightheaded, yet she drew herself upright and held her ground in the middle of the room.

"I never pushed Corinne." Her bloodless lips moved faintly as she swept her gaze over the people surrounding her. "I haven't done anything wrong, so I'm not kneeling."

"You've got some nerve!" an outraged voice snapped.

"Not even a shred of remorse!" someone else snapped.

Hostility poured in from every direction, the entire hall erupting in insults.

Greyson pushed through the uproar and closed in on her. Her defiance only hardened his expression. Clamping both hands around her shoulders, he drove her downward, straight into the puddle of coffee and jagged porcelain scattered across the floor.

Arabella's knees gave way beneath the force. She hit the floor hard, landing directly among the jagged fragments.

Agony tore through her, so deep and vicious it seemed to pierce straight to the bone. A muffled groan slipped from her lips as cold sweat broke across her forehead.

Greyson towered over her, his voice stripped of all warmth. "You're getting two choices tonight, Arabella. Stay right there on your knees until you admit what you did..."

He let the silence drag out before lowering his voice, every word dripping with malice. "Or sign the divorce papers. Now."

Divorce?

Arabella sank her teeth into her pale lower lip, biting so hard that a trace of blood surfaced.

She forced herself to ignore the bone-biting pain in her knees and raised her eyes to Greyson, who stood over her with an icy, unforgiving expression.

"Greyson, don't you dare!" Arabella said firmly. "I'm not going to admit to something I never did!"

"You are really stubborn and have no remorse!" Hugh roared from the front of the room, banging the armrest. Fury burned in his eyes. "Arabella, every piece of evidence points to you! Corinne lost her child. How can you possibly continue insisting that you're innocent?"

"I didn't do it!" Arabella kept her back straight.

Fragments of porcelain were embedded in her knees, and blood had already begun to seep from the wounds, but she still refused to bow her head. She stared directly into Hugh's furious eyes. "She jumped into the pool by herself! Look at the security footage! Question the witnesses..."

"That's enough! You're still lying!" Hugh finally lost control.

He grabbed the porcelain vase sitting on the table beside him and violently threw it in her direction.

With a crash, the vase struck the floor and exploded into countless pieces.

Arabella had no time to move out of the way.

One of the jagged pieces flew toward her and cut across the back of her hand, leaving a wound nearly two inches long.

Blood immediately spilled from the cut, spraying across her clothes.

Even so, Arabella clenched her jaw without uttering a single cry.

"You disrespectful woman! Have you forgotten who you are dealing with?"

Hugh's chest rose and fell heavily. He pointed a trembling finger toward the entrance and barked, his voice resounding throughout the family chapel, "Guards! Take this stubborn woman outside! Make her kneel there! She is forbidden from getting up until she admits what she did!"

"Yes, Mr. Wright!" the servants answered in unison.

The servants stationed on both sides of the family chapel immediately moved toward Arabella.

"Hugh," Sylvia Wright-Arabella's mother-in-law-said softly, "please, calm down."

She had been standing off to the side, watching. And now she could no longer bear to remain silent. Hurrying forward, Sylvia reached out to help Arabella to her feet. "Arabella, why do you have to make things so difficult for yourself?"

She whispered pleadingly, "Just give in this once. Admit that you were wrong. Say it was an accident. Greyson and Hugh... they wouldn't really kill you over this."

Sylvia's hand had barely touched Arabella when another hand abruptly pulled it away.

"Mom, why are you even wasting your time on her?" Jordyn Wright dragged her mother backward and positioned herself protectively in front of her. She looked down at Arabella with undisguised disgust. "A cruel and calculating woman like her deserves to die. Why are you even feeling sorry for her?"

"But Jordyn, she fell into the water too, and now her hand is bleeding..."

"She deserves that!" Jordyn scoffed. "She took a life. Making her kneel for a while is nothing compared to what she did to Corinne and her child."

A bitter, humorless smile appeared on Arabella's lips.

So she deserved this?

She paid no attention to Jordyn's hateful words. With whatever strength she had left, Arabella lifted her head and looked at the tall man standing directly in front of her.

"Greyson," she called in a shaky and incredulous voice, "you believe it too? You really think I did it?"

Three years as husband and wife. More than a thousand nights sharing the same bed. And after all that time, had she still failed to earn even a single ounce of his trust?

Greyson gave her an undisguisedly disdainful look. There was nothing in his eyes except coldness and disgust.

