Chapter 10
1424 Words
Zack’s P.O.V.
The numbers of the file blurred even after reading for the third time.
Across the desk, Mr. Charles stood with his arms crossed, a smile playing on his lips like he had just witnessed something amusing,
I didn’t look up immediately, letting him smile all he wanted. But even after five minutes, he was still there, smiling.
My patience thinned.
“Why are you standing there and smiling like that for the last thirty minutes?”
l lifted my gaze, pinning him in place.
“Don’t you have anything better to do?”
His grin widened.
“No,” he said without hesitation. “Not when I get to witness a rare event.”
I leaned back in my chair, unimpressed.
“And what exactly is that?”
Mr. Charles adjusted his glasses, his tone light but deliberate.
“The day legendary Zackary Walton is proven wrong.”
I studied him for a moment calmly.
“It was a one-time occurrence. She came prepared for it.”
His brows lifted in surprise,
“Oh,” he asked, almost amused. “So, there will be a next time?”
I didn’t hesitate. “Of course.”
The answer came out sharp and absolute.
“You think I would be impressed by something so easily? It was a rehearsed act. She knew what she was doing.”
Mr. Charles shook his head slowly, the smile never leaving his face.
“Ellie passed your test with flying colors. You can dress it up however you like, Mr. Walton, but the result won’t change.”
“It wasn’t a test.” I spoke casually. “She wanted to see her husband. I gave her a glimpse of reality. Simple.”
His eyes narrowed slightly.
“And that scene?” he pressed. “That was a part of her fantasy too?”
My hand stilled as that image resurfaced for a brief second.
Ellie was a young girl, too young to understand the situation in front of her. But she rushed to help the old man without a speck of disgust on her face.
Was she really that simple? No calculation, just… sympathy?
I frowned, that thought cutting through sharper than I liked.
How could someone like her…
No!
I pushed it away instantly.
Naivety didn’t exist in this world. Especially not in business families where daughters were trained to be sold as deals.
“She was prepared,” I said again, my tone colder this time. “The Hunt family knows exactly what they are doing.
Send a trained daughter and secure the inheritance.”
Mr. Charles watched me quietly. But he didn’t argue this time.
Instead, he changed the topic.
“I heard about the Hunt family’s banquet. Will you attend?”
I raised my head and answered his question with a query of my own.
“How many public events have I attended in this city, Mr. Charles?”
He hesitated a bit.
“None, Mr. Walton.”
“Then you already have your answer.”
A flicker of discomfort crossed his face.
“I know you avoid public appearances,” he said carefully. “Especially after… the welcome party.”
The words hung in the air, stirring unspoken details and unwanted memories in my mind.
Mr. Charles continued solemnly. “But things are different now. You are married. Why not start over? Step into the light again?”
He added after a beat.
“Ellie might be a good partner for that.”
A quiet scoff escaped me.
“Good partner?”
A quiet scoff escaped me.
“Good partners aren’t delivered to your doorstep overnight as part of damage control, Mr. Charles.”
I held his gaze coldly.
“The Hunt didn't send Ellie here without motive. People like them don't move without expecting profit."
Mr. Charles remained silent for a moment. Then he nodded slowly.
“I understand your concerns. And I respect your caution, Mr. Walton.”
He paused before adding, more firmly this time.
“As your attorney, it's my duty to advise you.
You have protected yourself well. Perhaps… too well.”
His voice softened, but the words didn’t.
“You can’t stay in the shadows forever because of one incident.”
The room fell quiet, completely still.
I didn’t respond and just looked at him, long enough for him to realize that he had crossed a line.
Mr. Charles cleared his throat, adjusting his glasses.
“I’ll take my leave,” he said. “Please consider my suggestion.”
With that, he left, the door closing behind him with a soft click.
I leaned back in my chair, my gaze drifting toward the window. The city stretched beyond it—loud, alive, and distant.
I repeated under my breath.
“One incident!”
A humorless smile touched my lips.
One moment was all it takes to destroy everything.
Trust.
Reputation.
Control.
My expression hardened.
No!
Once was enough.
More than enough.
And… I wasn’t going to make the same mistake again!
…
The silence of my office didn’t last long. The door burst open without a ceremony, followed by the sound of exaggerated effort.
“Mission accomplished!”
Theo, my assistant, exhaled loudly.
“And I deserve compensation for emotional and physical damage.”
He dropped a thick stack of files onto my table like he had just carried them across the battlefield instead of down a hallway.
“Do you have any idea how heavy secrets are?”
He continued, flexing his fingers dramatically.
“Your wife isn't a simple case, boss. I had to dig.”
“I didn’t ask you to perform.” I said flatly, closing the work laptop.
“And yet, I’m here. Performing.”
His signature careless grin was a sharp contrast to my complicated life. Theo was the only person in the building who spoke to me like I wasn’t capable of ending his career with a sentence.
He was my friend, my loyal comrade, a package full of annoying habits.
“What’s the most important thing you find?”
My question widened his grin. “Oh, you are going to like this.”
“I doubt that.”
“Mm. You say that now.”
Instead of opening the file, he pulled out his phone, tapping the screen with unnecessary suspense.
“Let’s start with the visuals. They are more impactful.”
He turned the screen toward me.
“Here! Your wife is a social media sensation.”
I took his phone and watched the video silently.
It was a wedding scene, Ellie standing at the altar with a flower bouquet in her hands.
The screen lit up behind her, and another video was played that caught my attention. Different scenes were played, the angles wrong, the cuts edited, and the zooming deliberate.
That didn’t look like an exercise video filmed for this event.
I didn’t need the reaction part, as the situation was quite predictable until another bride walked inside the hall. The shift was immediate and clean, like it was already planned. Theo agreed with me.
“This whole scene feels scripted, boss. Even a blind man can see it.”
“Play it again!” My voice came out colder than intended.
Theo’s smile deepened as he obeyed. And this time, I watched carefully and noticed that editing, how expressions that didn’t match the narrative were pushed aside.
I spoke finally.
“They set her up.”
Theo leaned against the table. “Yeah. Pretty brutal too. That clip? Old footage. Different days stitched together.”
My gaze shifted to him.
“And the replacement bride?”
“Alice Hunt,” he said. “Now officially Mrs. Jared Walton.”
That was… interesting!
Theo opened the next file and showed me the pictures of Jared’s wedding, my nephew’s glowing smile and happy groom’s look, screaming suspicion.
I picked up one of the photographs.
Jared’s hand was wrapped around Alice’s waist possessively, a flawless story for the public.
“They didn’t just replace her.” I said quietly. “They erased her completely.”
Ellie Hunt.
Publicly humiliated.
Privately discarded.
And within hours…
Married into my house.
“Ellie signed a billion-dollar confidentiality clause right after this broken wedding.”
I leaned back slowly. “She didn’t even hesitate.”
Theo tilted his head. “That’s the part you don’t like?
“No. That’s the part that doesn’t make sense.” My dark gaze flicked to him. “It’s either desperation, or something far more dangerous.”
- Writer
