Sunlight and Secrets in Maldives

1
My wife, Elena, bailed on our daughter’s Annual Spring Showcase, claiming a last-minute work emergency. She even insisted we skip it too.
Seeing the disappointment cloud my daughter Sophie’s face, I decided to take her myself.
The moment we stepped onto the school grounds, my blood ran cold. There, on the main stage, sat Elena. And next to her, nestled on a plush sofa like they owned the place, were her high school sweetheart, Adrian Vance, and his son. They looked for all the world like a perfect family of three.
Elena was holding a microphone, speaking eloquently about achieving the perfect work-life balance. Every so often, she’d glance at Adrian, sharing a private, knowing smile. The crowd of parents and students erupted in applause. The adoration fueled her, a smug satisfaction spreading across her face. Even the little boy beside her wore a look of arrogant pride.
Then came the Q&A. I shoved my way to the front and snatched a microphone from one of the ushers.
“Excuse me, Ms. Sterling,” I called out, my voice booming through the speakers. “I have a question. Since when did you have a son? And does your husband know about it?”
...
My words hung in the air, instantly replaced by a wave of angry whispers from the parents and students around me. Their gazes, sharp with disdain, cut right through me.
“Who is that guy? So rude.”
“He’s probably just some nobody, jealous of Elena’s husband. Trying to get her attention this way. She runs a billion-dollar company; it’s not surprising she has a few delusional stalkers trying to worm their way in.”
“Pathetic.”
On stage, a flicker of panic crossed Elena’s face when she saw me, but she masked it in an instant. Adrian, however, wasn’t so composed.
He put on a show of wounded indignation. “Elena, honey, what is he talking about?”
I ignored him completely, my eyes locked on Elena. “You haven’t answered my question, Ms. Sterling.”
She reflexively tucked a stray strand of hair behind her ear, then, in front of everyone, she took Adrian’s hand and squeezed it tight.
“This,” she declared, “is my answer.”
Adrian’s expression softened with emotion as he pulled her into a deeper embrace.
The crowd collectively gasped, “Awww!”
“This is true love, right in front of us! So brave!”
“Elena Sterling is an absolute icon. A powerhouse CEO who adores her husband and child. She’s perfect!”
Their glares toward me intensified, dripping with contempt.
“Yeah, that shut him up. Tried to stir up trouble and got put in his place.”
“Look at that loser. Does he really think he can compare to Elena’s husband? Everyone knows her husband holds a top position at Apex Holdings, that he’s her right-hand man. What a joke, comparing a titan like that to this… this nobody!”
Just then, my phone vibrated. A text from Elena.
“Ethan, don’t misunderstand. I promised Adrian I’d pretend to be Dylan’s mom for the day. He’s never had a mother, the poor thing. But you… you not only disobeyed me, you came here to publicly humiliate me. Stop this nonsense right now.”
A cold, bitter laugh escaped my lips. Elena always had a fiercely competitive streak. It’s why, after we married, I poured everything I had into supporting her career, making her the General Manager while I managed the real power behind the scenes. But now, it seemed she’d forgotten who was king and who was the pawn.
Apex Holdings was founded by my grandfather. I hold 75% of the shares.
My fingers flew across the screen, firing off messages to the heads of HR and Legal at Apex. Today, in front of this entire audience, I was going to strip her of that title.
My daughter, Sophie, couldn’t stand hearing them insult me. Her voice, though trembling, rang out with fury.
“What are you talking about! That’s my mom, Elena, on stage! My dad is her husband! That man is the other woman—I mean, the other man!”
The crowd burst into laughter, their mockery growing louder.
“Like father, like daughter. So young and already a little gold-digger. Truly rotten to the core!”
“Are you blind? Ms. Sterling is showing off her perfect family. How could they be fake?”
Suddenly, the boy from the stage, Dylan, stormed over to us. He glared at Sophie with pure malice. “Who are you calling a homewrecker? Are you and your dad that desperate to latch onto a rich family? Have you no shame!”
He raised his hand to strike her, but I caught his wrist in a vice grip. My gaze lifted past him, settling on Elena, who stood just a few feet away.
“Elena,” I said, my voice dangerously low. “I’m giving you one last chance. Are you going to tell them the truth?”

2
Elena’s brow furrowed. After a moment, her voice came out, cold as ice.
