The Betrayed Mafia Wife Takes Bloody Revenge Chapter 09
The Woman Everyone Underestimated
The Cole board met on Monday.
There were twelve seats.
Eleven men.
And me.
Rafe’s chair remained empty.
One of the older members looked at it.
Then at me.
“You intend to sit there?”
“Yes.”
“You understand what that chair means?”
“Better than you think.”
A few men shifted.
The legitimate side of Cole Holdings had grown beyond anything Rafe’s father imagined.
Hotels.
Warehouses.
Import companies.
Security contracts.
Real estate.
People liked to pretend the family’s old reputation had nothing to do with it.
People also liked to pretend I had nothing to do with the growth.
Both lies had been useful.
I opened my laptop.
“Cole Logistics is bleeding cash through three redundant vendors.”
I pushed a report across the table.
“Belladonna Hospitality has been paying twenty-two percent above market rate for security.”
Another folder.
“And two senior managers have been routing contracts to companies owned by their relatives.”
Silence.
A board member cleared his throat.
“How long have you known?”
“Three months.”
“And Rafe?”
“I told him.”
“What did he say?”
I looked at the empty chair.
“He told me not to worry my pretty head about it.”
Nobody laughed.
I continued.
“We terminate the contracts.”
“We consolidate logistics.”
“We sell the underperforming property in Miami.”
“And we appoint an independent controller.”
One man frowned.
“You’re moving fast.”
“I’ve been waiting seven years.”
That ended the argument.
After the meeting, Thomas stayed behind.
“You enjoyed that.”
“A little.”
He smiled.
Then handed me a sealed envelope.
“What is it?”
“Found in Rafe’s home office.”
I opened it.
DIVORCE SETTLEMENT AGREEMENT.
My stomach tightened.
The document was dated two months earlier.
Under the proposed terms, almost all major assets would remain under Rafe’s control.
My access to company records would end immediately.
I would receive a modest lump sum.
Nothing more.
At the bottom was a note in Rafe’s handwriting.
IF ELENA BECOMES DIFFICULT, USE THIS VERSION.
I stared at the sentence.
Difficult.
That was what he had called women who said no.
I thought of every time he laughed and said:
“You’re so easy, Elena.”
Every time he kissed my forehead after humiliating me.
Every time he said:
“You’d never leave.”
Thomas looked uncomfortable.
“I’m sorry.”
I folded the paper.
For years, I had believed Rafe refused to divorce me because some part of him still loved me.
Now I understood.
He kept me because I was useful.
Quiet.
Loyal.
And cheap.
The moment I stopped being convenient, he had planned to strip me of everything I helped build.
I walked to the shredder.
Fed the agreement into it.
Watched his plan disappear into thin white strips.
Thomas said nothing.
When the machine stopped, I looked at him.
“Move tomorrow’s meeting to nine.”
“You’re working?”
“Yes.”
“You just found out your husband planned to divorce you.”
I picked up the next file.
“He’s dead.”
“I’m not.”