Chapter 1

Emily stood in front of a floor-to-ceiling window. Her fingers hovered over the phone screen for three seconds before she finally called a number she hadn't called in three years. "Van… Vanessa?" Paul Winter's shocked voice sounded through the phone. "Am I dreaming?" "I'm coming back." Emily's voice was soft, though it seemed to shatter the silence. "Are you serious?" The coffee mug slipped out of Paul's hands, shattering onto the floor. His voice trembled in excitement. "That's amazing! Do you know how badly Victor has suppressed our law firm all these years? After you retired, he stole 20 prominent criminal cases from us! It's been going on for the past three years, and we can barely catch our breath! "These years, so many people are queueing up, waiting for you to take their cases. If news of your return to the industry gets out, the entire legal circle will be trembling!" Emily looked up and saw her reflection in the glass. Her long hair cascaded over her shoulders, and she was dressed in beige casual clothes. There were still some greasy stains left on her apron from preparing soup earlier that night. With the way Emily looked now, no one would have expected that she was the famous "Queen of the Courtroom", who used to cause her rivals to break down in court. "Oh, right. Over the past few years, did Victor find out who you are? He—" "He doesn't need to know anything. I've decided to divorce him," Emily interrupted Paul. "The next time we meet will be at court." After ending the call, Emily was about to return to her room when her phone suddenly buzzed. It was a message from Victor. "I had too much to drink with my clients. Pick me up." Emily stared at Victor's message for a long time. For the past three years of their marriage, every time he spoke to her, it was as if he was a superior giving orders to his subordinate. Finally, Emily arrived at a VIP private room at a nightclub. As soon as she was about to open the door, she heard a chorus of laughter inside. "Victor, you've won a few times in a row. No wonder you're known as the 'Undefeated Legend'! Is there anyone in this legal world you can't defeat? From what I see, everyone else is no match for you." "That's not true. Last time, there used to be someone called Vanessa who could stand her ground against him," someone said. "It's a shame she suddenly retired three years ago and disappeared without a trace. "She most likely got married. It's been three years, so she probably already has a kid or two now. She won't be coming back." Another man chuckled. "That's not impossible. Look, didn't Victor marry three years ago? Let's not even talk about him having children. "He stays at the law firm all day and refuses to go home. But now that we're talking about this, it's been three years. Are you still allergic to Emily?" "Why bother asking that? Victor hates how gentle and obedient Emily is as a wife. Back then, if she hadn't taken advantage of him being drunk and slept with him, he never would've married her. "Victor admires strong, independent women like Amelia Foster, who can be his equal. So many years have passed, yet he still can't forget her." Upon hearing the name "Amelia Foster", Emily's gaze darkened. She opened the door. The private room fell into pin-drop silence as everyone exchanged glances. But Emily ignored them. She swept a glance across the men before fixing her gaze on Victor, who was already tipsy. He sat on the couch with his eyes shut, resting. The dim lights in the private room cast shadows across his handsome face. Emily walked over and reached out to help Victor up. He draped his arm over her shoulder, causing her to stumble under his sudden weight. A sense of familiarity washed over Emily as Victor fell on top of her, his breath reeking of alcohol. For a moment, she was in a daze. The last time Victor was this close to her was on that ridiculous night three years ago. As soon as she shoved him into the backseat of her car, he suddenly grabbed her wrist and pulled her into his embrace. Immediately, Emily felt the warmth of his lips on hers, leaving her stunned. Aside from the accident that night, Victor never kissed her again throughout the past three years of marriag—until now. Suddenly, Emily heard Victor mumble a name. "Amelia…" So, he mistook her for someone else. Emily's heart ached as she gazed intensely at the man before her. "Do you really like her that much?" Victor did not respond. He only gripped the back of her head harder and kissed her fiercely. His fingers were tangled in her hair as if he wanted her to become a part of him. Victor's warm breath brushed across Emily's face. Behind her was the closed car door, so there was no way for her to escape. She could only close her eyes and let him kiss her. Once Victor pulled away, he remained tipsy as he whispered against her lips, "Don't leave me." Emily closed her eyes slowly. After some time, she took out a divorce agreement from her document folder and handed it to him. "If you don't want me to leave, sign this agreement." Victor fixed a drunken, hazy gaze on Emily. She knew very well who he saw as he looked at her. But in the end, he still signed the agreement. "Victor, once the one-month cooling-off period is over, we can get the divorce certificate. By then, we'll be free of each other." Emily chuckled self-mockingly to herself. She looked at the signed divorce agreement calmly in her hand. A whirlwind of thoughts surged through her mind. As the moonlight streamed through the car window, she suddenly remembered her first encounter with Victor. The first time Emily met Victor was during an interstate case. Back then, she had won a major case, and the defendant had lost miserably. As soon as she walked out of the courtroom, the defendant rushed toward her in a frenzy and gripped her throat hard. While Emily was suffocating, someone grabbed the defendant's wrist so hard that she thought it had snapped. "Trying to attack someone in front of the courthouse, eh? Do you want more charges held against you?" She heard a man's cool, sharp voice. Emily looked up and met his intense gaze. Her heart fluttered at that moment. Later, Emily found out that the man who defended her was Victor Smith, a rival she never met before in court. From that day onward, Emily often headed to Hillside for work trips. She had seen the way Victor worked in court, always leaving his opponents at a loss for words. She also watched him smoking while standing in front of a floor-to-ceiling window. Emily even intentionally dropped by the bars Victor frequented for his social events. Not once did he recognize her. Until that night, when she ran into him while he was drunk. He grabbed her wrist and asked hoarsely, "Why did you have to leave?" Back then, Emily didn't understand what Victor meant. Before she could even think about it, he was already kissing her hard. That night, they slept together. The next morning, Victor stared at the bloodstain on the bedsheet. He remained silent for a long time before saying, "I'll take responsibility. Let's get married." Emily nodded after a moment's hesitation. She even resigned from her job right away and hid her identity as Vanessa Green so she could marry him. Even after they were married, Victor remained as aloof as before. He rarely went home and never shared a bed with Emily again. Back then, Emily assumed that Victor was a naturally aloof man. She thought she could eventually melt his heart with her gentleness. Until one random day, Emily found a picture of Amelia in his study. In the photo, the latter wore a white dress and was standing on the edge of a bridge in Dambridge. Her smile was so bright that it hurt to even look at her. The words scribbled on the back of the photo pierced Emily's heart. "If I can't have you, it doesn't matter who I marry." Later, Emily found out that Amelia was Victor's first love, and the latter was a famous pianist. After graduation, Amelia chose to study abroad. That was why she broke up with Victor. So many years had passed, yet Victor never forgot about her. That night, Victor got completely wasted because he found out Amelia had a new lover overseas. During their three years of marriage, Emily saw Victor scowl at the birthday cake she personally made for him. She even watched him toss the dinner she had spent so much time preparing into the rubbish bin. When Victor found out that Amelia was returning to the country, he completely lost his composure and hurried off to the airport to pick her up. In the process, he dumped Emily, who was having her period, by the highway. At that moment, Emily had completely given up. She wasn't that pathetic to the point she would continue pursuing a man who never had her in his heart. Not to mention, Victor was already in love with Amelia. Since that was how things were, why shouldn't Emily become a renowned lawyer once again? She didn't mind stepping aside so Victor and Amelia could be together again. After shoving the divorce agreement into her bag, Emily drove home. Once she had settled Victor in his room, she began packing her luggage overnight. The next morning, Victor woke up with a hangover. The first thing he saw were boxes scattered all over the floor. He scowled before asking coldly, "What are you doing?"