Echoes of Vengeance: The Sweet Wife's Perfect Revenge-Chapter 35: Collapse

In the morning, Damien was seething, barely holding himself in the villa, instead of rushing to the company.

Rumors about NexGuard had faded. Every social media platform and news channel was now fixated on one thing - Damien’s marital status.

Some of the social media accounts even claimed he was married to a longtime lover.

He glanced at Aveline, so relaxed, calmly having breakfast, after removing their photos of the wedding and engagement and skipping her morning ritual of floral arrangement.

Neither did she question him about the trending news, nor did she know he’d spent half the night dealing with headlines about their supposed marriage.

It wasn’t new for the media to speculate about him. Just being seen around single women was enough to spark a tabloid storm. But last night, he’d barely managed to stop a major outlet from publishing news about his wedding to Aveline—by paying them off.

How the f**k did they find out?

And just when he thought he could breathe, other major channels picked it up again. This time, the speculation excluded Aveline entirely.

What irked him was that none of the media would reveal to him the identity of the person behind it.

What pissed him off most was none of the outlets would tell him who leaked the info. He was waiting for his men to report back.

Someone was playing him. He strongly believed it.

Across the table, Aveline masked her disappointment perfectly. She had expected the news to be everywhere, Damien tracking it straight to Julien Fox.

That would have kept him busy while she dug into finding the vendor who lost the business license.

But Damien had blocked the story. That didn’t surprise her anyway because he was capable of what he did.

Now with the gossip shifting to Damien being married to a secret lover, she adjusted her plan. Such rumors would die down in a day or two if not addressed.

’Let it escalate today. If the rumor is shifted to Damien marrying Vivienne Sinclair, then either Damien, Ashfords, or the Sinclairs would have to clarify to the media.’ Aveline thought.

They wouldn’t have a choice, especially with Henry Laurent, her father, breathing down their necks due to the rumor.

It would also drag Vivienne back to the city.

Aveline met Damien’s eyes and smiled softly, as though she didn’t hear his fork and spoon scratching the crockery.

....

At Laurent Industries, she went straight to the top floor.

Henry and Charles weren’t just early; the waiting room and meeting room were already filled with employees.

Knocking twice, she entered Charles’s office and found him too busy to even spare her a glance.

Mike approached her. "Good morning, Manager Laurent." Then his voice lowered. "You don’t need to worry about the company."

In other words, he was asking her to get out of Damien’s clutches as Henry and Charles had things handled at the company.

Yesterday, Mike had texted her that Henry had agreed to her plan instead of taking any shortcuts. And the search for Daniel Anderson had begun, too.

"I’m sorry, I had to change your plan," Mike added quietly.

Damien had ties to the media house she originally asked Mike to use for releasing the wedding news. That’s why Mike leaked a different version instead.

Realizing it was Mike who fed the rumor about Damien’s marital status, she whispered, "Let the news escalate today." Then she added, "Tomorrow, it should say Damien married his long-time love, Vivienne Sinclair."

Mike didn’t ask why. He nodded, "Noted."

Glancing at her father, she added, "Assist them. I will find you if I need your assistance, Assistant Wilson." Her father needed Mike Wilson’s assistance more than herself.

"Yes, Ma’am."

As she walked out, she breathed a sigh of relief. The Laurents would be back in shape soon. But something nagged at her.

’Things are falling together too perfectly.’

She found out about Damien’s affair after following him. Yet he wasn’t suspicious of her.

Though pressured, Damien was letting her work at Laurent Industries.

He was quiet, although she appeared in front of his friends.

She didn’t believe in her acting when Damien was so observant of small details.

Why was he quiet?

What was she missing?

Waiting for the elevator, uneasiness lingered until hurried footsteps approached behind her.

Mike met her again, "Manager Laurent, NexGuard just sent an email. First meeting on Vantex. Do you want to attend, or should I assign someone?"

He handed her the iPad.

Aveline skimmed the email. Date and time of the meeting.

Three hours from now?

The email was sent barely a minute ago. Working with large companies, nobody scheduled meetings on this short notice.

Then it clicked.

This wasn’t about Vantex. Alaric Lancaster was inviting her.

"I will attend." She said, returning the iPad.

