2026-09-13 16:50:29
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Chapter 070
Vanessa lowered her phone.Her mind ran for a moment—processing what she had just heard, reassembling the picture in her head about this afternoon, about why Vivienne had called her and so easily dropped the name Vortex.Then everything fell into place.And what was waiting there wasn't sympathy."Viv." Her voice dropped to a tone different from any she had used today. Flatter. More direct. "You and Norman are actually divorced?"Vivienne opened her mouth.Closed it.Opened it again.Under normal circumstances, in a situation that gave her even a little more time, she might have assembled something good enough to sidestep the question—redirect, reframe, make uncertainty feel like a deliberate choice.But on the pavement outside Vortex, after everything that had happened since morning, with a bruised face and empty hands, there wasn't much energy left for maneuvers like that."Yes." Her voice came out quietly. "Today. But—""Are you kidding me?!"The explosion came before Vivienne coul
Chapter 069
The doors of Vortex closed behind them.The afternoon air of Corholt touched Vivienne's still-flushed face—an indifferent wind that didn't know and didn't need to know what had just happened on the second floor of the most luxurious mall in the city.Vivienne had already pulled her mother's phone from her bag before her feet reached the edge of the pavement.She found Norman's number and called immediately."The number you have dialed is currently unavailable or out of service area."She tried again.Same result.Then she opened WhatsApp. Found Norman's name. Typed one sentence—the content didn't matter, just to prove she could still reach him.Message not delivered.One checkmark. Not turning into two.Vivienne stared at the screen.Blocked?!Her mother's number was also blocked by Norman?!Damn it!"Childish bastard!" Vivienne's voice came out through gritted teeth. "All of this over something so small! And he retaliates like this?! Blocking every number?! Cancelling the card?!"Van
Chapter 068
The store manager could no longer pretend the situation was going to resolve itself."Ma'am, I do apologize." Her voice stayed polite all the way to the last syllable, but there was no longer any room in it for negotiation. "If no payment method is available, we'll need to process the next person in line. The unpaid items will be returned to the shelves."The people in the queue didn't need to be told twice.Some had already started moving forward, some shifting to the side of the counter to get past them in a way that didn't leave quite enough room to feel like anything other than being pushed aside.Vivienne stood in the middle of all of it.The gold card in one hand. A thousand dollars in the other. A hundred and forty-nine thousand dollars of shortfall with no way out.And Vanessa beside her, who had already shifted her position slightly backward in a way that was very subtle—just enough to suggest she wasn't fully involved in any of this, that she happened to be near this registe
Chapter 067
The associate took the card.Slid it into the terminal. Waited.The terminal screen flickered.Then two words appeared that Vivienne had never imagined would appear on this machine, in this store, on this day.TRANSACTION DECLINED.The associate looked at the screen for a moment—not surprised, but not immediately sure what to say either. She lifted her eyes to Vivienne."I'm sorry, ma'am. This card cannot be processed."Vivienne didn't move right away."Try it again.""I've already tried twice, ma'am. The terminal is functioning correctly." The associate tilted the screen slightly so Vivienne could see. "This error code indicates that the card has been deactivated.""That's not possible." Vivienne's voice climbed one level—not loud, but enough for Vanessa's head to turn away from the corridor she had been eyeing. "Your machine is broken. Try it again.""Ma'am—""Try it again, I said!"The associate didn't respond to that.She had worked here long enough to know that some situations co
Chapter 066
Vivienne stared at the peeling ceiling of the Desmond living room.Her mother's phone was still in her hand—the message had been sent, the indicator had appeared, and Vivienne had set it back on the table with the satisfaction of someone who had just taken the right step.Norman would respond.He definitely would.Because there was no other way to explain two years of marriage, all the pursuit that came before it, all the ways Norman had looked at her that were too genuine to be entirely faked. People like Norman didn't just walk away.But sitting on this sofa with its sunken cushions, in a room that was musty and dim and never felt like home, waiting—that wasn't a choice Vivienne could accept.She needed air.She needed something beautiful to look at and touch and take home.She needed proof that her life was still moving the way it was supposed to.On top of that, she was holding the supplementary card Norman had previously set up, and she was fully confident its credit limit was mo
Chapter 065
Grace stood in the middle of the room with her hands on her hips and the expression of someone who had just landed on an argument that couldn't be countered.Then something crossed her face.Not concern. Not sadness over her daughter's condition.It was calculation.Twenty million wasn't enough. On top of the money needed for her husband's medical costs, her debts were enormous and some were already due this month.On top of that, she wanted to spend a lot of time at that newly opened casino. She needed a lot of money.She counted on her fingers without a trace of shame.Felix needed a car too. They needed to get out of this dump. And it had to be a penthouse like the one Vivienne had been living in.That was the minimum standard the Desmond family deserved.She gave a firm nod, decided."No. It has to be twenty-five million dollars. Not a cent less. One cent under that, and you threaten him with divorce. Make that the only condition!"Vivienne looked at her mother from the sofa.Then
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