His Secret Divorce: A Cruel Deception

Juliana Salazar POV:

The doctor' s words, "terminal," echoed in the sterile room, but it was the image of Dalton' s hand slipping into Debbra' s outside the glass pane that truly sealed my fate-and theirs. If I was dying, I would make sure they inherited everything, including a legacy of eternal shame.

I watched them through the one-way glass in the doctor's office. Dalton, my fiancé. Debbra, my best friend. They stood too close, her head resting on his shoulder. He stroked her arm, a gesture meant for me. My stomach churned, not just from the disease chewing away at me, but from the raw, ugly truth unfolding before my eyes.

It hurt more than any tumor.

My brother, Elwin, was there too. He leaned against Debbra, his back to me. He didn' t even look in my direction. Debbra had her arm wrapped around him, a picture of maternal comfort I had worked my entire life to provide. He looked at her like she was the only one who cared.

He looked at her with the love he once reserved for me.

My heart, already weakened, felt like it was tearing apart. Every single person I had sacrificed for, loved unconditionally, and built an empire to protect, was outside that room, betraying me. In that moment, I knew what I had to do. I would give them everything they wanted. And then I would make them wish they never wanted it.

The doctor cleared his throat. I turned, a forced smile on my face. "So, weeks, you said?" My voice didn't waver. It was a practiced calm, a CEO's calm. But inside, a blizzard raged.

He nodded, his eyes full of pity. "Yes, Juliana. The progression is rapid. The experimental treatment offers a slim chance, but it's highly aggressive, and frankly, risky." He paused, looking at me with a concern I hadn't seen from my own family in years. "Are you sure you want to pursue it?"

I thought of Dalton, of Debbra, of Elwin. My company, InnovateNext, a billion-dollar empire I' d built from nothing after our parents died, just so Elwin would never want for anything. My youth, my dreams, all poured into that single goal. And for what? For them to stand outside, plotting my demise, or at least, eagerly anticipating it?

No, I said, the word a whisper, yet firm. "I'm not pursuing it."

The doctor looked shocked. "Juliana, this is your only option. Without it, you know..."

I know, I cut him off, my gaze distant. "My decision is made. I will dedicate this treatment to someone else." My voice was flat, devoid of emotion. I was already a ghost, planning my final act.

I had loved Dalton since college. We built InnovateNext together, or rather, I built it, and he rode my coattails, basking in my success. I believed he loved me. I believed he respected my drive, my vision. I believed he was my rock.

How naive I had been.

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