Two weeks after the divorce was finalized, I made a call I'd been putting off for years.
Theodore Valerius picked up on the second ring.
"Evelyn Lin." His voice was warm, surprised. "Marcus's girl. I heard what happened. Come see me tomorrow."
The next day, I walked into the Valerius Group headquarters. The lobby was all glass and steel, gleaming and cold. I caught my reflection in the polished marble—thinner, harder, a stranger in a borrowed suit. But I stood straighter. I wasn't here to beg. I was here to rebuild.
Theodore's office was on the top floor. When I walked in, he stood up from behind his massive desk, his face lined with age but his eyes still sharp. Standing beside him was a man I barely recognized—tall, steady, with dark eyes that studied me carefully.
"This is my son, Julian," Theodore said. "Julian, this is Marcus's daughter, Evelyn."
"Mr. Valerius," I said, extending my hand.
Julian stepped forward and shook it. His grip was firm, steady. "Evelyn. It's good to see you again. I remember you."
I blinked. "You do?"
"The girl who always insisted on being the general, not the princess," he said with a faint smile.
Despite everything, I felt a ghost of a smile tug at my lips. I'd forgotten that.
Theodore gestured for us to sit. He poured tea from a porcelain pot, the movements slow and deliberate. "Marcus saved this company when the banks wanted to bury us," he said quietly. "Without him, there would be no Valerius Group." He set down the pot and looked at Julian. "You take care of his daughter. That's not a request."
"I will," Julian said simply.
Theodore turned to me. "I want you to start as my Executive Assistant. Learn the business from the inside. Six months, maybe a year—if you're as sharp as your father, we'll talk about management."
Julian cleared his throat. "Dad, with all due respect, Evelyn has a business degree from—"
"Wharton," I said quietly. "But I haven't used it in five years. Mr. Valerius is right. I need to prove myself first."
Theodore's eyes crinkled with approval. "Smart girl. But let's make it three months. I'm not getting any younger."
In my first month, I went after the Derrick Industries contract.
Alistair had been chasing it for six months and gotten nowhere. I knew why. Derrick's CEO, Robert Chen, didn't care about flashy presentations or expensive dinners. He cared about execution speed and transparent pricing—two things Alistair's ego wouldn't allow him to offer.
I spent a week building a proposal. It was half the page count of Alistair's pitch and twice as detailed. No fluff. Just numbers, timelines, and a pricing structure that was aggressive but honest.
When I walked into the meeting, Robert looked at me over his reading glasses. "Ms. Lin. I heard you used to be married to Alistair Vanguard."
I set the proposal on his desk and met his gaze. "Used to be. That's why I know exactly where his blind spots are."
Robert's mouth twitched. He opened the folder.
Two weeks later, he signed.
When the news broke, the entire business circle in the city started buzzing. I was in my new office—small, but it had a window—when my assistant knocked and came in, grinning.
"Ms. Lin, the industry is buzzing. They're saying Alistair Vanguard wasted five years of untapped talent." She paused, then added with a barely concealed smirk, "Some are being less polite about it."
I didn't respond. I just turned back to my computer screen, where Alistair's company stock ticker was displayed in the corner.
Vanguard Group: Down 3.2% today.
I allowed myself a small, cold smile.
Julian appeared in my doorway a moment later, leaning against the frame. "Congratulations on the Derrick deal."
"Thank you."
"You made it look easy."
"It wasn't," I said, closing the stock window. "But I knew what I was doing."
He studied me for a moment, something unreadable in his expression. "Evelyn, if you need anything—resources, support, anything at all—you just say the word."
I looked up at him. For the first time in years, I felt like someone actually saw me. Not as a wife, not as a burden, but as someone capable.
"I will," I said. "Thank you, Julian."
He nodded and left.
I turned back to my screen and opened a new folder. Inside were files on Vanguard Group's upcoming projects, their investor reports, and a detailed breakdown of Alistair's business strategy.
I wasn't done. Not even close.
This was just the beginning.