The Million-Dollar Consultant Was His Ex-Wife

The night our daughter underwent appendicitis surgery, Ethan Carters assistant delivered me a divorce agreement.

On TV, his interview was airing live. He proudly declared that his companys system was unbreakable, the watch I gifted him gleaming on his wrist.

What he didnt know was that I had written that system six years ago.

For years, I believed I simply wasnt good enough for him to love me.

Until a woman named Mia sent me photos of herself wearing the silk robe I bought, crimson marks blooming along her collarbone.

Until our daughter split her head open and needed five stitches, blood running down her face, while Ethan coldly told me over the phone:

You should learn how to handle these things yourself.

Twenty years of growing up together, and in the end, I was nothing more than the nanny who helped him survive his startup years.

Before the divorce cooling-off period even ended, his company collapsed first.

That unbreakable system was personally locked down by me.

He desperately wanted to meet the top consultant demanding ten million dollars to fix it.

What he didnt know

that consultant was me.

The night my daughter had her appendicitis surgery, Ethan Carter's assistant delivered the divorce papers.

The TV was live-streaming his interview. He was chatting and laughing into the camera, wearing the Vacheron Constantin watch I'd given him.

His executive assistant, Zach, handed me the agreement, his eyes avoiding mine.

"Mr. Carter said if there are no issues, just sign it."

"Mr. Carter said if there are no issues, just sign it. Let's end this amicably. Name your terms, as long as you don't make a scene."

I opened the agreement.

Ethan was being generous.

The downtown penthouse would go to me, half the savings, and custody of our daughter.

Even the child support. He'd filled in a number that would make ordinary people jealous.

Aside from his company shares, he was giving me almost everything he could.

As if this were just a business transaction, and as long as the money was right, everything would be decent and proper.

The hospital room was quiet except for the rhythmic dripping of the IV.

Emma was still unconscious, her little face deathly pale.

"The reason?" I asked.

Zach stammered for a while before repeating Ethan's exact words.

"Mr. Carter said you two are no longer on the same path."

"His circle now discusses IPOs, financing, overseas acquisitions."

"And you..." Zach didn't dare continue.

And me, these past few years I'd been stuck around the stove and the kid, talking about grocery prices and tutoring classes.

In his eyes, I was a nanny with whom he had nothing in common.

Even worse than a nanny, because a nanny wouldn't occupy the position of Mrs. Carter.

My phone vibrated.

Ethan sent a message on SnapChat.

"Hire a good nurse for Emma. Did you sign the agreement?"

Then another message followed.

"This is better for everyone."

Every word dripped with condescension.

He probably thought that as long as he paid enough, I should be grateful and vacate my position.

I stared at those lines of text.

Twenty years of childhood friendship, and this was all it amounted to.

"Pen."

I held out my hand.

Zach froze for a moment, then quickly handed over a pen.

I flipped to the last page and signed my name cleanly.

"Nine o'clock tomorrow morning. Meet at the courthouse."

I closed the agreement and handed it back.

Zach clearly hadn't expected me to be so decisive. His hand trembled slightly as he took the document.

"Alright, Ms. Hayes. I'll inform Mr. Carter."

Zach left.

I stood up and tucked the blanket around my daughter, then glanced at the interview still playing on TV.

The host was asking about the company's technical advantages.

Ethan answered confidently, "This is the core architecture our team spent three years developing. It's impenetrable."

I picked up the remote and turned off the TV.

The hospital room returned to silence.

I pulled an old laptop from my bag and connected to the hospital WiFi.

I didn't open any web pages. I just typed a few lines of code into a black terminal window.

Several lines of green data streams flickered on the screen before stopping at a red cursor.

It was the backend access point to Ethan's company.

After finishing everything, I closed the computer and changed Emma's IV bag.

Early the next morning, while Emma was being wheeled away for tests by the nurse, I took a taxi to the courthouse as agreed.

Ethan and I quickly completed the formalities and received the receipt.

We just had to wait for the paperwork to go through before the divorce was final.

Ethan looked at me, a flash of guilt crossing his eyes.

He said, "Don't worry, I won't short you a penny of child support after the divorce."

I looked down at my phone to call a rideshare, anxious to get back to the hospital to be with my daughter. I wasn't in the mood to listen to him talk.

Seeing that I didn't respond, Ethan continued, "We don't have anything in common anymore. I don't love you anymore. Even if we divorce, there's no need to become enemies. I'm still the child's father."

The corner of my mouth twitched imperceptibly. I watched the car getting closer and closer on the app.

I gave him a faint smile. "I'm heading back to the hospital. See you in thirty days."

The car had arrived. Without looking at Ethan's expression, I opened the door and got in.

I looked at the divorce papers in my hand. Soon, we'd be nothing to each other.

Over the next few days, Ethan didn't come to the hospital. He didn't even call once.

Emma asked about her father several times.

I hugged Emma with a heavy heart. "Daddy will be busier and busier from now on. He won't be able to see you often, but Mommy will always be with you."

Five days later, Zach came.

He poked his head around the hospital room door, dragging a suitcase behind him.

"Ms. Hayes... Mr. Carter asked me to bring your things over."