"Arabella, stop looking at me like that. It makes me feel sick." His tone was detached and chillingly calm. "The second you laid a hand on Corinne, you were no longer my wife."

Then Greyson turned around without the slightest hesitation.

"Keep an eye on her. If Corinne doesn't wake up, she'll pay for it with her life!"

Having given that ruthless order, he walked out of the family chapel and disappeared into the night.

Arabella felt as though her heart had fallen into a frozen abyss.

She stared at his departing figure, and whatever tiny bit of hope she had been clinging to fizzled.

So in Greyson's heart, she had never been the woman he chose. It had always been Corinne.

"What are you standing around for? Get her out of here!" Jordyn screamed at the servants.

Two servants immediately rushed forward, seized Arabella by the arms, and roughly hauled her out of the room.

"Leave me! I didn't do anything..."

Blood continued to seep from the injuries on her knees, running down her legs and leaving two vivid red streaks across the polished floor behind her.

The servants pulled her out of the family chapel and straight into the middle of the courtyard.

"Don't move!" one of them barked, kicking the back of Arabella's knees.

Her legs instantly gave way, and he forced her shoulders downward and shoved her onto the ground.

Her already-injured knees struck the unforgiving stone path with full force. A wave of unbearable pain burst behind her eyes. Her vision suddenly went dark, and she almost lost consciousness.

Suddenly, a thunderous boom tore across the night sky. Then, as if someone had suddenly opened the floodgates above, heavy rain came pouring down.

"Where did this rain come from all of a sudden?" one of the servants exclaimed.

"Inside! Hurry, get inside!" another servant yelled.

The sudden storm sent the servants rushing for shelter. After throwing Arabella one careless, dismissive look, they hurried back into the family chapel, leaving her behind.

The enormous courtyard quickly became dark and desolate, with Arabella as its only occupant.

The wind screamed through the open space while sheets of rain came crashing down.

Within moments, the freezing water had soaked through her thin nightgown. Rain struck the open wounds on her hand and knees, sending unbearable pain through her body.

Back inside the family chapel, Sylvia glanced at Hugh, who was still consumed by anger. She hesitated, and then said, "Hugh, the child is already gone. We need to think about the people who are still here. If this keeps going, you'll completely destroy Arabella's heart..."

"And what if I do?" Hugh interrupted her coldly. "Do you honestly believe she has the courage to disobey me?"

He stood up as soon as he finished speaking. A servant immediately came over with an umbrella and accompanied him out of the family chapel.

Sylvia was the only one left behind. She continued staring at the solitary figure kneeling beneath the relentless rain. Then, she released a long, sorrowful sigh.

The freezing autumn rain poured throughout the night.

By morning, a faint glow began to spread along the horizon.

A pair of gleaming leather shoes came to a stop within Arabella's blurred line of sight.

"You've been on your knees all night," Greyson said. "Have you learned your lesson yet?"

His cold voice came from above. "Admit what you did wrong," he said commandingly. "Go to Corinne and beg her to forgive you. Only after that will I let this go."

Arabella slowly lifted her head.

The face that had once been radiant now looked pale and lifeless.

"I didn't push her." Her throat was dry, and her voice came out rough. "Greyson, Corinne jumped into the pool herself. She deliberately set me up."

"Enough!" Greyson's eyes flashed with fury.

He stepped forward and seized her chin, his fingers pressing painfully into her skin. "Corinne is still lying in the ICU," he growled, "and you have the nerve to accuse her of setting you up?"

His grip on her chin hurt terribly, yet Arabella remained completely still.

She looked into the face of the man she had loved for three years, and in that moment, the final trace of hope disappeared.

"You truly don't believe me," she whispered.

"Why should I believe someone as cruel and deceitful as you?" Greyson sniggered before roughly shoving her away.

Arabella fell backward into the muddy rainwater.

The cut across the back of her hand, caused by the shattered porcelain, had swollen into a pale, wrinkled wound after being exposed to the rain for hours. Whatever sharp pain it had caused earlier had long disappeared, replaced by a heavy, pulsing numbness.

Yet even that pain was insignificant beside the emptiness that had settled inside her chest.

Suddenly, Arabella laughed.

"All right..." she murmured. "You've already made up your mind that I'm guilty, so there's no point in explaining myself anymore."

She planted her hands against the ground and forced herself to her feet.

"Greyson," she said, "I want a divorce."

Greyson let out a scornful laugh. "A divorce? Arabella, what are you trying to pull this time? Are you trying to make me chase after you?"

