The Ex-Wife They Begged To Keep - Chapter 9: Chapter 9

Serena looked at Leon's tiny fists flailing in the air. She pushed him back, and he lost his balance, falling to the floor and scraping his face.
A bright red mark instantly appeared on his soft cheek. He froze, as if he couldn't believe Serena had really done that to him.
Eliza rushed over and scooped Leon into her arms, gently stroking his scraped cheek with visible distress. "Mrs. Powell, how could you treat your own child like this?"
"I was disciplining him. He's already twisting right and wrong at his age—what do you think he'll be like when he's older?" Serena looked down at Eliza. "And who are you to question how I raise my son?"
With that, Serena turned and walked away, ignoring Leon's cries behind her.
By evening, Victor came home and immediately noticed the red mark on Leon's face. His temper flared. "What happened? Who did this?"
Eliza gave a small shake of her head. "It's nothing, Vic. I accidentally hurt Leon."
Leon burst into tears and ran into Victor's arms. "No, Daddy, it was that wretch. It was Mommy."
Victor pulled him in close, gently brushing his fingers over Leon's swollen cheek. "Don't cry, Leon. I'm here. I will protect you. Let's not talk to Mommy anymore, okay?"
"Daddy, Mommy's a wretch. I hate her."
"Be good, Leon. Don't cry. Why don't you go rest in your room for a bit?"
Leon shook his head, clinging tightly to Victor. "I don't want to. Daddy, I'm scared. I don't want to be alone."
Eliza said softly, "Leon, Ollie's in your room waiting for you. He brought you new toys. Why don't you go play with him?"
Leon sniffled, his eyes still full of tears as he looked at Eliza. "B-but I'm scared."
"It's okay, sweetie. I'm right here with you. Let's go find Ollie and play together, okay?" Eliza coaxed gently.
Leon hesitated for a moment, then finally gave a small nod. "Okay."
After sending Leon back to his room, Victor pulled out his phone and dialed Kevin.
"Hello, Mr. Powell, how can I help you?" Kevin asked.
"I want Serena's current address. I expect it in ten minutes," Victor ordered.
"Yes, Mr. Powell. I'll take care of it right away," Kevin replied. He was quick. Within ten minutes, Serena's address was sent to Victor's phone.
Victor, fuming, started the car. He slammed the gas pedal, and the black sedan sped off.
Serena was living in a luxury apartment complex. Victor stormed up to her door and banged on it hard. "Serena, open the damn door. Who gave you the right to hurt Leon? How could you be so cruel?"
It took a while before the door slowly opened. Serena stood there in a silk robe, her hair loose over her shoulders. "It's late, Mr. Powell. What do you want?"
Victor snapped, "Serena, what happened to Leon's face? You really did that to your own child? What kind of mother would do that?"
"Leon is my son. I have every right to discipline him."
"Discipline? Have you seen what you did to his face? Do you know how scared he is? He's just a kid."
"He's scared? That kid's got quite the nerve. If I don't teach him a lesson now, who's going to handle him later?"
Victor was shaking with rage. He pointed straight at her. "You're out of your damn mind. You don't deserve to be a mother."
Serena felt like she'd plunged into an icy abyss. She thought, 'I don't deserve to be a mother? I've spent all these years pouring everything into Victor and Leon.
'In the end, I'm not even worth as much as some outsider. And now Victor's telling me I'm not fit to be a mother?'
Her eyes burned, but her voice stayed cold. "Victor, I'm not going to argue with you. Leave now, or I'll call the police."
"Go ahead. You think I'm scared of you? I'd love to see what they say when they get here," Victor sneered.
Seeing this, Serena steeled herself, pulled out her phone, and called the police. "Hello, I'd like to report someone for trespassing and verbal threats," she said on the phone.
Victor froze. He hadn't expected Serena to actually call the cops. "Serena, are you insane? You seriously called the police on me?"
"You came to my place yelling at me. Why shouldn't I call the police?" Serena shot back.
Before long, the sound of sirens grew louder, and two officers walked in.
"What's going on here?" one of them asked.
Serena pointed at Victor. "Officer, this man broke into my home without permission and threatened me."
"Sir, we'll need you to come with us to the station," the officer said with a frown, looking at Victor.
Victor gave Serena a cold glance but said nothing as he followed them out.
"Ma'am, you're the one who placed the call, correct? We'll need you to come with us as well," the other officer remarked.
At the station, Victor and Serena sat on cold metal chairs, waiting to be questioned.
"Name?" one of the officers asked.
"Victor Powell," Victor replied.
"Serena Powell," Serena answered.
"Tell us what happened," the officer said.
"He showed up at my place without permission and started verbally attacking me," Serena hurriedly spoke, her gaze calm and frosty, like a winter storm.
"Is that true?" The officer looked at Victor.
"There's been a misunderstanding, officer." Victor rubbed his temple, trying to sound composed. "I'm her husband. We just had a bit of an argument."
Serena pulled a document from her bag and tossed it onto the table. "Mr. Powell, we're already divorced. From now on, please stop harassing me."
Victor thought, 'Already divorced?' He snapped his head up and grabbed the paper. The black-and-white print was crystal clear, and at the bottom was unmistakably his own signature. He pondered, 'How is this possible? When did I ever sign this?'
"Th-this is fake. I never signed this," Victor said. "Serena, you forged this."
"Victor, that's your signature. It's all in black and white. You can't deny it," Serena replied coldly.
"No way." Victor shot to his feet and slammed the document onto the table. "I don't remember signing anything like this."
"Enough," the officer scolded. "Keep it down. We'll sort everything out once we've investigated."
He turned to Victor, his tone softening a little. "Mr. Powell, please contact your family and have them come down."
Then the officer looked at Serena. "Mrs. Powell, you too. Please notify your family."
Not long after, the sound of steady footsteps echoed through the corridor. A man in an expensive suit stepped in. His hair was graying, but he was sharp and commanding, his features bearing a strong resemblance to Victor's.
"Dad? What are you doing here?" Victor asked, surprised.
Albert didn't even glance at him. His expression was stern. He then turned to the police. "Hello, officer. I'm Victor's father. May I ask what my son is being accused of?"
The officer gave a brief rundown of the situation. After hearing that, Albert frowned and spoke, "I'm sorry for the trouble. I believe this may be a misunderstanding. I'll make sure he's properly disciplined."
He then turned to Serena, his tone softening. "Seri, was it really necessary to take things all the way to the police station? Couldn't this have been handled more calmly?"
Serena looked at Albert and replied evenly, "Albert, I'd like to speak with you in private, if that's alright."