“I don’t know you, sir. I pride myself on my composure, but I will not tolerate you spreading these malicious lies about my husband and my son. Our corporate legal team doesn't take these things lightly.”
Sophie’s face crumpled in disbelief. “Mom, what are you saying? You don’t recognize Dad and me?”
A fresh wave of derisive laughter swept through the crowd.
“Give it up, little girl. You’re really committed to the act, huh? You should drag your pathetic father out of here before Ms. Sterling decides to really crush you. You common folk have no idea the power you’re messing with.”
Even Sophie’s own classmates started chiming in, their faces twisted with disgust.
“Sophie, you’re so gross. You always act so prim and proper, but you’re just trash underneath.”
Sophie grabbed Elena’s sleeve, her voice pleading.
“Mom, what’s wrong with you? Why are you saying you don’t know us?! Say something! Defend us! Didn’t you hear the horrible things they’re saying about Dad?”
Elena yanked her arm away, shoving Sophie so hard she stumbled backward, a look of raw betrayal on her face.
At the same time, Adrian intertwined his fingers with Elena’s, shooting me a triumphant, provocative smirk.
In that instant, I understood. Adrian knew everything. I immediately pulled my daughter close.
“Sophie, if she won’t claim you, then from this day forward, you don’t have to claim her either.”
As the words left my mouth, Elena’s brow twitched almost imperceptibly. A moment later, my phone buzzed again.
“Ethan, I already explained. I’m just being Dylan’s mom for one day. Can’t you have a little compassion? If I acknowledge you now, how are Adrian and Dylan supposed to face everyone? How can Dylan even show his face at school again? None of this would have happened if you hadn’t thrown this tantrum. You deserve every insult you get. Now take Sophie and go home and think about what you’ve done.”
A humorless smile touched my lips. It seems she’s been sitting in the General Manager’s chair for so long, she’s forgotten who granted her that power in the first place.
Just then, a teacher, acting as a mediator, hurried over, announcing that the showcase’s main event, the family fun run, was about to begin.
As we walked toward the athletic field, Adrian brushed past me, a smug grin plastered on his face.
“A kept man like you was always going to get dumped. Only a man with ambition, a man like me, is worthy of a successful entrepreneur like Elena. If you know what’s good for you, you’ll take your little brat and disappear.”
I scoffed. A man with ambition?
HR had already sent me his file. Adrian was a nobody Elena had fast-tracked into his position. He barely understood the company’s most basic operations. It was clear he knew I was Elena’s husband, but he had no idea I was the one who truly controlled Apex.
My legal and HR teams messaged to confirm they had drafted her termination papers and our divorce agreement. They were on their way.
I wasn’t leaving. I was going to stay and tear the masks off their hypocritical faces in front of everyone.
I would get justice for myself and for my daughter.
Elena and Adrian were escorted to the VIP viewing platform, where school administrators and fawning parents swarmed them with compliments. Elena held her chin high, basking in the glory, every inch of her radiating smug satisfaction.
Meanwhile, Sophie stood at the starting line. She forced a small smile in my direction, and I gave her a thumbs-up.
Then, in a flash, everything changed. Dylan suddenly darted onto Sophie’s lane and stuck out his leg. My daughter, caught completely off guard, pitched forward, slamming hard onto the track.
I sprinted toward her. Her face was contorted in agony, beads of cold sweat dotting her forehead. Her knees were a bloody mess of scraped skin and gravel. A sharp pain lanced through my own chest.
But the perpetrator, Dylan, was laughing, a triumphant look on his face.
“That’ll teach you and your pathetic dad to mess with us! Let’s see you try that again!”
Rage exploded in my chest. I was about to land a fist on his face when Elena threw herself in front of me, shielding him and Adrian.
“That’s enough!” she snapped. “It was just kids playing around. Are you, a grown man, really going to make a scene over this?”
My chest heaved with fury. “Playing around? Are you blind? Look at her! She’s in serious pain! That was a deliberate attack!”
Adrian just chuckled languidly. He pulled a thick wad of cash from his wallet and scattered the bills over Sophie’s injured body, his eyes fixed on me.
“This is what you two have been after all along, isn’t it? Money. Take this as compensation for her little scrape. Now get lost.”
The onlookers erupted in laughter, their eyes filled with scorn as they sided with Elena and Adrian.
“See? That’s what happens when you cross the powerful. You just have to suck it up and take it.”
“They started it, trying to pick a fight with the Sterlings. They got what they deserved. Serves them right if her legs are broken!”
