Chapter 2

Scarlett's POV

Everyone thought Julian Vance would take my life.

But he didn't.

He threw the divorce papers right in my face, his eyes filled with absolute disgust.

"You're nothing but a dog I kept around, Scarlett. Since you're so eager to go mad, get the hell out and starve to death."

Kneeling in the cold rain, holding Lucky's corpse, I pressed my bloody thumbprint onto the papers.

I almost died that rainy night.

It was Dominic Pierce who personally picked me up and dragged me out of that abyss.

When Dominic was younger, my mother had saved his life.

He took me out of the country, treated my injuries, and personally trained me in the brutal world of business.

For five years, I worked day and night without a break. I transformed from a submissive, easily bullied girl into Dominic's most trusted right-hand woman.

I had to survive. I had to make the Vance family and Chloe pay in blood.

Five years later, I returned to the country in absolute glory.

I arrived at this exclusive, high-end private club where I hadn't stepped foot in for five long years.

This time, I held the most exclusive VIP invitation card given to me by Dominic. I was here to settle the score with the Vance family once and for all.

Inside the ballroom, glasses clinked, and the atmosphere was incredibly lively.

I didn't look at anyone. My eyes locked instantly onto a pink figure standing by the bar.

Chloe was wearing a champagne-colored designer gown, laughing and chatting with several high-society women.

As she tucked her hair back, she flaunted a rose-gold diamond watch on her wrist. Julian had just bought it at an auction last month; the news had been all over Snapchat and Twitter.

It seemed that over the past five years, they had been living a very good life.

"Oh, look who it is. Isn't this the trash Julian threw out of the house?"

Chloe's screechy voice suddenly cut through the air, ruining the pleasant chatter around us.

Holding her glass, she sashayed over in her high heels. The brief flicker of surprise in her eyes was instantly replaced by intense mockery. "Five years. I thought you died a long time ago. How do you even have the nerve to show your face here?"

The surrounding guests turned to look, whispering like a rising tide.

Chloe raised her chin arrogantly. With a slight tilt of her wrist, she poured her red wine right down the front of my black dress.

"Dressed like this, you're probably just here to beg for free drinks.

A stray thrown out by the Vance family probably can't even afford a decent dress anymore."

I looked down at my stained dress, then looked up, completely blank. "Five years, and you're still using the same cheap trick."

I turned around, not even bothering to waste another second on her.

"Stop right there! Who do you think you are, pretending to be above us?!"

Chloe was instantly triggered by my cold indifference. She lunged forward, her sharp acrylic nails digging deep into the flesh of my forearm.

My eyes went cold. I pivoted slightly, letting her own momentum carry her.

Chloe grabbed nothing but air. Her thin stiletto heel buckled, and she stumbled wildly for several steps before barely stabilizing herself. Her entire face flushed red with embarrassment.

Right at that moment, the shadow at the entrance was cut by a tall, imposing figure.

Julian Vance walked in, looking sharp in his tailored suit, casually adjusting his cufflinks.

He looked up. Those dark, hollow eyes of his, deep and chilling, collided directly with my icy gaze.