Rise Of The Wasted Shadow Wife

Chapter 13

Chapter 13

Inside the apartment where they were hiding, Laura and Nadine sat facing each other in eerie silence. Between them, the laptop screen glowed coldly, displaying documents that the outside world was not allowed to see.

Incriminating internal memos. Brutally manipulated financial charts. Termination letters signed by Axel himself. Proof of the corporate betrayal that had been hiding behind a glossy image.

Laura stared at the screen for a moment before turning her gaze to Nadine. Rain fell on the window pane, creating faint reflections that seemed to duplicate the faces of two women with different wounds but a common goal.

"I think... I'm ready," Laura's voice sounded soft yet steady. "It's not just about bringing Axel down. It's about opening the eyes of people who have been deceived for too long."

"Explosions in both directions," Laura cut in. "Regulators and social media. Truth wrapped in beauty, but spread with the power of the masses."

Nadine nodded slowly. She touched the laptop screen, as if channeling power into the document. "This is a recording of a board meeting. This is the profit manipulation memo. And this... the unilateral termination letter, with Axel's handprint that he can't deny. But we need a journalist we can trust. Someone who can't be bought."

"There is," Laura replied, her voice deeper, as if remembering something long buried. "His name is Dante. I used to help him when he exposed a medical research scandal that killed children in the area. He... still owes me a favor."

"Explosions in both directions," Laura cut in. "Regulators and social media. Truth wrapped in beauty, but spread with the power of the masses."

Nadine nodded slowly. She touched the laptop screen, as if channeling power into the document. "This is a recording of a board meeting. This is the profit manipulation memo. And this... the unilateral termination letter, with Axel's handprint that he can't deny. But we need a journalist we can trust. Someone who can't be bought."

"There is," Laura replied, her voice deeper, as if remembering something long buried. "His name is Dante. I used to help him when he exposed a medical research scandal that killed children in the area. He... still owes me a favor."

Carefully, Laura typed up the email. The sender's name was disguised, the metadata was cleaned up, and the document was edited just enough to attract media attention, while still leaving a deeper layer in reserve. She knew this was just the beginning of something bigger something that could set everything on fire.

***

Two Days Later

The headline slapped the public in the face like a blow from a long-silenced reality.

"Behind the Glitter of the Anthony Group. Exploitation, Manipulation, and Big Lies."

In less than four hours, the hashtag #AnthonyScandal topped global trends. Thread after thread emerged, dissecting documents, unpacking annual reports, comparing figures and highlighting discrepancies. Financial analysts began to doubt a company once hailed as a "star of the European market."

Anthony Group shares plummeted 18 percent in one day. Investors panicked. The board of directors blamed each other. And for the first time in almost a decade, Axel lost control.

Anthony Group Headquarters

The atmosphere in the meeting room was uncharacteristic. There are no wine glasses. No diplomatic smiles. Just tension and anger wrapped in an almost explosive silence.

Axel stood with his back to the tall windows of his room. His hand clutched an investigative report printed from the media. The paper was crumpled. His eyes were red. Sleepiness and anger raged inside him.

"This... is not the work of competitors," he muttered, quietly but sharply. "This came from within. Someone who knows our system. Knows every weakness."

Leonard, head of internal security, stepped forward. His face was tense. His voice was restrained, as if afraid of inciting more anger.

"Our team is investigating. But the documents were sent through an anonymous network. There's no digital trail we can trace."

Axel threw the file on the table. "Track down everyone who ever had level C access and above. Everyone. Including... outside consultants."

He paused for a moment. An image flashed through her mind. The gentle face, the usual soothing voice.

Laura.

The name whispered in his mind. He wanted to ignore it, but suspicion crawled like a snake under the skin.

No, it wasn't her. It couldn't be her.

But-if not her, who else?

Nighttime.

Axel stepped inside the penthouse where Laura used to work. He still had access, his old ID hadn't been revoked. Soft light from the city slipped in through the large windows. The scent of lavender that once made him feel at peace was now foreign. It was cold.

He walked into the room with cautious steps, like a thief. His hands touched Laura's desk, bookshelves, and neatly organized files until his eyes caught sight of an old notebook tucked away in an unlocked drawer.

Axel opened it.

The leather of the book was worn, and the pages were full of handwritten scribbles, diagrams, notes, and strategies. But what caught his attention the most was a name written in the center of the page, circled in red ink.

"Alessia."

Axel's hands shook. The world around him slowly faded away. He flipped through page after page of emotional notes, careful calculations, and vengeful quotes.

"Don't let him know who I am prematurely."

"The best revenge... is the undeniable truth."

Axel sat up slowly, as if his entire body could no longer stand. His breath came in short gasps. The world he had built trembled under his feet.

"Alessia..." he whispered. The voice broke. Cracked. Like an old wound being reopened.

He never expected that the woman he had forgotten, the woman he thought was gone from his life, was back. In a new form. With a new name. And with a darker mission.

And she wanted revenge.

On the Other Side of the City

Laura stood on the balcony of the small apartment she had secretly rented. The night wind whipped her hair. The lights of the city twinkled in the distance, like a hidden message that only a heart that knew pain could read.

Nadine sat inside, her eyes focused on monitoring stock movements, netizen comments, and possible backlash.

"He knows," Laura said quietly. Her voice was almost drowned out by the wind. "Today... she knows who I am."

Nadine looked up. "And you're sure this is it?"

Laura was silent for a long time. Too long. Then she nodded slowly, though there was doubt in her eyes.

"I'm ready," she said. But her tone was brittle.

***

Axel sat alone in the study. The lights were off. Only the street light shines on his face, a face that once looked powerful, now looks tired. Old. And defeated.

He opened the gallery on his phone.

A photo of Laura smiling, innocent, warm.

"Are you really Alessia?"