Chapter 99
1062 Words
"Is it really Ariya?" Jessica turned to look at Pete, speaking hesitantly.
"No way! It can't be her!" Pete's eyes blazed with anger. 'She's just the president of Arilon Group—how could she have that much power?' Just then, Pete's phone rang. He glanced at it and picked up, saying, "Dad, stop bothering me! What do you want?"
"Son, did you just see the news? They say you're about to jump off a building, and even the fire department has been called! Is that true?" An elderly voice came through the phone.
"Who the hell said that? Why would I jump off a building for no reason?!" Pete exploded with rage.
"Oh, you scared me to death! As long as you're okay! But the news sounded so believable, saying you were fooling around with some woman, and when her husband didn't agree to a divorce, you threatened to jump!"
His father sounded worried. "This morning, when I went out with my friends, they all asked me about it, and I had no idea what was going on! Son, you have a wife and kids. Don't mess around!"
"Dad, just ignore what they say! I'm busy. I'm hanging up!" Pete said, frustrated. But as soon as he hung up, the phone rang again. Annoyed, he declined the call, but it kept ringing. Finally, he had no choice but to answer it.
"Pete, what's going on? Why did you hang up on me? I heard you took a bus with a bottle full of gasoline. Don't do anything stupid! If you're in trouble, just talk to me. If you need money, go get a loan from the bank. Don't take it out on innocent people!"
"Bro, why would I take it out on innocent people? Use your brain and think it through!" Pete was losing his mind over the calls. After slamming the phone down, he turned it off.
"Mr. Norman, you need to come… take a look…" Jessica was frantically searching something on the computer, trembling as she spoke.
Pete struggled to contain his anger and glanced at the computer. His head spun as he saw the headlines across major news websites. There were stories about him killing, robbing, and planning to take revenge on society. Almost every article was about him, complete with pictures.
Pete exploded with rage, grinding his teeth as he said, "This is slander, outright slander! Jessica, report this to the police immediately and get the people who are defaming me arrested!"
Jessica quickly grabbed the landline, but just as she was about to dial, the office door swung open, and a man in uniform walked in.
"Ah, honey!" Jessica froze, fearfully looking at Pete.
"Well, I didn't believe what I saw on the video, but now seeing your outfits and the office, this is where the cheating took place, right? I wondered why you were always working late. Turns out you've got a lover! I'm going to kill you!" The man lunged forward, slapping her.
Jessica had never seen her husband so furious, and the slap sent her crashing to the floor.
Pete glanced at Jessica on the ground and shouted, "What are you doing? You're a policeman! How can you attack for no reason? I'm going to sue you!"
Jessica's husband was already furious, and seeing Pete only added to his rage. He grabbed Pete by the collar.
"I'm not a cop right now. I'm just a regular guy who got cheated on! You're that man from the video, aren't you? Didn't you know she has a husband? Didn't you know she has kids? How dare you seduce her? I'm going to kill you as well!"
He threw Pete down with a shove and then unleashed a flurry of kicks, all aimed at Pete's crotch. Pete was no match for this cop and scrambled away, finally escaping under the table.
Jessica cried out, "Please, honey, don't hit him! I'll do anything; just don't hurt Mr. Norman! He promised to keep me from now on! I'll agree to divorce you. I don't want the house or the car. Let's get the divorce certificate tomorrow!"
Jessica's husband suddenly burst into laughter. "Oh really? You'd divorce me for some other guy? Fine, let's do it! After you've done something so shameless, there's no way we can stay together! Tomorrow at nine, we'll meet to finalize the divorce!" After saying this, he kicked Pete a couple more times before storming out of the office.
"Mr. Norman, are you okay? Does it hurt?" Jessica hurried over to help Pete up.
Pete had never been so humiliated. He felt like he was about to explode, shouting, "You need to report this to the police! I'm going to expose your husband's actions!"
Jessica wiped her tears and said urgently, "What's the point? Besides, we were in the wrong. Can't you let him go? Right now, we need to deal with these news stories, or we won't be able to walk on the street! I was thinking maybe reporting it to the police isn't the best idea; we need to apologize to Ariya!"
"Apologize to Ariya? I'd rather kill her!" Pete growled, baring his teeth while sitting in the chair.
Jessica was about to say more when the landline rang again. Annoyed, Pete picked it up and said, "Hello, who are you looking for?"
"I'm looking for the general manager of Norman News." A calm male voice responded from the other end.
"That's me. What do you want?" Pete snapped, his temper flaring.
"Ah!"
Suddenly, there was a scream on the line. Pete recognized that voice. It was his father!
"What… what did you do to my dad?" Pete felt a wave of panic wash over him, his voice trembling.
The male voice on the other end sneered. "Nothing much. I just smashed his right hand as a warning for your disrespect. If you dare to insult me again, I swear I'll kill your father!"
Suddenly, Pete's father's sobs came through the phone. "Pete, stop cursing! Let's talk it out! Our whole family has been captured! Your mom and your wife are all here, and they're not lying; they could kill us at any moment."
His father sounded like he was in pain. "There are armed soldiers outside! The leader wants to speak with you. Pete, let's talk it out. Hurry and save us!"
- Writer