"He said since you signed the papers, you probably don't want to go back to that house anyway. Saves you the trouble of looking at it."

I glanced at the suitcase.

Ethan thought I was taking up space and was eager to kick us out.

"Just leave it there."

Emma had just woken up and was rubbing her eyes, saying she was hungry.

I poured Zach a glass of water and asked him to watch the child while I went to buy breakfast.

When I came back with breakfast, before I even entered the room, I heard Emma crying.

I pushed the door open. Zach was frantically trying to comfort the child with his phone.

"What happened?"

I picked up my daughter, her face red from crying.

Emma pointed at Zach's phone screen, sobbing. "That's the castle Daddy promised to build with me... That's my castle..."

I glanced at the screen.

It was an Ins interface. The person who posted was named Mia, her profile picture showing a woman's silhouette.

The image showed a huge LEGO Disney castle, half-assembled.

That was the birthday gift Ethan had bought for Emma six months ago. It had been gathering dust in a corner of his study.

Now it was appearing on someone else's living room carpet.

The woman named Mia had posted it with a caption: "This guy is so clumsy. Took him all night just to finish the foundation."

Posted at 2 AM today.

At that time, Emma had just finished surgery and was in so much pain she couldn't sleep, calling for her daddy.

And he was building blocks with another woman.

I took Zach's phone and looked at that SnapChat account.

I said nothing and returned the phone to him.

"Sweetie, that one got dirty. We don't want it anymore."

I wiped Emma's tears. "Mommy will buy you a new one."

After soothing Emma to sleep, I opened my computer again and got to work.

Ethan had always thought that over the past six years, all I'd learned was how to cook and take care of children.

He didn't know that I had set up the smart home system in the house, and all the device logs were automatically uploaded to the cloud.

I hit enter.

A long string of data streams appeared on the screen.

Last night at 1 AM, the smart speaker in the study had a wake record.

An audio recording played automatically.

"Ethan, this castle is too hard. I don't want to play anymore."

It was a young woman's voice, coquettish and syrupy.

Then came Ethan's voice, with a patience and indulgence I'd never heard from him.

"Try one more time. When we finish building it, I'll take you to the Maldives."

"What about your wife? If she finds out you gave me the gift meant for your daughter, won't she make a scene?"

"She only thinks about the kid now. She won't even notice these things."

The recording cut off abruptly.

For six years, I'd managed the household impeccably, helping him transform from a small startup owner into today's tech mogul.

In the end, in his words, I'd become the frumpy housewife who only knew how to serve the child.

The next day, I processed Emma's discharge and didn't return to our former home.

I quickly rented an apartment through an agency, close to Emma's kindergarten.

During this time, Ethan didn't contact me, and naturally didn't ask about our daughter either.

Later, I received a photo from Mia.

In the background, she was wearing a men's silk robe, taking a mirror selfie.

I recognized it immediately. I'd bought it for Ethan last month.

Now it was on Mia, the collar open wide, revealing red marks on her collarbone.

Below the photo came a message:

"Mr. Carter said this robe was too dowdy, but it fits me perfectly, so I'm keeping it."

I was peeling an apple for Emma. My knife didn't stop.

I replied with two words:

"Keep it."

Less than a minute later, my phone rang.

When I answered, Mia's voice came through.

"Did you get the photo?"

"Mr. Carter was so tired last night, he's still not awake."

I put the phone on speaker and set it on the nightstand, continuing to cut the apple.

"Do you need something?"

Mia seemed irritated by my calm, her voice rising several pitches.

"Mr. Carter said he's been putting up with you for a long time. Coming home every day to see your face, he feels no desire at all."

"Not like me. I make him feel young again, like he can still climb higher."

I handed the cut apple to Emma, my tone flat.

"Is that so? I already signed the agreement."

"Anything else?"

The other end went silent for a moment.

Then she played her trump card.

"Sophia, since we're getting divorced anyway, I might as well tell you."

"I'm already pregnant with Mr. Carter's child."

"I have the ultrasound right here. It's a boy."

"All of Mr. Carter's assets will belong to my son in the future."

So this was why Ethan was in such a hurry to divorce.

"Congratulations, then."

I hung up and immediately blocked her number.

Emma was munching on her apple, her cheeks puffed out, looking up at me.

"Mommy, who was that?"

"Insurance salesperson."

I stroked her head. "Eat up. When you're done, Mommy will take you for your checkup."

After settling Emma, I went downstairs.

Adrian was already waiting there.

He wore a gray hoodie, holding a can of iced Coke.

When he saw me, he handed over an access card.

"What you asked for."

It was a visitor card with the highest access privileges to Ethan's company.

I took it and slipped it into my pocket.

Then I handed him a USB drive.

"This is the countermeasure patch for the core architecture of Carter Enterprises."

Adrian took the USB drive, looking at me with a complex expression.

"You're really going through with this?"

I watched the traffic in the distance.

"The core logic hasn't changed. It's just a backdoor."

"Once you plug it in, you can close or open the backdoor whenever you need to."

Adrian was silent for a moment before pocketing the USB drive.

"Also, help me look into someone," I said.

"Mia, Ethan's personal assistant."

