Part 3Silent Snowfall

The day I discovered Kane's affair was a day like any other.

I went to find him at one of his clubs, carrying his stomach medication.

But in his office, I found him tangled with the new lounge singer, their clothes in disarray.

In that instant, I felt like I had been encased in ice. I stood frozen, unable to utter a single word. Helplessness, confusion, betrayal… the emotions washed over me like a flood of ice water.

Kane, however, was unnervingly calm.

He slowly straightened his clothes and moved to shield Chloe behind him.

"I was going to tell you in a few days, but since you've seen it, there's no point in hiding it."

"Publicly, you'll still be my wife. Privately, Chloe will have the same status as you. There will be no distinction."

I watched him gently drape his suit jacket over Chloe's shoulders.

I fought back the bile rising in my throat. "Kane, you promised you would only love me. You said you would be good to me for the rest of our lives. Have you forgotten all of that?"

I thought that after everything we'd been through, even if he cheated, there would still be some affection left for me.

But his face was a mask of impatience. "Clara, don't bring up the past. I was young then, I didn't know what love was. I mistook gratitude for love. It wasn't until I met Chloe that I understood. Real love shouldn't be held hostage by a debt."

He said it with such finality.

In that moment, all my sanity burned away.

I lunged at him like a madwoman, pounding on his chest, my voice raw as I screamed at him, asking him where this left my pride, my position. Was our history worth less than some singer?

Kane just stood there calmly, letting me vent.

It was only when I cursed them, calling them a cheating scumbag and a whore, that his eyes turned to ice. "Enough! You can insult me, but I won't let you talk about Chloe like that. She is the only woman I've ever truly loved."

"And what about me?"

His gaze fell on my pale face. He paused, then said flatly, "Li, you were just a suitable wife."

In that one moment, I understood everything.

When his position was unstable, many of his men didn't respect him. Being with me was a way to use my parents' influence to win them over. All those years of doting on me, putting me on a pedestal—it was all an act to make his crew believe he was a loyal, honorable man, someone worth following.

The mask was off. The coldness in Kane's eyes was like a row of rusty steel needles, stabbing into my heart and leaving it to bleed.

My great love story had been nothing more than a calculated move in his long game.