9:15 Mon, Oct 13
Chapter 11
Chapter 11
(95)
E55 vouchers
Matilda snapped back to her senses and clamped her mouth shut, turning her head away.
Brandon missed his mark but kept charging forward with all his strength.
Matilda raised her hand to slap him, but Brandon caught it and pinned it above her head.
His rage flared hotter. “Think you can stop me?”
Matilda glared at him with pure hatred.
Brandon pressed down from above, trapping both her arms and pinning her legs with his knees.
Matilda was completely restrained, twisting her head desperately to avoid his mouth.
But Brandon had lost it–rough, out of control. His lips brushed against her ear more than once.
Matilda thought of all the intimate moments between Brandon and Shelby, and the thought made her gag with disgust.
Brandon finally stopped, panting hard. He whispered in her ear, “As long as you can get my dad to forgive you, we can go back to how things were.”
Matilda spat at him and shouted, “Go to hell!”
The veins in Brandon’s forehead bulged. “Don’t bite the hand that feeds you. I can raise you up, and I can crush you as well.”
Matilda gave a cold, contemptuous laugh. “Then sign the divorce papers.”
Brandon’s eyes went bloodshot, like a wild beast. “Fine! I’ll sign it for you. Matilda, I’ll make you cry and beg me to come back.”
Less than ten hours later, Matilda realized he meant every word.
A crowd had gathered at the entrance of the research center. People from the police station were waiting. “Are you Matilda?”
Cassandra was being held by uniformed officers, sobbing uncontrollably. “Matilda, I’m sorry. I’m so sorry.”
Before Matilda could make sense of it, the police flashed their badges. “Matilda, you’re under suspicion of stealing trade secrets. You need to come with us for questioning.”
Cassandra screamed, “It was all me! It had nothing to do with Matilda! Please, let her go!”
As Matilda was led to the police car, reporters swarmed in, snapping photos of her face. People in the crowd spat at her like she was some kind of traitor.
And then Matilda saw Lola. Her heart shattered. No mother ever wanted her child to see her hauled into a
9:15 Mon, Oct 13
Chapter 11
police car.
:
Lola cried, “I don’t want a mommy like this! I don’t want her!”
95
55 vouchers
Shelby scooped Lola up and walked toward Matilda with a smug smile. In Matilda’s eyes, that smile was twisted and cruel. “Brandon is mine now. How does it feel, knowing the man you loved and the assistant you trusted most betrayed you together?”
Matilda’s face went dark, her hands trembling. “You threatened Cassandra, right? You used House of Heart and her grandfather against her, didn’t you?”
“Go ahead and tell the cops that,” Shelby said, looking pleased with herself.
The police began questioning Matilda, asking whether she had ordered Cassandra to leak the X3 chip designs and sell them overseas.
Matilda denied everything. Cassandra confessed that the jewelry she had wasn’t a reward but something Matilda had told her to sell. She admitted she was the one who leaked the information, not Matilda.
After questioning, the police found no evidence against Matilda and released her right away, even giving her a release certificate.
Later, Brandon arranged for Cassandra’s release. She collapsed in front of Matilda, sobbing. “Mr. Grimes sent my grandfather overseas. He’s sick and disabled–I don’t know how he’ll survive there. I had no choice but to do what Mr. Grimes said.”
Matilda didn’t blame her, but she couldn’t trust Cassandra anymore either. “Go. Those jewels have your hands all over them–I don’t want them. Take them when you leave.”
Cassandra bit her lip until it bled. “Matilda, once my grandfather passes, I’ll come back and beg for your forgiveness.”
Matilda hated crying, but when Cassandra walked away, she gripped her clothes tightly, and tears finally spilled.
Brandon really knew how to play dirty. Chip technology was incredibly tough, and billions of dollars in investment weren’t unusual. In this field, even the smallest stain on someone’s reputation could destroy them.
He never meant for Matilda or Cassandra to end up in jail. He only wanted to use the scandal–where people already called Matilda a “jealous shrew“-to make it look like she had a motive to sell secrets.
He wanted Matilda’s name ruined so she’d never work in the industry again.
*****
The sky hung dark, heavy with rain. When Matilda returned to Rose Villa, the housekeeper, Tully, came rushing up. “Please, just apologize to Mr. Grimes.”
No matter how capable Matilda was, she was still just an ordinary woman with no power. She couldn’t fight against the crushing weight of capital.
9:15 Mon, Oct 13
Chapter 11
Matilda answered calmly, “He didn’t kill me, did he?”
As long as she was alive, she believed she could turn things around.
95
55 vouchers.
She walked straight into the main hall. Brandon and Zack were smoking while Shelby busied herself serving them coffee like a maid.
Zack sneered, “Women like Shelby–gentle, caring–deserve men’s love and protection. Those arrogant ones? Nobody’s gonna want them.”
Matilda treated his words like a dog barking and glanced at the divorce papers in front of Brandon.
Brandon, cigarette dangling from his lips, shoved the papers forward. “Two choices. Stay married, and I’ll slowly help clear your ruined name-”
“Divorce. Whoever refuses is a bastard,” Matilda cut him off coldly.
Brandon bit down so hard on his cigarette it broke. “Fine. Then let’s settle accounts. In six years of marriage, you gave the Grimes family just one child. She stays with me. You don’t get visitation.”
“Fine.” Matilda’s voice was flat, numb.
Brandon froze for a second, then continued, “Crossen Technology funds House of Heart every year—you know how much goes into it. And the packaging factory for the disabled in Domburgh? Always losing money. You can cover both with Rose Villa.”
He listed only the losses, never the profits.
Crossen Technology’s donations to House of Heart and the factory had skyrocketed their public image, making their electronics top sellers.
And Brandon had been voted “perfect husband” online thanks to that crafted image of a loving family man.
“Tomorrow, I’ll release a statement. I’ll say I respect your wish to divorce. And the 600 million dollars we put into the X3 chip–you will repay that yourself.” Brandon leaned back, giving Matilda a cold stare.
If she had any sense, she’d see there was no way out. Her future would be finished.
Brandon believed that no one would want a woman with a ruined name, unable to have more children, drowning in debt.
But Matilda stayed calm, her face unreadable. She didn’t even flinch. She picked up the pen, signed the divorce papers, snapped a photo with her phone, and posted it online.
[In 30 days, we’ll finalize the divorce and have no ties left. Screenshot this as proof–whoever doesn’t go through with it is a bastard.]
Her every move was smooth, decisive. Brandon was caught off guard, just for a moment.
9:15 Mon, Oct 13
C
