The Abandoned Wife Dumped Him First (Victoria and Elias) novel Chapter 18

The Shawn Group, ground floor lobby.

"Mrs. Shawn, Mr. Shawn is not available to see you today. Please leave," Hawk said, his tone polite but firm, leaving no room for negotiation.

Victoria glanced at the two bodyguards behind Hawk and pressed her lips together. "Fine. Then please tell Elias that I will be waiting for him at The Imperial Crest Estates tonight."

Without waiting for Hawk's reply, Victoria turned and walked out of The Shawn Group building.

The midday sun was scorching.

Victoria looked up as a Bentley approached from a distance, stopping about fifty meters away from her.

Genevieve got out of the car. Seeing Victoria, she walked over, her voice as gentle as ever. "Miss Sanger, what a coincidence to see you here."

She glanced at the lunch container in her hand and continued with a smile, "Elias mentioned a few days ago that he was craving my cooking, so I made some and brought it over. Are you here to see Elias, Miss Sanger? Is something wrong?"

Her natural demeanor made it seem as though she were the real Mrs. Shawn.

"Who I'm here to see is none of your business, Miss Vale," Victoria said coolly, her tone distant. "In fact, I should be the one asking you that question."

"Miss Vale, bringing my husband lunch in the middle of the day," Victoria said, her voice edged with mockery. "You really do play the part of the other woman to the hilt. I almost have to admire the effort."

Genevieve's smile faltered for a second.

"Miss Vale." Hawk came out and, seeing Victoria, paused in surprise that she was still there. He quickly composed himself and turned to Genevieve. "Mr. Shawn knows you're here. He sent me to bring you up."

"Oh, I told him not to send you down. I could have gone up by myself."

Genevieve's tone was coy. She glanced at Victoria, hiding the scorn in her eyes.

She thought, "So what if she's Mrs. Shawn? Elias is about to divorce her. I just have to be patient. Once I become Mrs. Shawn, Victoria will never be able to look down on me again."

"Miss Vale, this way."

Genevieve nodded and followed Hawk into the building.

Victoria watched them go, a faint smile on her lips. She took a deep breath, pushing down the sour feeling spreading in her chest, and looked up at the bright, clear sky.

She told herself, "Victoria, you must remember this. This is the difference between being loved and not being loved. Elias does not love you."

...

When Victoria returned to the Sanger estate, Grady had just finished his last IV drip and was waking up.

"The fever's gone down." Victoria checked Grady's temperature with an ear thermometer. "How are you feeling?"

But would a simple argument lead Elias to try and completely destroy the Sanger Group?

Seeing that Victoria was unwilling to say more, Grady didn't press her. He just stroked her hair affectionately. "Victoria, you need to remember that this will always be your home. The Sanger family may not be as powerful as the Shawn family, but if you're ever mistreated, your brother will protect you, even if it means risking everything we have."

"Grady..."

Victoria's eyes welled up. She hugged Grady, hiding her face so he wouldn't see the tears in her eyes, and said in a muffled voice, "I haven't been mistreated at the Shawn estate. They're all very good to me. As for Elias, I'll try to talk to him again. You just focus on taking care of yourself. Don't let yourself get like this again."

"Okay," Grady promised.

Victoria quickly composed herself, let him go, and stood up to get the soup from downstairs.

Grady watched her leave, his gaze darkening.

The phone under his pillow buzzed. It was his secretary.

"Mr. Sanger, half an hour ago, The Shawn Group issued a statement terminating all cooperation with The Sanger Group. All of our partners are now demanding that we fulfill our orders within three days, or they will sue us for breach of contract."

"Have you calculated the penalty fees?"

"The total is 2.8 billion. Adding the costs of orders already in production, The Sanger Group will likely... have no choice but to declare bankruptcy and liquidate."