Hell Hath no fury like a billionaire's Ex-Chapter 130: Against All Odds

Diane’s POV

I sat in the rocking chair, gently swaying back and forth. Her soft breathing was peaceful, but my mind was anything but calm. Yesterday’s phone call with Liam kept replaying in my head, his desperate voice begging to see the children, the way it cracked when he said he was sorry, and then that familiar flash of anger when I refused.

It was like watching someone drowning, reaching out for help, but knowing that pulling them to shore might drag you under too.

Joan had called me afterward to let me know she’d sent the birth notification to the court. The legal wheels were in motion now, soon there would be a custody hearing, a date set in stone where I’d have to face Liam again and fight for my children’s safety.

The thought made my stomach churn, but I knew it was necessary. He had rights as their father, even if every instinct I had screamed that he was dangerous.

And then there was yesterday’s incident at Joan’s house. She’d told me how Liam had shown up with a car full of gifts—toys, clothes, flowers for me, everything he thought might soften my heart. The image of him standing on that porch, surrounded by all those presents like some desperate salesman trying to buy his way back into our lives, would have been pathetic if it weren’t so frightening.

The man Joan described wasn’t the controlled, calculating Liam I’d known. This was someone unraveling, and that made him unpredictable.

"Mama’s thinking too hard again," Sophie said from across the room, her voice pulling me back to the present. She was sitting on the floor with Dylan, who was fussing as she made the big teddy bear Joan had left dance around him. "Look at your brother, Danielle. He’s being silly with Aunt Sophie."

I smiled despite my worries, watching how my sister was playing and taking care of my children. These moments—these simple, beautiful moments—were what I was fighting to protect. The security of knowing they were safe and loved.

"You’re right," I said, adjusting Danielle in my arms. "I shouldn’t waste this beautiful morning worrying about things I can’t control."

The smell of bacon and fresh coffee drifted in from the kitchen, where Mom was preparing breakfast. It felt surreal sometimes, having this normalcy after months of chaos. Here I was, in my beautiful new home, surrounded by family who loved me, with two healthy babies. It should have been perfect, but Liam’s shadow still loomed over everything.

"Breakfast is ready, girls!" Mom called from the kitchen.

Sophie carefully placed Dylan back in his bassinet, making sure Mr. Bear was close. "Come on, little man. Time for Mommy to eat so she can keep making that liquid gold for you."

I laughed, shifting Danielle to my shoulder. "Liquid gold. I like that. Makes me feel like I have superpowers."

"You do have superpowers," Mom said as we entered the kitchen. "You’re keeping two human beings alive with your body. If that’s not a superpower, I don’t know what is."

The kitchen table was set beautifully, with fresh flowers Noah had brought yesterday still brightening the center.

"Remember when you and Sophie were babies?" Mum said, settling into her chair with her coffee. "You, Diane, would never let anyone hold you except me. But Sophie..." she laughed, looking at my sister, "...Sophie would go to anyone who smiled at her. Complete strangers in the grocery store."

"That explains so much about our personalities," Sophie said with a grin. "I’m still the friendly one, and Diane’s still the cautious one."

"Cautious kept me alive," I replied, but I was smiling too. "Your friendliness nearly got you kidnapped at the mall when you were five."

"Hey! That man just wanted to buy me ice cream. You were being paranoid."

"He was following us for twenty minutes, Sophie."

"And then there was the time you two decided to ’redecorate’ the living room with finger paints," Mom continued, shaking her head. "I came to the living room to find you’d turned the white walls into a rainbow mural."

"We thought we were being helpful," I protested. "We wanted to surprise you."

"Oh, you surprised me alright. I think I aged ten years in that moment."

These moments of pure happiness felt precious, like something I needed to hold onto and protect. After everything we’d been through...the divorce, the pregnancy, the battles...sitting here laughing with my family felt like the greatest victory of all.

Noah’s voice called out from the hallway, "Good morning, beautiful family!"

He appeared in the kitchen doorway, already dressed for the office in a sharp navy suit, but his first stop was the twins. He gently kissed Dylan’s forehead and Danielle’s,

"How did everyone sleep?" he asked, settling into the chair beside me and stealing a piece of bacon from my plate.

