Never Failed, But I Chased Him Relentlessly

Chapter 7

The surveillance footage from the morgue entrance was retrieved. The video clearly showed that shortly after Valeria entered, Celeste quietly appeared at the door, glanced around, quickly jammed something into the lock's latch, and hurried away.

The evidence was irrefutable.

Watching the footage, Dominic's face turned exceptionally grim. When he found Valeria, she was leaning against the headboard, staring out the window with vacant, unfocused eyes.

"Valeria, regarding this... Celeste might have just had a moment of folly. It was a prank; she didn't expect the consequences to be so severe..."

"Dominic," Valeria interrupted him. She slowly raised her head, her face devoid of anything but a cold, icy numbness. "Right now, I don't want to hear a single word about her. Can my dad's body be claimed?"

Dominic froze, all his prepared excuses dying in his throat. Looking into her stagnant, lifeless eyes, something deep in his heart gave a violent twinge.

"Yes, I've already handled the paperwork."

"Proceed with the cremation," Valeria said, her unfocused gaze fixed on an empty spot in the air. "There's no need for a memorial service. I want to take my dad home for a while."

Dominic's throat tightened. He wanted to say something, but ultimately just nodded. "Alright. Whatever you say."

The cremation process was swift. After receiving the ashes, Valeria refused Dominic's company and returned home alone.

As soon as she stepped through the door, her phone screen lit up with a notification. It was the approval report for her divorce application, complete with a bright red electronic seal stamped at the bottom.

Approved. Effective immediately.

Beneath it was the date—today. The thirty-day processing period was finally over.

Valeria used her home printer to print out the divorce approval and placed it squarely on the coffee table alongside her wedding ring. Then, she began packing her belongings, planning to take her father's ashes back to their hometown today to bury him alongside her mother.

While packing, Valeria discovered a file folder inside a locked drawer. Inside was a whistleblowing report handwritten by her father. After quickly reading through it, Valeria's hands began to tremble violently.

It turned out that while her father was securing the medication for Celeste, he discovered she was a spy! That was why Celeste had struck first—she reported her father, framed him for abusing his power, had him locked up, and then used those filthy photos to provoke him and drive him to his death!

An overwhelming wave of fury instantly engulfed Valeria. Her father hadn't just died because of her; he was murdered for standing up for justice! And she had actually signed that Letter of Forgiveness, forgiving her father's murderer!

Valeria picked up her phone and dialed a number she had almost never initiated contact with. It belonged to her father's best comrade-in-arms, Edward, who now held a position in a crucial government department and was known for his fierce, upright character.

The phone rang for a long time before connecting.

"Edward, it's Valeria," her voice was unusually calm. "I have highly critical intelligence regarding national security that I need to hand over to you in person. Furthermore, my father, Gerald, was framed and silenced. I have the evidence, and I am officially filing for his exoneration."

Dominic felt physically and mentally exhausted after dealing with Celeste's mess. She had cried and pleaded, claiming she had merely suffered a lapse in judgment because she loved him too much and was terrified of losing him. Looking at her pale, fragile face, he couldn't bring himself to utter a single word of reproach, leaving him drowning in a chaotic mix of frustration and powerlessness.

His mind drifted back to the desolate, lonely silhouette of Valeria as she walked away clutching the urn. Somewhere in his heart, a piece had inexplicably gone missing, leaving a dull, throbbing ache.

On the drive home, everything that had happened recently played on a continuous loop in his mind. He rubbed his temples in sheer aggravation. Once Gerald's funeral affairs were settled, he needed to have a proper talk with Valeria. They were husband and wife; they had to have a future together.

However, when he returned home, the house was pitch black.

"Valeria?" Dominic called out instinctively.

He flicked on the lights, but the living room was completely empty. His heart clenched as he strode quickly forward, only to find a wedding ring and a document placed neatly on the coffee table.

The bold words Divorce Approved stung his eyes with a blinding pain.