Chapter 7

Samuel's expression was stormy when he hung up. Julie closed her eyes tiredly and said, "You shouldn't answer my calls without my consent." Realizing that Julie was awake, Samuel rushed over to her bedside and sat down. He grabbed her hand, panic etched in every line of his face. "Julie, you're awake! Thank God! Do you have any idea how much blood you lost? I thought I was going to go crazy from how worried I was." Julie stared at Samuel icily and didn't say a word. Taking in her reaction, Samuel asked guiltily, "Julie, are you angry at me? Don't be angry. It's not as if I didn't want to save you. I just couldn't see you at all from where I was. "I only realized you were there after I saved Cindy. I swear my heart was breaking at the time. If I had known you were there, I would have saved you first!" Julie suddenly realized that she could no longer tell if Samuel was telling her the truth or lying to her. It was such a terrible realization. They had shared a bed for five years. Samuel was supposed to be the person closest to her, the person she could trust the most. However, when she looked at him now, all she saw was a stranger. She had loved Samuel deeply once, but her image of him had been ruined and could no longer be restored to what it once was. "I'm tired," Julie muttered. She closed her eyes again. She wasn't bothered enough to spare Samuel another glance. It was obvious that Samuel had more to say, but after seeing Julie close her eyes, he could only sigh lightly. "Rest up. I need to go back to the company to handle some business. I'll come back to your side soon." Soon after Samuel left, Julie received yet another video from Cynthia that was clearly meant to provoke her. In the video, Cynthia was clinging to Samuel's arm. Her face was glowing with joy as she asked, "Sam, are you really going to leave all of the Lloyd family's assets to Luke and Anna?" "That's right," Samuel answered in a low voice. "I've already told my lawyer to prepare the documents. I'll sign the papers in front of all the guests and media during the banquet. I'll also publicly announce that Luke and Anna are the sole heirs of my assets. "Luke will inherit Lloyd Corporation, while Anna will inherit more than half of my properties. She'll also inherit all the precious jewelry that belongs to my mother and Julie currently." Each piece of jewelry was worth tens of millions of dollars. If one were to calculate their total worth, they would be worth a fortune. Cynthia couldn't suppress the gleeful expression that bloomed on her face. She quickly schooled her features before asking, "Will Julie agree to that? Luke and Anna aren't her biological children, after all. What if she gets pregnant and has a child in the future?" "Julie will never have a child," Samuel declared, his tone firm. "Luke and Anna will be her only children. She has no other option. I won't allow her to give birth to any other children. She will have to raise Luke and Anna as if they're her own flesh and blood. "Cindy, I can't marry you, and I can't give you my entire heart. But I can promise you that all of my wealth will belong to our children." Samuel grabbed Cynthia's hand as he made his promise. "Julie has my heart, but you and our children will have all of my assets." The video ended there. Julie gripped her phone tightly. She was exerting so much force that her knuckles had turned white. Not only did Samuel remove her uterus, but he was also planning to force her to raise his bastard children with another woman. So, this was Samuel's so-called "love" for her. Julie breathed in deeply before calling her divorce lawyer. "Have you prepared the divorce agreement? I want you to send it to Samuel now. He's hosting a banquet, and he's planning to announce to everyone that the Lloyd family's assets will be inherited by that pair of illegitimate children. "It should be simple enough for you to find out where the banquet is being hosted. I want you to rush over there now. You have to ensure that he signs the divorce agreement before he makes his announcement. "He can give his half of the assets to whoever he wants. As for my half of the assets, I'd rather dump them into the ocean than let those two children have them!" After Julie disconnected the call, she received a message from the professional disappearing-service group. "Ms. Stamford, all the preparations have been completed. You can leave any time you want." A smile stretched across Julie's tired face. She sent the group her location. It didn't even take 30 minutes for the group to send a few people to pick her up. With the disappearing-service group accompanying her, Julie boarded the plane that would fly her out of the country. Before the plane took off, she sent Samuel all the videos that Cynthia had sent to her. Her final message to him read, "No need to apologize. I won't forgive you." She tossed her phone into the trash after sending the message. She then resolutely boarded the plane. … Meanwhile, the Lloyd family's banquet was officially underway. It was an extravagant and luxurious affair. Nearly everyone in the upper-class society was in attendance. A large number of reporters had also shown up, equipped with recording cameras. They were waiting for Samuel to make his big announcement. "I'd like to thank everyone here for making time to attend Lloyd Corporation's banquet," Samuel said in a low voice. "I invited everyone here because I have an important announcement to make. "I'm sure that some of the media have already caught wind of what I'm about to say. Some time ago, my wife, Julie, and I adopted a pair of fraternal twins. I've always believed that adopted children are no different from my own flesh and blood. "I'm here today to announce to the media and the whole world that all of the assets that belong to Lloyd Corporation will be transferred to—" Before Samuel could finish his sentence, Julie's lawyer darted forward and yelled, "Mr. Lloyd! I am Ms. Julie Stamford's divorce lawyer. Your wife has asked me to inform you that she is divorcing you. This is the divorce agreement. Please sign it!"