Vanessa flinched the moment she saw me. Her eyes widened and her hand instinctively shot up to her neck, but she was too slow. I had already seen them—the faint, deep-red marks marring her skin. She hurriedly adjusted her collar, tugging it up in a futile attempt to hide the evidence of her betrayal.
"Honey, you're still up?" she asked, forcing a smile.
I responded evenly, "Yeah, just got back from the office."
Her smile faltered for a split second before she masked it with an exaggerated pout. "I just went to the office to look for you, but I didn't expect you to come home early. Geez, I made the trip for nothing. You have to make it up to me."
Saying this, she stepped forward, wrapping her arms around mine, leaning in as she always did when she wanted to manipulate me.
In the past, I had been utterly weak to this act of hers. I would have given in without hesitation, drawn in by the illusion of her affection. I would have pulled her close, murmured reassurances and allowed her to convince me that she truly cared.
But now? I felt nothing. Calmly, I removed her arms from mine and stepped back.
Vanessa blinked in surprise, but she quickly recovered, tilting her head with a feigned look of concern. "Honey, what's wrong? You're not still mad just because I defended Tristan earlier, are you?"
Her voice carried the same gentle persuasion she had used countless times before, as if I were some naive fool easily swayed by her words.
"I just think that you shouldn't be so distant with Tristan," she continued, her tone light but insistent. "Before, you guys used to exchange gifts so easily, but this time you hesitated. Of course, he's going to overthink that."
She sighed dramatically, as if my actions were unreasonable. "You wouldn't be where you are today without Tristan. If you have a falling out with him, who will come help you if you need it? I'm saying this for your own good. Why not just accept the house?"
I sneered inwardly. Saying it was for my own good, yet she was setting me up to be killed.
Without revealing my emotions, I replied coldly, "Since you think the house is great, why don't you move there instead?"
Vanessa's expression shifted in an instant. "Charlie, what the hell are you talking about?! I'm your wife and you have the nerve to say something like that!"