Her voice grew shrill, her face contorting with anger. "My parents were so blind to have made me marry a man like you, someone with no vision!"
I let out a cold chuckle. "Yeah, I have no vision. Otherwise, I wouldn't have married a woman like you."
That was the final straw. Vanessa's face twisted with rage and before I could react, she grabbed the nearest object—a porcelain cup—and hurled it at me.
The cup struck my forehead, shattering on impact. A sharp sting erupted across my skin as warm blood trickled down my temple.
Vanessa pointed a trembling finger at me. "Charlie, do you still want to stay married or not?! If you do, then take that damn house! I've been with you for so many years—even if you don't want to live there, I do!"
She was still pushing for it, still trying to maneuver me into that death trap.
"I even planned a celebration banquet in your name to build up your reputation and this is how you repay me? You've disappointed me!"
Before I could respond, my phone buzzed.
I glanced at the screen—Zane, the company's current CFO.
"Mr. Ross, your wife said there's a celebration banquet this evening. I saw you weren't at the office, so I wanted to remind you to come early. The guys are getting impatient."
A banquet? So, this was her next move. I had no idea what Vanessa was plotting, but since the company had just gone public, it wouldn't be good to dampen employee morale.
I sighed and agreed.
Vanessa, seeing that I had given in, smiled in satisfaction. She patted my arm, her earlier anger vanishing as if it had never existed. "Good. Don't let me down, okay? Be sure to attend."
That evening, I arrived at the venue she had chosen.
Something felt off.
I noted the location immediately—it was less than a hundred yards away from that mansion.
Inside the hotel, the banquet hall was already lively. Many employees had arrived and the air buzzed with chatter.
But my eyes landed on two specific figures standing by the bar. Oscar and Bruno.
A frown crept onto my face.
"Oscar, Bruno, what are you two doing here?"
These two had spent the last year slacking off, violating company policies and harassing female employees. I had been meaning to fire them, but Tristan had protected them.
As soon as I finished speaking, Tristan immediately stepped in, his expression all smiles, but his eyes held a calculating glint.