Soon, a file arrived on my phone.

"Rachel Mendez, worked as an escort for two years, infiltrated Carter Enterprises three months ago."

I looked at the file, my eyes stopping on the last line.

Medical records showed she had blocked fallopian tubes. Permanently infertile.

The pregnancy was fake.

Naturally, carrying a son was also fake.

I put away my phone and turned to go downstairs.

"Thanks."

Adrian called out behind me.

"There's a ransomware virus going around in the industry lately. Several major companies have been hit."

"I'm not asking you to help Ethan."

"I'm reminding you that this is exactly what he needs right now. You're holding another card."

I didn't stop, waving back at him over my shoulder.

"Got it. Let him deal with it."

Seeing that Emma had recovered well, I took her back to the villa.

That was the home we'd lived in for six years.

As soon as I walked in, I saw the entryway piled with packing boxes.

Several movers were carrying things out, and Mia stood in the center of the living room directing them.

"Don't want that sofa, it's too old."

"Take down the curtains too. Replace them with blackout ones."

She had completely taken on the role of mistress of the house.

Seeing me, she raised an eyebrow.

"Sorry, I thought this old furniture was an eyesore, so I had people deal with it first."

I ignored her and walked straight to the children's room.

The room was empty. Emma's little bed, bookshelf, and toys were all gone.

Even the drawings Emma had made on the walls had been painted over with stark white paint.

Emma stood frozen in the doorway, her little hand clutching my clothes tightly.

"Mommy, where are my drawings?"

Mia walked over and leaned against the doorframe.

"Those messy scribbles were too dirty, so I had them painted over."

"This will be the nursery from now on. Of course it needs to be clean."

I turned around and looked at her.

"Does Ethan know you're doing this?"

Mia laughed lightly.

"Mr. Carter said from now on, I'm in charge of this house."

"Besides, they're just some broken drawings. What's the big deal?"

Before she finished speaking, the sound of brakes came from the doorway.

Ethan strode in, his expression dark.

Seeing the chaos inside, he frowned.

"What's going on?"

Mia put on a wronged expression and approached him.

"Ethan, I wanted to make the house warm and welcoming for our baby. Ms. Hayes doesn't seem too happy..."

Ethan's eyes showed impatience.

"Sophia, since you're leaving anyway, don't make a fuss over such small things."

"I'll have someone buy Emma a new set of art supplies later."

I looked at these two people, suddenly feeling that even the air in this villa had become foul.

"No need."

I crouched down and picked up Emma.

"We don't need charity."

"As for this house, keep it."

I turned with Emma and walked away.

Passing through the entryway, I saw a photo album on top of one of the packing boxes.

It was Emma's growth record from the past five years. I'd taken every single photo myself.

Now it had been thrown there.

I reached out and took the album, dusting it off.

Ethan called out behind me.

"Next Monday morning, courthouse to get the certificate. Don't be late."

I didn't turn around or stop.

I carried my child out through the villa's front door.

Behind me came Mia's saccharine voice. "Ethan, what color should we get for that sofa?"

Sitting in the taxi, Emma buried her head in my arms, sobbing quietly.

"Mommy, does Daddy not want us anymore?"

I stroked her hair, watching the scenery fly past outside the window.

My phone vibrated.

It was a message from Adrian.

"Sophie, Carter Enterprises has a new system launch next week, at the hotel across from the courthouse."

"I heard Ethan invited all the investors. Planning a big celebration."

I replied with one word.

"Okay."

What a coincidence, everything was happening next week.

My and Emma's new life would also begin next week.

Twenty-ninth days later, Emma developed a fever.

The medicine didn't bring it down.

She was delirious, calling for her daddy.

I called Ethan.

The phone rang once before being hung up.

Immediately, an auto-reply text popped up: In a meeting, will contact you later.

I casually opened Ins.

Mia had posted something ten minutes ago.

They were drinking at a private club.

I silently liked it, then tossed my phone aside and put a cooling patch on Emma's forehead.

That night, I didn't sleep.

Near dawn, Adrian sent me a message.

"Someone bought Carter Enterprises' system vulnerabilities on the dark web."

"The attack is scheduled for when the Carter Enterprises launch begins."

If this were six years ago, I would have immediately opened my computer to help him patch the vulnerabilities.

But now, I only replied with one word.

"Fine."

Adrian replied instantly. "If you need me to coordinate anything, just say the word."

I took Emma's temperature. The fever had broken.

"That's Carter Enterprises' asset. Nothing to do with me."

At seven, I woke Emma and dressed her.

Today I had to go to the courthouse to finalize the divorce. No time to take her to kindergarten, so I had to bring her along.

Before leaving, Zach called.

"Ms. Hayes, Mr. Carter asked me to remind you not to forget your documents."

"He's having an early meeting at the company, then heading straight to the courthouse."

"Got it."

I hung up and checked the documents in my bag.

Everything accounted for.

I took Emma's hand.

Emma looked up at me. "Mommy, where are we going?"

"To take care of something important."

Outside the window, the city was just waking up. Rush hour traffic was jammed below the building.

I led my daughter into the crowd, not looking back at the high-rise behind us.