Aldric was haunted by Vivienne's attempts to confront him.
She panicked. Perhaps she thought that, with Yamilet out of the picture, she could finally take her place.
She made a fatal misstep, hiring paparazzi to stalk him, hoping to use public opinion to force him into submission.
Aldric laughed bitterly, suddenly grabbing her by the neck, veins popping out as he looked through her greedy, revolting eyes and saw, staring back at him, his own selfishness.
For a brief moment, he even wished that Yamilet hated him. Hate was much more merciful than indifference. At least hate could be proof of once having loved, whereas indifference… left only pity.
Vivienne was nearly suffocated, her face pale as she collapsed in the corner, tears flowing in heavy, silent drops.
She suddenly lifted her pale face from her disheveled hair, laughing maniacally. Her voice, hoarse and raw, sounded as if it had been burned by red-hot coals.
She said:
"Aldric..."
"You deserve it."
Yes, he deserved it.
---
After spending the New Year in the countryside, I finally decided to return to North City. When I turned on my phone, the screen froze for several seconds from the flood of messages. Friends, both familiar and unfamiliar, had reached out, asking where I was. They said Aldric had been driving himself mad trying to find me.
Recently, there had been a multi-billion-dollar contract to sign. He had thrown it all away just because he saw someone with a face that looked like mine in the window. He ran out, leaving his business partner behind.
For throwing away his loyal wife for some small-time celebrity, Aldric had become nothing but a joke. Everyone knew that those in power were often morally flawed, but no one really cared.
But for him to treat the multi-billion-dollar project like a personal quest to win me back, this was unprofessional.
It was no surprise that the contract had fallen through.
God, I was a shareholder in Rutherford Enterprises!
When I heard the gossip, I was in the middle of cleaning the cat litter, and I thought this was far worse than the smell of fresh excrement. Pinching my nose, I said, "If he's gone crazy, let him go to a mental hospital. Why drag me into this?"
