THE BILLIONAIRE'S HEIR UNCHAINED

CHAPTER 1

The sun blazed mercilessly that afternoon, its scorching heat mirroring the weight pressing down on Raka Nugroho’s shoulders.

He sat on the edge of the cramped guest room bed, staring at his hands—calloused from years of hard work, yet trembling under the crushing reality of his situation.

Once, he had promised himself that no matter what, he would give Nadine a good life. She deserved stability, security, and a future free from the financial struggles that haunted the Santoso family. But what had he become?

A man who had lost his job.

A husband his wife no longer respected.

A son-in-law his mother-in-law despised.

The door creaked open, and Nadine walked in, removing her earrings with practiced disinterest.

"Are you going to sulk all night?" she muttered, barely glancing at him.

Raka clenched his fists. "I’ll find something soon."

She scoffed. "That’s what you said two months ago."

He exhaled sharply, trying to suppress the sting in his chest. She wasn’t always like this. In the beginning, she still held onto some form of hope for him. But as time passed, that hope had turned into frustration, then resentment, and now… complete indifference.

"It’s not like I want to be in this situation, Nadine," he said quietly.

"And you think I do?" She turned to him then, her arms crossed. "Do you know how humiliating it is? My mother reminds me every single day that I could have done better. That I should have married someone who could actually provide."

Raka stiffened. "I was providing."

"Past tense," she said coldly.

Silence stretched between them, the distance between husband and wife now an uncrossable chasm.

Then she sighed, rubbing her temples. "Look, I don't hate you, Raka. But I just… I don’t know how much longer I can do this."

His heart clenched at her words.

The implication was clear.

She was running out of patience.

And he was running out of time.

Nadine Santoso never imagined her life turning out like this.

She sat backing Raka in the dimly lit guest room she shared with Raka, she felt suffocated—not just by the cramped space but by the weight of her choices.

She had married him to save her family.

The Santoso family had been well off once—her father, Antoni Santoso, was a businessman with ambitious dreams. But after a string of failed investments and crushing debt, everything came crashing down. Creditors circled like vultures, their home was at risk, and her mother, Rini, was on the verge of a breakdown.

With no other way out, her mother had turned to her.

“Nadine, you’re the eldest. You have to do something,” Rini had pleaded. “Your father left us nothing but problems! We need stability—we need someone dependable!”

Someone dependable.

Back then, that had meant Raka Nugroho, her university friend. He wasn’t wealthy, but he was hardworking, responsible, and had a steady job. He was the type of man who would take care of his wife.

So, under immense family pressure, Nadine agreed.

She convinced herself that she had made the right choice—that over time, she would learn to love Raka. That one day, he would become someone great.

But now, sitting in this small room with a man who had lost his job and his confidence, she wondered if she had made the biggest mistake of her life.

But now, sitting in this small room with a man who had lost his job and his confidence, she wondered if she had made the biggest mistake of her life.

"Raka, come here!"

The sharp voice of his mother-in-law, Rini Santoso, cut through the tense silence.

Raka exhaled slowly, pushing himself up from the cramped bed,. He walked toward the living room, where Rini sat with her arms crossed, her expression one of barely concealed irritation.

She extended a crumpled piece of paper toward him. It looked like a grocery list.

"Get me these from the market."

A busy local market. The place was always crowded, noisy, and filled with the scent of fresh produce, spices, and sweat.

Raka took the list without a word. He knew better than to argue.

As he stepped outside, the humid air wrapped around him like a heavy blanket. His hands clenched the paper tightly.

He wasn't just running errands.

He was being sent away. Pushed aside. Made to feel like nothing.

And as he walked down the uneven pavement toward the market, for the first time, something inside him stirred—a quiet, simmering rage.

As Raka made his way back from the market, the weight of the plastic bag in his grip was nothing compared to the heaviness settling in his chest.

The bustling streets moved around him in a blur—motorbikes weaving through traffic, vendors shouting out their prices, the scent of fried snacks drifting through the air—but his mind was elsewhere.

This was the third time this week his mother-in-law had sent him to the market. To her, he wasn’t a husband to Nadine—just a freeloader who did chores in exchange for a place to stay.

The sun was relentless, beating down on him as he turned onto the quiet street leading back to the Santoso home. The modest house stood among rows of similar homes, its small front yard cluttered with potted plants and a faded wooden bench.

As he stepped inside the house, he was greeted by the sound of Rini Santoso's loud voice. She was seated on the couch with her neighbors, casually chatting as they sipped sweet iced tea. Their living room was small but neatly kept, the furniture old but functional.

The moment Rini saw him, her face twisted in disgust.

"Ah, look who's back," she sneered. "Did you take the long way home, or were you too busy daydreaming about being a real man?"

The women chuckled.

Raka ignored the sting in her words and set the groceries on the kitchen counter.

"here are the things you asked for," he said politely.

Rini barely glanced at them. "Put them away properly. And then go mop the floor. You just stand around all day doing nothing anyway."

The humiliation burned, but Raka stayed silent.

Just as he turned to leave, he heard one of the women whisper,

"Why does Nadine still stay with him? He’s useless."

Rini let out a dramatic sigh. "We don’t have a choice yet. But don't worry, soon enough, she'll come to her senses."

Raka’s hands clenched into fists.

It wasn't just humiliation. His own mother-in-law was actively trying to get rid of him.