A Million-Dollar Insult

Staring at the darkened screen of her phone, Stella let out a slow, steady breath. The chill from that brief phone call seemed to linger in the warm suburban air, freezing the sunlight against her skin.

Harper crossed her arms, her face flushing with anger the moment she heard the news. "You are divorced! Why on earth do you still talk to her?"

Stella tucked the phone back into her pocket, turning to face her furious friend. "Sylvia has never been willing to talk to me much. The fact that she called in person means this is not a casual chat. There must be an incredibly important, likely dangerous reason behind this. I know full well she would not reach out otherwise. We should meet up with her."

Despite her intense frustration, Harper drove them straight to the upscale Eastgate Café. Stella walked through the gleaming glass doors right on time. The rich scent of roasted coffee beans filled the air, but Stella’s attention immediately zeroed in on a private corner booth. Sylvia was already sitting there. The older woman wore her usual cold, intensely disdainful demeanor, her posture rigid and unyielding.

Sylvia lowered her porcelain cup to the saucer with a soft, dismissive clink. She locked eyes with her former daughter-in-law. "Sit down."

It was a sharp command. She effortlessly projected her deeply ingrained view of Stella as a lowly, obedient animal. In the painful past, Stella would have blindly done whatever she was told, shrinking under the weight of that icy glare. But she no longer obeyed her. Standing her ground with her chin held high, Stella kept a respectful but firm distance from the table.

"Mrs. Vance, let's skip the pleasantries. Just tell me what you want," Stella said lightly.

Sylvia’s eye twitched at the blatant disrespect. A muscle feathered in her jaw, but she refused to engage in a shouting match in public. Instead, she gestured lazily to the impeccably dressed man sitting quietly beside her. "This is my lawyer, Mr. Arthur Briggs."

Arthur stood up, smoothing his tailored suit jacket before getting straight to the point. "Miss Mercer, since you and Mr. Vance are divorced, we must finalize the legalities regarding child support and custody."

Stella did not hesitate for a single second. "The child? She legally belongs to me. Of course, I am the one raising her."

Sylvia sneered, her voice raising a fraction as her composure slipped. "Do not forget that the child is my blood granddaughter!"

Stella actually laughed out loud at the sheer hypocrisy of the statement. The sound cut through the quiet hum of the café. "Mrs. Vance, it is rare for you to remember that you even have a granddaughter. Since May was born, you treated her like a mere pet in your home. You have never, not even once, bothered to hold her. Do not pretend to care now."

Furious at the blatant call-out but desperately maintaining her high-minded, elite facade, Sylvia slammed her hand flat on the glass table. "May is the descendant of the Vance family! She will stay permanently in the Vance Residence!"

"I am the closest person to her. You can ask May herself to see if she wants to live with you or with me," Stella countered smoothly.

"The child is only three years old. Her opinion is irrelevant," Sylvia shot back, waving a dismissive hand.

Arthur cleared his throat, stepping in before the argument escalated further. He smoothly slid a crisp check across the glass table. "Considering the significant physical effort of your pregnancy and childbirth, Miss Mercer, Mrs. Vance can generously give you a fee as compensation. I strongly advise you to accept it quietly. Otherwise, we go straight to court. With your current financial resources, there is zero chance of winning a custody battle against the Vances."

Stella looked down at the paper resting near her hand. One million dollars. A bitter laugh escaped her lips as she stared at the number. They were treating her like a cheap surrogate. It was a pathetic attempt to purchase her daughter and humiliate her into submission.

Before Stella could formulate a response, the café doors swung open. Harper stormed into the quiet space, waving her glowing phone high in the air.

"Who exactly said Stell has no financial resources?" Harper demanded loudly, marching right up to their booth. She stood next to Stella, her eyes blazing with triumph. "Nova Media has officially invested two hundred million dollars to set up an irrevocable growth fund exclusively for May. All her future expenses will come from here. The two hundred million will comprehensively support her education and life until she is eighteen!"

Arthur froze, his hand hovering awkwardly over his leather briefcase. Shock shattered Sylvia's carefully maintained, indifferent look. Her jaw literally dropped as she stared blankly at Harper.

Harper smirked, crossing her arms in victory. "Now Stell has massive financial backing to support May. She spends the most time and effort raising her, and May relies on her the most. Tell me, Mr. Briggs, do you still think there is zero chance of winning a court case?"

Arthur shook his head with a bitter, defeated face. The deep maternal bond combined with a two hundred million dollar irrevocable fund practically guaranteed a swift legal victory for Stella. Any judge would rule in her favor. Without saying a word, the lawyer quietly began packing up his briefcase.

Uninterested in staying a second longer to admire Sylvia's utter defeat, Stella grabbed Harper’s hand. The two women turned on their heels and walked out of the café together.

Back at the sprawling Vance Residence, the atmosphere was suffocating. Sylvia paced the lavish living room with her phone pressed to her ear. She aggressively verified the two hundred million dollar fund with her private bankers. When they confirmed the massive deposit was real and legally binding, the remaining cracks in her dignified facade finally broke. She collapsed onto the plush velvet sofa, massaging her throbbing temples.

Standing by the large bay window, Clara was green with jealousy. She stomped her high heels irritably on the hardwood floor, the sharp clicking echoing through the tense room.

"What kind of shit luck does Stella have? How can she be targeted by so many top-tier, wealthy men as soon as she gets divorced?" Clara shrieked, gripping the heavy silk curtains until her knuckles turned white.

Her mind spiraled with envy. Between Nolan's public one hundred million dollar diamond tiara at the auction and now Nova Media's elusive boss allegedly spending two hundred million on May, the wealth thrown at Stella was sickening. Clara felt humiliatingly overshadowed by the lowly woman she once openly despised. She was the pristine daughter of the elite Vance family, yet the social spotlight was now focused on a divorced single mother.

Desperate to ruin her former sister-in-law once and for all, Clara pulled out her phone and dialed her primary think tank, Megan Farley. She paced the length of the room while listening to the ringing tone.

"Hurry up and help me! Find a brutal way to get rid of that shameless Stella!" Clara demanded into the phone the second the call connected.

She quickly explained the supposed scandalous affair. In Clara's mind, there was no other logical explanation for such an astronomical sum of money. Stella had to be sleeping with the boss of Nova Media to secure a two hundred million dollar fund for her kid.

A cruel, undeniable joy laced Megan’s voice through the receiver. "This is really interesting. As far as I know from my sources, the owner of Nova Media got married four years ago. So, Stella is now officially the homewrecker."

Clara stopped dead in her tracks. The extreme irritability twisting her stomach was instantly swept away. It was replaced by a sinister, brilliant new plan popping directly into her mind. A wicked, triumphant smile spread across her face.

"He's married? Megan, do me a massive favor..."