“Her husband already paid you off! Now scram!”
The school nurse was tending to Sophie. My daughter’s eyes, filled with tears, searched for Elena, pleading for help. But Elena turned her head away.
The light in Sophie’s eyes dimmed. She reached for my hand.
“Dad,” she whispered, her voice thick with pain. “You were right. As of today, I don’t have a mother anymore.”

3
Hearing Sophie’s words, Elena’s brow furrowed again, but this time she shot me a look filled with blame.
My gaze swept past her, past Adrian, and landed on the sycophants who had cursed my daughter and me with such venom. I looked at them, one by one, and began to speak, my voice calm and clear.
“The Peterson family, aluminum alloys. The Clark family, concrete supply. The Miller family, organic food processing…”
As I named them, their smug expressions faltered, replaced by stunned confusion. I was right about every single one. Apex Holdings had its hands in countless industries, and all of them relied on my company to survive.
“As of today,” I announced, my voice ringing with authority, “Apex Holdings is terminating all contracts with your businesses.”
They stared, first in disbelief, then they burst out laughing, turning to Elena.
“Look at this guy! He’s completely lost it. First, he claims to be your husband, and now he’s pretending he can sever our contracts on behalf of Apex.”
“Who the hell do you think you are? Ms. Sterling hasn’t said a word! Call a damn ambulance; this guy needs a psych ward!”
Elena’s expression darkened, her face a thundercloud. She stepped closer, hissing under her breath.
“Ethan, my position at Apex is secure. What do you think you can possibly do? Do you really think anyone still listens to you? Get out of here. Now.”
I gave her a long, meaningful look but didn't answer. Instead, I turned back to the laughing crowd and to Adrian.
“There’s one thing you all seem to have misunderstood. It’s true that Elena is the General Manager of Apex Holdings. But I am the one who calls the shots.”
Adrian stared, then let out a teary-eyed laugh. “He really is insane.”
“I’ve been working at Apex for a while now,” he declared, puffing out his chest. “My wife is the GM! I’ve never seen this lunatic before in my life. He probably doesn’t even know which way the front doors of the building face!”
I simply smiled. My people were almost here.
Adrian’s security clearance only got him as high as the 10th floor. He’d never set foot on the 35th, where my office was.
The crowd roared with laughter, all except Elena. The look she gave me now was pure venom.
I knew why. She was terrified.
Suddenly, Sophie’s phone rang. She answered it, and a strangled scream tore from her throat.
On speaker, a distorted voice snarled, “You little trash, learning to be a gold-digger from your deadbeat dad. So shameless…”
I snatched the phone and hung up, realizing with a jolt that someone had posted today’s events online. And they hadn't just posted it—they had twisted the story, smearing me and my daughter with vicious lies, even doxxing her by publishing her phone number and school information.
My eyes shot to Adrian. He was smirking at me, his expression a mask of pure malice. He mouthed the words:
“A little gift. Do you like it?”
Sophie was trembling uncontrollably as her phone lit up again and again with hateful calls and notifications. The parents who were so eager to impress Elena now closed in on us, a tight circle of hate, their words like daggers.
“See? The public knows the truth! You two belong in the gutter!”
“Impersonating an Apex executive? Get ready to be sued into bankruptcy! Apex’s legal department is legendary. You won’t even have a house left to cry in!”
Someone sneered, “Oh, I’m sure he’ll find somewhere to cry. A pretty boy like him can always find some rich old lady’s bed to crawl into!”
Just then, two sleek, black Escalades roared to a stop at the school entrance. Someone with a sharp eye yelled out.
“That’s the Apex Holdings logo! The executives are here!”
The sycophants preened, puffing their chests out as if they shared in the glory. They advanced on me and Sophie, their mouths twisting into cruel smiles.
“It’s over for you two now! Ms. Sterling wasn’t just making empty threats. This is the real deal! You’re going to lose everything!”
One man held up his phone, his eyes gleaming with a predatory light as he live-streamed.
“Hey everyone, it’s the follow-up to the viral story about the gold-digging loser versus the CEO! Hit that follow button; you’re not going to want to miss this! Watch a titan of industry absolutely destroy this pathetic nobody!”
Adrian shot Elena a look of adoration, his face glowing with a mixture of surprise and delight. When he looked back at me, his arrogance was boundless. His son, Dylan, stood beside him, chin held high in triumph.

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