Chapter 207

No.1

The screen of Elisa's phone flickered, adjusting to the bright light.

Preston Vance's face filled the high-definitior display. He was smirking, his eyes gleaming with the arrogant satisfaction of a hunter who had finally cornered his prey.

"Finally decided to stop hiding, Faye?" Preston sneered, his voice echoing slightly. "I was beginning to think you were going to cower in the hallway all day."

Elisa opened her mouth, the legal threats loaded on her tongue like hollow-point bullets.

But the words died in her throat.

Her eyes bypassed Preston's smug face and focused on the background of the video. The camera angle was wide, capturing the luxurious,sun-drenched VIP breakfast dining room behind him.

No.2

Sitting on a plush sofa, perfectly framed over Preston's left shoulder, were August and Allena.

Because Preston was using a top-tier phone, the image was devastatingly clear.

Elisa watched as Allena leaned heavily against August's side. Allena held a peeled green grape between her manicured fingers. She giggled, a sound Elisa couldn't hear but could perfectly visualize, and lifted the grape to August's mouth.

August Chambers-a man with severe germophobia,a man who despised public displays of affection, a man who had once flinched when Elisa tried to adjust his tie in public-did not pull away.

He leaned his head down, his lips parting, and took the grape directly from Allena's fingers.

The visual hit Elisa's retinas with the force of a physical blow.

No.3

Her breath hitched violently. A sharp, sickening pain twisted deep in her stomach. She had already decided to destroy him. She had already accepted that the marriage was a lie. But seeing the man who had treated her like a diseased untouchable for seven years, now openly, intimately indulging the woman who had stolen her family... it was a physiological violation.

Preston noticed the sudden, microscopic tightening of her jaw as her eyes shifted to something behind

him. He subconsciously adjusted his grip on the phone, causing the screen to wobble slightly. The new angle perfectly and accidentally framed August and Allena in the dead center of the shot.A cruel, delighted smile spread across his face as he realized what he had stumbled upon. Without moving the phone again, he raised his voice,shouting over his shoulder.

"Hey, August!" Preston called out, ensuring the microphone picked up every word. "Your ex-wife is finally on the line. She's a stubborn one. Poured water on me last night, dodged fifty calls this morning."

In the background of the video, August's head snapped up.

He looked directly at Preston's phone. Across the digital void, his dark, intense eyes locked onto Elisa's face on the screen.

No.4

Preston laughed, a filthy, grating sound. "Give me some advice, Chambers. How do you break a cold bitch like this? Do I need to use force, or do I just keep throwing money at her until she spreads her legs?"

Elisa stared at the screen. Her heart hammered against her ribs. She waited. She waited for August to show a single shred of human decency. She

waited for him to shut down the disgusting,degrading sexual harassment happening right in front of him.

August stared into the camera lens.

His eyes were completely dead. The jealousy and panic he had felt minutes ago were buried under a thick, impenetrable layer of toxic pride. He wanted to hurt her. He wanted to punish her for walking away from him.

A slow, terrifyingly cold smirk curved August's lips.

No.5

"Her?" August's voice transmitted through the phone speaker, deep, distorted, and utterly devoid of humanity. "She only understands capital.If the zeros on your check are big enough, Vance,she will sell you absolutely anything."

The words struck Elisa like a physical execution.

He didn't just fail to defend her. He actively participated in her degradation. He publicly reduced her to a prostitute, slapping a price tag on her soul just to protect his own fraĝile ego.

In the background, Allena let out a sharp, victorious laugh.

Elisa did not cry. The pain in her stomach vanished,replaced by a sudden, absolute, sub-zero

numbness. The last, pathetic, lingering ghost of the woman who had loved August Chambers was instantly incinerated.

No.6

"Thank you for the market analysis, Mr. Chambers,"Elisa said. Her voice was so flat, so devoid of any human inflection, it sounded like a machine. "Enjoy your life in the garbage dump."

She tapped the red button, severing the call. She held the power button down until the phone powered off completely, then dropped it into her coat pocket.

Alastair had been standing close enough to hear everything. His massive hands were clenched into fists so tight his knuckles were white. He was vibrating with homicidal rage.

"I am going to kill him," Alastair breathed, his voice a terrifying growl. "I am going to tear Chambers Group apart piece by piece on the NASDAQ until he is begging on the street."

Elisa turned to Alastair. Her eyes were completely clear. The hesitation was gone.

She reached into her bag and pulled out the encrypted USB drive containing the Netflix footage.

No.7

"Don't waste your anger on a corpse, Alastair,"

Elisa said, her voice chillingly calm. "He just gave me the final push I needed."

She handed the drive to Alastair. "As soon as we finish this pitch, contact your media fixers. I want this video broadcasted globally tonight. We are going to execute Allena, and we are going to let August burn with her."③