The Hidden Empress Stripping Her Secrets After Divorce novel Chapter 1

The late autumn twilight bled across the sky, dyeing the rose garden outside The Lancaster Estate's floor-to-ceiling windows a brilliant crimson.

Evelyn Sullivan stood at the kitchen counter wearing an apron, her fingertips dusted with flour. The third-anniversary cake was finally finished. Its edges were decorated with light purple frosting and fresh rose petals—the ones she had painstakingly handpicked from the garden that morning, still damp with dew.

Her phone buzzed.

She wiped her hands and tapped the screen. It was a message from Christian Lancaster's assistant: "Mr. Lancaster has a transnational conference call tonight. Do not wait up for his dinner."

The brief, official tone was suffocating, every word exuding a chilling indifference.

Evelyn lowered her eyelashes, gently setting the phone back on the marble counter. How many times had she received a message like this over the past three years? She had lost count. The first time, she had been heartbroken. The second time, disappointed. The third, the fourth... until now, all that remained was a numb, suffocating tranquility.

"Mrs. Lancaster, these dishes..." Arthur, the seasoned butler, stood at the kitchen doorway, hesitating to speak.

Twelve dishes were already arranged on the dining table, all catered to Christian's exact preferences. Pan-seared sea bass, black truffle baked lobster, red wine braised beef cheeks... Every single dish was prepared with painstaking effort, just like every single day of the past three years.

"Let's wait a bit longer," Evelyn said, her voice soft. "Maybe the meeting will end early."

Arthur looked at her slender silhouette and sighed inwardly. The young madam was always like this—docile and quiet, like a rose blooming alone in the shadows, blossoming in isolation with no one to appreciate her beauty.

The antique clock on the wall struck seven.

Evelyn untied her apron and walked into the living room. The massive LCD television was broadcasting the financial news. She picked up the remote to turn it off, but her movements froze the very next second.

The screen cut to the VIP terminal of the international airport.

"Good evening, viewers. It is exactly seven o'clock. The person who just arrived at the international airport is none other than the internationally acclaimed ballet artist, Lyra Langford, returning after five years abroad! Surprisingly, she is holding the hand of a little boy, roughly three years old—"

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