The sooner she could prove Damien and Vivienne’s affair, the faster she could escape Damien’s clutch.

Mike tapped the screen. "I’ve forwarded the email to you." Then he bowed and returned to Charles’s office.

In the elevator, Aveline started planning her next move.

....

At NexGuard,

Alaric scrolled through the detailed biography of Vivienne Sinclair.

She wasn’t just beautiful, she was cunning and ambitious.

But she had one weakness, one that Alaric planned to exploit.

"Do we know where Damien’s farmhouse is?" he asked.

Ezra responded with ease, "Damien has five. All for laundering money. But Vivienne Sinclair is in Ashvale Highlands."

"Send Luca to Ashvale."

Alaric handed Ezra the iPad and spotted a white Maserati in the driveway. He rose and went to the coffee maker.

"Alright," Ezra said, already dialing.

He finished the call just as a knock came at the door.

Aveline Laurent.

Ezra had no idea she was coming. He turned to Alaric to inform him, but he had two cups of coffee in his hands and hadn’t taken his eyes off her.

Ezra: "..."

Completely ignoring his stunned assistant, Alaric watched as she stepped in.

Her Ivory blouse settled over her frame like it was made with her in mind. It was sharp at the shoulders, cinched perfectly at the waist with a subtle belt. The skirt flowed down her legs with a slit that revealed just enough.

Watching her clean, structured, and dangerously elegant, all he could think about was what she might look like in something unguarded, in something she would look adorably messy.

Aveline had only realized after knocking that she would have to face Alaric again. This time, she was meeting him as Damien’s wife.

"Ms. Laurent," Alaric said at last when she stood there, glancing at the cups in his hands.

Ezra snapped out of his stupor, nodded once, and left the room.

She had been led to the CEO’s office, not the meeting room. That confirmed her Damien had offered Alaric something.

"I suppose I’m not here for a meeting on Vantex." She said lightly, masking the pressure building inside.

Alaric set a cup down on the coffee table and eased onto the sofa. He was disappointed. He had hoped their exchange would feel less... transactional.

Still, he played along, "You wouldn’t have shown up if it was just about Vantex."

His voice was deep and controlled. Yet it reminded her that she might have started the game. But he’s already five steps ahead.

Aveline felt the need for coffee and she picked the coffee and sipped it to ease her nerves. Then she remembered, he always gave her what she needed.

Bourbon on Saturday - to make her foolishly brave.

Coffee on Monday - to ease her anxiety.

She swallowed that thought. They didn’t even know each other.

"Where should we start?" She asked, inviting him to speak first.

Alaric failed to understand why she couldn’t just sit. She looked calmer, but something was off.

Hoping he wasn’t stressing her, "You are against your husband." He said plainly.

"Yes." Aveline didn’t hesitate but didn’t explain either.

That annoyed him. He narrowed his eyes on her. If she thought she could come and go as she wanted, then she was wrong.

He stood, slow and deliberate.

Her heart started to race watching him stalk closer.

"Ms. Laurent," His tone sharpened, "It was your choice to walk in here. If you want something, don’t play games. If you try that with me, the consequences will be... terrible."

Was it him? The coffee? Her own body?

Her heart pounded like it was trying to escape.

She had jumped into the fire the moment she walked in there on Saturday. And she would burn through it. But she had thought she could keep her pride intact.

She gritted her teeth. "Damien is having an affair."

Alaric frowned, not at her words but the beads of sweat on her forehead.

"With Vivienne Sinclair. He wants to ruin Laurent Industries and marry her... After killing me." She was cold down to every word she uttered.

He didn’t answer.

"I’m offering you help. I need proof of the affair from Obsidian."

He didn’t answer again. Instead, he stepped toward her, looking worried, "Aveline, sit. Now."

"Huh?" Aveline blinked in confusion. Everything began to blur. The walls tilted.

She looked back at him and couldn’t focus.

"Aveline...." His voice barely registered to her.

The cup slipped from her hand. Her knees gave out.

’Crash.’ The cup shattered.

But she didn’t hit the floor. She never felt the hot coffee on her skin.

Only the arms that were wrapping around her.

And Alaric’s voice broke through the fog, "Aveline..."