"Believe whatever you want," she replied, her tone strangely calm. "I'll have the divorce papers delivered to you. From this moment on, I'm finished with you and with the entire Wright family."

She turned away after saying that. Without the slightest hesitation, she hauled her battered body toward the staircase and climbed one painful step after another.

As Greyson watched her stubborn figure disappear up the stairs, an unfamiliar sense of irritation stirred in his chest.

"Arabella!" he shouted after her. "The moment you walk through that door, don't even think about coming back to me!"

Arabella paused briefly. Still, she refused to turn around.

Once she reached the master bedroom, Arabella paid no attention to her drenched clothes and immediately began gathering her belongings.

There wasn't much to take-only a few changes of clothes, her passport and some other personal documents.

The expensive designer jewelry Greyson had given her remained exactly where it was.

At last, she removed the wedding ring from her left hand and carefully set it down on the nightstand. Then she walked out and closed the door behind her.

That simple click marked the end of three years of unquestioning devotion.

Arabella pulled her suitcase through the main gates of the Wright family estate.

Inside the mansion, the household staff watched her leave with detached, indifferent expressions. Not one of them made any effort to stop her.

The rain had finally subsided, but the wind remained bitterly cold.

Arabella made her way down the winding mountain road. The blood around her ankle had already dried and clotted, yet an alarming heat continued to burn across her forehead.

Her eyesight became increasingly hazy, the world around her swirling uncontrollably.

"So cold..." she whispered.

She clenched her teeth and held tightly onto the suitcase handle, forcing herself forward even though every step felt like she was walking over a bed of sharp blades.

Eventually, her strength gave out.

With a dull, heavy crash, Arabella fell onto the roadside, her suitcase tumbling down with her.

Just as the darkness closing in on her seemed ready to consume her completely, the piercing sound of screeching tires suddenly ripped through the silence.

A red sports car came to an abrupt stop beside her.

The door swung open, and a woman in an impeccable outfit and heels hurried out. "Arabella!"

Amanda Miller's eyes widened in shock when she saw Arabella lying helplessly in the mud, with blood covering her hands and feet.

"Arabella, wake up!" she shouted anxiously. "What the hell did those monsters in the Wright family do to you?"

She quickly gathered Arabella into her arms. The moment Amanda felt the frightening heat coming from her forehead, she panicked. "You're burning up! Don't be afraid. I'm taking you to the hospital right now!"

With considerable difficulty, Amanda helped Arabella into the passenger seat, and then sped toward Wreport General Hospital.

...

When Arabella finally opened her eyes, everything around her appeared blindingly white.

The strong scent of disinfectant immediately overwhelmed her senses.

It was late afternoon already. The fading sunlight wafted in through a narrow opening between the curtains, throwing a long shadow across the hospital room.

"Arabella!" Amanda cried out. "Thank goodness you're awake!"

Amanda had been sitting beside the bed watching over her friend for hours. Seeing Arabella stir, she immediately sprang to her feet, tears pouring down her cheeks. "Do you have any idea how close you came to dying? Your fever reached 104 degrees! Your knees and the wound on the back of your hand were so badly infected that they had already begun forming abscesses! That damn Greyson-I swear, I'm going to kill him!"

"Amanda..." Arabella's voice came out as little more than a dry, painful rasp. She reached out and caught her friend's sleeve. "Don't go."

"After everything he did to you," Amanda said, her voice filled with disbelief, "you're still trying to protect him?"

"I'm not... protecting him," Arabella replied.

A painful, bitter smile appeared on her lips. "I... I already asked him for a divorce."

Amanda went completely still for a moment. Then she tightened her fingers around Arabella's hand. "Good! It's about damn time you finally dumped that damn blind idiot!"

Silence settled over the hospital room.

Amanda left to call for the doctor.

Alone in the hospital bed, Arabella stared through the window as the sky outside gradually grew darker. Tears quietly slipped from the corners of her eyes and dampened the pillow.

She and Greyson had been married for three years, more than a thousand days and nights spent together.

All that time, Arabella had convinced herself that if she could be good enough and obedient enough, she might eventually soften his stone-cold heart.

But now, she finally grasped the truth.

If he didn't love her, then he simply didn't love her.

In Greyson's eyes, compared to Corinne, she was nothing more than a tiny speck of dust.

The hospital room gradually descended into complete darkness.

Arabella closed her eyes and allowed the grief and regret consume her.

She was prepared to consider her three years of life with him a painful loss and let go.

From this point forward, she and Greyson would go their separate ways.