The Queen of Gossip System

Chapter 2: Are They Truly Blind

The employees at Vance Group had been eyeing Aria's behavior for a while, especially the ones in Dominic Vance’s office. From their perspective, asking to recheck the surveillance footage was like accusing her outright. They had all seen Aria walk into the office. Without that, no one would have bothered to point fingers. But, of course, at Dominic’s command, the footage was pulled up and shown on the big screen.

They fast-forwarded the video, and there she was – Aria, walking into the office, staying for half an hour, and leaving looking a little down. Apparently, she didn’t get to meet someone she had hoped to. The people in the room couldn’t help but sneer to themselves, thinking Aria was just being stubborn, refusing to admit she’d reached a dead end. They were curious to see how long she could keep up her act. Only Sienna was sweating nervously.

Then, finally, Sienna’s face appeared in the footage. Her pupils shrank slightly, and she stole a cautious glance at Dominic. As the footage played, some of the people who had been rolling their eyes at Aria were taken aback. Others didn’t react. The video paused.

Dominic’s face froze over with a layer of frost. “I can’t believe this,” he muttered, glaring at those who had claimed Aria was the only one who entered his office. “So, only Mrs. Vance went in, huh?”

Before anyone could respond, the senior assistant chimed in without hesitation, “Mr. Dominic, I don’t see an issue. Mrs. Vance was the only one who went in…”

The others nodded along. “They’re really blind,” Dominic thought. Listening to Aria’s sarcastic comments in his mind, he scowled.

Then, a male voice interrupted. “Well, technically, there were two people who came and went: Mrs. Vance and Ms. Blake.”

“Finally, someone who isn’t blind!” Aria’s voice in Dominic’s head couldn’t help but make him smirk.

Everyone turned toward the voice, and a young guy was standing at the back. He was a new assistant who had recently been promoted. Dominic remembered that when Aria was being accused, this guy was running errands and hadn’t been around.

Now, it seemed everyone was finally catching on, but after thinking it through, the situation became oddly amusing.

“What are you babbling about? Ms. Blake comes and goes from the office all the time.”

“You just don’t know, do you? Ms. Blake is Mr. Dominic’s right hand!” someone added.

“You think Ms. Blake would betray the company?” another person teased.

The tone of their responses made it clear they thought the new guy was talking nonsense.

Then, Dominic let out a cold laugh, and the room instantly quieted.

Aria couldn’t help but want to laugh as her thoughts echoed in Dominic’s mind. “If they knew the truth, their reactions would be priceless.” She looked curiously at Sienna, who seemed to be the one everyone blindly trusted.

Sienna was sporting a sleek high ponytail, her slightly curled hair looking perfectly styled. She wore a professional dress that hugged her figure just right. Her makeup was light but flawless. Still, her expression was stiff and unnatural.

“I can’t blame them,” Aria’s sarcastic voice filled Dominic’s head. “After all, they just copied your attitude toward Ms. Blake and me.”

A knot formed in Dominic’s stomach as he thought, Yeah, it’s my fault.

“What do you have to say for yourself, Ms. Blake?” Dominic’s voice broke the silence.

Sienna gave an innocent look. “Mr. Dominic, are you suspecting me?” she asked, her voice laced with fake disbelief. Even though she was feeling guilty, she quickly regained her composure.

“Yes, I went in, but have you forgotten, Mr. Dominic? Every night, I visit your office to prepare for your meetings the next day.”

“Well, well, well, she must’ve picked the perfect time when I was alone, huh? Convenient, right? Looks like she’s been planning this for a while.” Aria’s thoughts ran wild in Dominic’s head. “Also, from what I’m hearing, these poor guys have to work overtime all the time. Never thought Dominic was such a harsh boss. After we divorce, I’ll send him a labor law handbook as a gift!”

Dominic could almost feel his eyes rolling at Aria’s sarcasm. “How could she be focusing on that right now? Her innocence is at stake! Also, I pay people triple for overtime!” he thought, almost losing track of the conversation.

“Anyone who visited my office during that time needs to be investigated. No exceptions!”

Sienna’s face shifted to one of hurt. She hadn’t expected Dominic to treat her the same way as Aria, especially when she’d been by his side for years.

She believed her position was different. She had been handling everything flawlessly for the past decade, big and small. The other assistants also looked dissatisfied. They didn’t think Dominic would investigate someone like Sienna, his loyal secretary.

They all knew she had a soft spot for him, but that didn’t mean she’d betray Vance Group.

As the tension grew, a scoff echoed from the entrance. Aria turned her head, intrigued. Several intimidating figures walked in.

The assistants quickly cleared the way. The leader, an older man with a bald head, was Gerald Cole, a board member. The one who scoffed earlier was his young, blond son, Josh. At first glance, Josh seemed like a spoiled brat, wasting his days at the company.

Josh walked straight up to Sienna, looking annoyed at Dominic. “Dominic, are you losing it? You said in the board meeting you’d divorce this disaster, and now you’re wasting time on surveillance footage? What’s even more absurd is suspecting your loyal secretary, Ms. Blake! Have you lost your mind?”

Gerald clicked his tongue in disapproval. “Enough, Josh! You can’t speak to Dominic like that. His carefulness is a virtue. He’s probably investigating this because Mrs. Vance won’t admit her guilt.”

Josh shot Aria a glare. “To think, even now, you’re still dragging others into this. It’s just…”

Before Josh could finish, Dominic stepped forward, his stern expression protecting Aria. He was about to say something when Aria’s voice popped into his head.

“Where did they get this clown i***t? Gerald’s son, right? Well, no wonder he’s such a disaster. Look at him! Gerald should’ve been looking for a replacement ages ago, but no. He just kept this useless son around.”

Dominic was taken aback. Aria’s sharp observations were making him laugh out loud. “Gerald and Josh clearly don’t get it. They want Josh to take over, but he’s too clueless! No wonder he’s acting like this!”

Just as Aria was having her fun, she hit Dominic with another wave of thoughts.

“What’s with Josh’s obsession with Ms. Blake? What a simp! He’s such a doormat for her. Did you know he even ran around buying her gifts, ended up in the hospital with a fever, and she just told him to drink some hot water? Hilarious, right?”

Dominic didn’t know what to think. “So, this guy is a real simp?”

Aria’s thoughts flooded his mind. “He memorized every little detail about Ms. Blake. He knew her favorite things, even when she mentioned them in passing. One time, he ran to her apartment in the middle of the night, strumming a guitar and singing. The neighbors called the cops, and he ended up in the station for causing a nuisance. Ms. Blake didn’t even bail him out. The guy had to figure out how to get out himself!”

Dominic could hardly believe it. “He did all that for her?” He was almost impressed at how far Josh would go.

Aria wasn’t done. “Josh was a one-man army for her. He never looked at other women. He’d only stare at her photo late at night, wondering how she would react. Ew, I shouldn’t even be thinking about this!”

Dominic almost lost his composure. “So, who’s the one who keeps messing up at work, huh? Guess I could learn a little about dedication!”

Before Dominic could process it all, Josh, oblivious to the mental commentary, continued preaching.

The whole room started looking at him differently. Dominic and Aria exchanged a glance that said it all: This guy’s a joke.

Aria’s final thought hit Dominic like a ton of bricks.

“Hahaha! All this mess is Gerald’s fault!”

Dominic was confused. “What does Gerald have to do with this? What was I even doing again?”

His head was spinning from Aria’s nonstop thoughts, and his attention was pulled right back into the gossip swirling around him. Even the most serious person in the room couldn’t resist the allure of a good Gossip.