Chapter 33 Chapter 33
Liana's POV
I left Serena at that café table thesame way I had left my past. The wind had picked up by the time I made it to my driveway, tugging on the hem of my coat as if it wanted me to stay. But nothing could make me do that anymore. Not fear. Not regret. And certainly not Dominic.
My keys jangled as I pushed open the front door, jamming it back into the cozy warmth of home. Laughter bubbled up, a clinking, gurgling sound that wrapped around my heart like a memory.
I kicked off my heels and padded down the hallway, following the sound to the den.
Cam was cross-legged on the carpet, a pile of Scrabble tiles beside her like gold. Her curls bounced as she stared intently at the board, tiny pink tongue lolling out in sheer determination. My mother sat opposite her, she had her favorite robe around her abs her eyes glowed as she watched Cam sort through the tiles. The sight itself was enough to soften something inside of me. For all the storm that raged outside, this moment was left serene. Untouched.
"Mommy!" Cam looked up and grinned, scrambling to her feet and running towards me. I knelt down and took her up in my arms, holding her tight as she wrapped her arms around my neck.
"There's my little champion," I whispered, kissing her cheek.
"We're on round three," she bragged. "I already won once from Grandma."
"That's because I let her win once," my mom yelled from the couch, grinning at me.
I laughed and scooped up Cam and brought her to the sofa, sitting down with them with the board game sitting beside us.
"You're in a better mood than you were when you left," my mom said, raising an eyebrow. "Something happen?"
I couldn't hold back the smile on my lips. "You could say that."
"Good news?"
"The best kind."
She set her mug down. "Do I want to know what good news gives you that look on your face?"
I looked at her, catching her eyes for an instant. "Let's just say my enemies are finally going to pay for all they did."
My mother's eyebrows shot up. "Dominic?"
I didn't answer directly. I pushed forward, grabbed some Scrabble tiles, and wrote justice on the board.
She raised an eyebrow. "Should I be concerned?"
"No, nothing illegal." I said. "But you should have your phone handy."
"Liana…"
"Don't worry, Mama. You'll find out soon enough."
We had a couple more rounds, laughter coursing through the quiet evening. I let myself enjoy it. Cam's effervescent small talk, my mom's playful teasing, the manner in which my home was now a refuge again. It had taken years to build this serenity, each block cemented with hesitant care. But now I was ready to guard it with fire.
After Cam finally started yawning and rubbing her eyes, I put her to bed. She drifted off to sleep clutching her small stuffed bunny, the one she had named Courage—ironically the same name I was forced to hunt for every single day since leaving Dominic.
I gave her a final kiss on her forehead and then proceeded to my office, shutting the door softly behind me. The second it snapped shut, the switch happened.
Heat out. Steel in.
I walked over to my desk and pulled the briefcase Serena had shoved across the café table. I hadn't opened it since I got home, but I already know what is in it so no need to rush.
Evidence, evidence of all the things I knee, the ones I'd long been suspecting and more.
Dominic's signature was plastered everywhere on the illegitimate transfers, fake acquisition documents, and secret shareholder memorandums that he'd fabricated. He wasn't only a heaet breaker, was a law breaker. He'd broken the law. Repeatedly.
And for dessert? I had the prenup. Signed, legally binded. I grabbed my phone and scrolled to Jonathan's number and hit call.
It rang once.
"Walker & Stein."
"It's Liana Davids. Get me Jonathan."
silence followed, then one ring. "Liana," Jonathan drawled, his voice still half-asleep. "What time is it? It's nearly midnight. What do you want?"
"I need you awake."
His voice hardened. "What is it?"
"I've got everything. Everything we need. Bank statements. Emails. Internal memos. Transfers he made in my name, without my knowledge. Millions of dollars stolen from joint holdings, passed through shell companies while we were married and evidence of some of my ideas he stole and sold in his name."
"Jesus, Liana" Jonathan growled. “How did you pull that off.”
“That isn't the focus, John. I've got the prenup he signed. He told me he was willing to walk away with what was his and take what was mine. But he didn't. He stole from me. He looked me in my face with a bright smile and stiole from me."
"Do you want to file tomorrow? We can start the suit…"
"I'm not waiting for a courtroom to decide this," I interrupted. "The first shot is public."
"Public?"
"I'd like the press to see that prenup. I'd like the world to see precisely who Dominic Smith is. Not the man he pays someone to make him out to be in boardrooms or on the cover of Vogue. The liar. The thief. The fraud."
"I need to add in PR, media law, possibly even crisis management."
"Do it. I'll send you copies of all this in an hour."
"Liana…" His voice dropped. "You sure you're ready for this route? The press won't be kind."
"I'm not asking for kindness," I answered starkly. "I'm asking for blood."
I paused, taking deep breaths, heart calm. "This is war. And I've been too quiet for too long."
There was a moment of silence before Owen said, "Then let's get to work."
I hung up the phone and stared down at the folder.
Dominic's signature burned into my eyes. Arrogant. Careless. Final.
I grabbed a pen, signed my name next to his on the disclosure authorization, and snapped a picture of it to send to Jonathan. Then I stood up and moved to the window.
The city lights glimmered in the distance like quiet witnesses. Out there, somewhere, Dominic probably thought that he'd left it all behind. I am sure he would think that I'd protect his name to protect myself. But he has no idea what's coming. I was once broken, but now, I am healed and I am going after him.
Suddenly, my phone flashed on my desk again. It was a text from Jonathan.
"Are you sure you're ready for this?"
I looked at the documents beside Cam's photo pinned by my desk and with one final resolution, I answered.
"I was born ready."