The Wife He Dumped, The Queen She Returned As novel Chapter 217

"What incident?"

Seeing Belle's eyes practically sparkling with gossip, Ken instantly swallowed the rest of his sentence.

He lowered his gaze. "Apologies. I am not at liberty to discuss the CEO's personal affairs off the record."

"Tch!"

Belle sneered, utterly disappointed. "I knew it. You and that jerk Preston are cut from the same cloth. Why did I think you actually had a conscience?"

Ken stayed silent for a long moment.

Suddenly, he reached up and pulled his tie completely off.

"Mr. Hayes and Ms. Cameron went to college together. Before Vantage Corp was founded, they ran a startup with a few others."

Belle stared at him. "I thought you weren't at liberty to discuss this?"

"I only wear a tie when I'm on the clock," Ken replied smoothly.

He neatly folded the silk tie and slipped it into his pocket. "I am now officially off the clock."

Belle blinked. "...Well played."

Ken shot her a look that clearly said: *Do you want to hear it or not?*

Belle practically vibrated with excitement. "I'm listening! Tell me everything!"

"Mr. Hayes is a natural-born entrepreneur," Ken continued. "Even after breaking away from the Hayes family and facing relentless, targeted suppression, he built everything from the ground up. By his senior year, the startup was already a massive success."

"Unfortunately, right before they were set to go public, their primary business partner vanished with all their capital. The cash flow was severed instantly, dealing a devastating blow to the company."

"During the absolute darkest point of that crisis, Ms. Cameron cut all contact without a word of warning. She went abroad and vanished."

"Yeah, that sounds exactly like something Jenna would do," Belle scoffed, completely unimpressed. "But by that logic, Preston should have seen her true colors ages ago. Why is he still protecting her like she's a saint? It makes zero sense."

Ken paused, his tone growing heavy. "It wasn't until Ms. Cameron returned to the country recently that Mr. Hayes learned the truth. She didn't abandon him. She went overseas alone to track down the stolen funds. While trying to secure new investments, she was lured into a trap and kidnapped. She was missing for three years. She only managed to escape about half a month ago."

"For three years, she was held captive in utterly inhumane conditions. She came back covered in scars and suffering from severe psychological trauma."

"Mr. Hayes feels a massive debt of guilt toward her, which is why he..."

Ken looked bewildered. "What's so funny?"

Belle patted him hard on the shoulder. "Thank you so much for this crucial piece of information!"

Without another word, she turned and hurried down the hall, her eyes flashing with a predatory, excited gleam.

She absolutely believed that Jenna had been subjected to hell and kidnapped—karma was a bitch, after all! But she would rather die than believe Jenna had done any of it for Preston's sake!

She knew that if she screamed the truth right now, no one in this house would believe her.

But she also knew, with absolute certainty, that Jenna's days were numbered!

...

Meanwhile, just as Chloe followed a maid to the top of the grand staircase, Eleonora's weak, hacking cough echoed down the hallway.

"Grandma."

The elderly woman resting in the massive four-poster bed had hair as white as snow, yet she still carried an air of undeniable elegance. Her complexion, however, was worryingly pale.