"Sorry I’m late," he said, leaning down to kiss me softly.

"I have to get to the office," he said, straightening his tie. "I want to make sure everything’s ready for when you officially start as CEO. Guerrero’s been asking about transition schedules, and there are some contracts that need your review."

"Thank you," I said, reaching up to touch his cheek. "For everything you’re doing to make this easier for me."

"We’re a team," he said simply, kissing my palm. "I’ll see you tonight."

After Noah left, the house settled into a comfortable rhythm. Sophie was in the nursery now with both babies in the bassinet, reading them a picture book in dramatic voices. Mum was cleaning up the breakfast dishes, humming softly to herself. Everything felt peaceful and normal.

That’s when my phone rang.

"Hi, Dad," I answered, balancing the phone between my ear and shoulder while I folded baby blankets.

"Hello, sweetheart. How are you feeling today? And how are my beautiful grandchildren?"

"We’re all good. Mum’s spoiling us with amazing breakfasts, and Sophie’s being the world’s best aunt. The babies are perfect."

"And your mother? How’s my sweetheart doing?"

I smiled at the way he always called Mum his sweetheart, even after all these years. "She’s wonderful, Dad. Happy to be here with us."

There was a pause, and I could hear something different in his voice when he spoke again. "Diane, I need to discuss something important with you. Something that can’t wait."

The serious tone made my stomach tighten. "What is it? Is everything okay?"

"I’m fine, but there are some things you need to know. Things about Liam that... well, I think it’s better if I show you in person. I’m on my way over now, and I’m bringing someone with me."

"Dad, you’re scaring me. What’s going on?"

"Just trust me, sweetheart. I’ll explain everything when I get there. This is important for the custody case."

He hung up before I could ask any more questions, leaving me staring at my phone with growing anxiety. What could be so urgent that he had to drive over immediately? And who was he bringing with him?

I tried to push down the worry and focus on folding laundry, but my hands were shaking slightly. Sophie noticed her face a mixture of concern.

"Everything okay?"

"Dad’s coming over. He says he has something important to tell me about Liam."

Sophie’s expression grew serious. "What kind of something?"

"I don’t know. He wouldn’t say over the phone."

Twenty minutes later, I heard cars in the driveway. I left Sophie in the nursery with the babies and walked to the living room, peering out the window. Dad’s car was there, but there was another vehicle behind it...one I didn’t recognize.

I met Dad and his companion at the front door. Up close, the man was even more imposing...easily six-foot-four with the build of someone who worked out professionally. There was something about his posture and the way his eyes constantly scanned our surroundings that screamed security or military.

"Diane, this is Anthony," Dad said as we moved into the living room. "He works for Liam as his bodyguard."

My blood ran cold. "His bodyguard? Dad, what—"

"Please, just sit down. Let me explain everything."

We settled into the living room, Anthony looking uncomfortable but determined. Dad took a deep breath before beginning.

"Diane, I need to tell you something that I probably should have told you few weeks ago. After everything that happened with Liam, I decided I needed to keep tabs on him. For your safety, and for the babies’ safety."

I stared at him, not sure I was understanding correctly. "Keep tabs on him how?"

"I approached Anthony here," Dad gestured to the large man, who nodded solemnly. "Asked him to keep me informed about Liam’s activities, his state of mind, anything that might affect you or the children."

"You mean you’ve been spying on him?" I wasn’t sure whether to be impressed or horrified.

"I prefer to think of it as gathering intelligence," Dad said. "And it’s a good thing I did, because what Anthony has discovered... well, you need to see it."

Anthony shifted forward in his chair, pulling out his phone. "Mrs... I’m sorry, what should I call you now?"

"Just Diane is fine."

"Diane, your father is right to be concerned. Liam has been... unstable. Increasingly so over the past few weeks. I’ve been documenting everything, and there are some things you need to know before any custody hearing."

My heart began to race. "What kind of things?"

"First," Anthony said, scrolling through his phone, "there’s the security footage from his house. The cameras in his home are more sophisticated than he realizes, and they’ve captured some disturbing behavior."

He handed me the phone, and I found myself looking at grainy footage of Liam’s living room. The timestamp showed it was recent.

"What am I looking at?" I asked.

"Watch," Anthony said quietly.

On the screen, I saw Liam pacing back and forth, clearly agitated. Even without sound, I could see he was yelling, his face twisted with rage. Then, suddenly, he spun around and began punching the wall with his bare fists, over and over again until blood began to stain the pale paint.

I gasped, my hand flying to my mouth. "Oh my God."

"That was after he found out about the custody arrangements," Anthony explained. "He completely lost control. I tried to help him, tried to get him to stop, but he just screamed at me to leave him alone."

Dad leaned forward, his expression grave. "There’s more, sweetheart."

Anthony took the phone back and scrolled to another video. "This is weeks ago. A man broke into the house."

The footage showed a man I didn’t recognize holding what appeared to be a gun, standing in Liam’s living room while Liam sat on the couch, clearly terrified.

"Someone held him at gunpoint?" I whispered.

"Yes. This person drugged me and Marcus...the other security guard, then robbed Liam of fifty thousand dollars. But here’s the concerning part: when I suggested we call the police, Liam refused. He was adamant that we not involve law enforcement."

"Why would he—" I began, then stopped. Of course. With all his legal troubles, the last thing Liam would want was more police attention.

"There’s physical evidence too," Anthony continued. "The man shot a hole in one of the living room couch. Liam told me to get it replaced, but I only had it re-covered. The bullet hole is still there, just hidden under new fabric."

"Anthony brought it to my attention yesterday," Dad said. "I’ve been wrestling with whether to tell you, but with the custody hearing approaching, you need to know what kind of evidence might come to light."

"And the drinking," Anthony added. "He’s been drinking heavily, almost daily. I have footage of him stumbling around the house, passing out in the living room. His behavior has become increasingly erratic and violent."

He showed me several more clips of Liam throwing glasses against walls, punching the walls and screaming at invisible enemies. The man in these videos looked nothing like the Liam I’d married. This was someone completely unhinged.

"I need all of this," I said quietly. "Can you send me copies?"

He transferred all the videos to my phone, the files uploading one by one. Each notification felt like another nail in the coffin of any possibility that Liam might be fit to have custody of Dylan and Danielle.

"I need to go," Anthony said, standing up. "I told Mr. Ashton I had personal business to attend to, but if I’m gone too long, he’ll start getting suspicious. I’ll continue to monitor the situation and keep your father informed if anything else happens."

After Anthony left, I sat in stunned silence, staring at my phone full of evidence that the father of my children was spiraling into dangerous territory.

"I know it’s a lot to process," Dad said softly, sitting down beside me.

"He’s dangerous," I whispered. "The man in those videos... he’s not the Liam I married. He’s not even the Liam I divorced. He’s becoming something else entirely."

"That’s why we needed you to see this," Dad said. "The custody hearing isn’t just about legal rights anymore, Diane. It’s about protecting Dylan and Danielle from a man who’s losing control of himself."

I thought about yesterday’s phone call, how Liam’s voice had cracked with desperation, how quickly he’d turned angry when I refused his demands.

I thought about him showing up at Joan’s house with a car full of gifts, trying to buy his way back into our lives. Now I understood—this wasn’t just manipulation or control tactics. This was a man on the edge of a complete breakdown.

"What do I do with this?" I asked, holding up my phone.

"You use it to protect your children," Dad said firmly. "Whatever else Liam might have been, whatever good you might have seen in him once, that man is gone. The man in those videos is not someone who should be around Dylan and Danielle."

I nodded, feeling the weight of responsibility settle on my shoulders. These videos would probably end any chance Liam had of getting custody, but watching them had also broken something in me.

Whatever love I’d once felt for him, whatever hope I’d harbored that he might change and become the father our children deserved—it was gone now, replaced by genuine fear for my family’s safety. I wish Liam can get the help he needed.

The source of this c𝐨ntent is fre𝒆w(e)bn(o)vel