What She Overheard in Her Own Marriage novel Chapter 284

"Is the Matriarch forcing you into this again? How could you just agree to it?" Mrs. Wagner's heart ached for her. It felt like Noelle had lost all her autonomy, reduced to a mere puppet on the Sanders family's strings. The old lady was being far too cruel. Noelle was practically a Sanders herself; why was she being treated like an outsider?

Noelle raised a hand, stopping the housekeeper from going any further. "I didn't have a choice, and I can't fight back."

"Then tell Mr. Sanders! Let him help you..."

"Mrs. Wagner!" Noelle snapped her eyes open, her gaze sharp. "I cannot be the one to tell him."

Mrs. Wagner froze, then slowly understood. "Should I find a way to let it slip?"

"Hold off for now," Noelle said, closing her eyes again. "A spring has to be compressed all the way down before it can bounce back with maximum force."

Mrs. Wagner didn't fully grasp the depth of the metaphor, but she knew Noelle wasn't a pawn who would just let herself be played. Josephine might think she was controlling the board, but Noelle definitely had her own counter-strategy.

It was now July, and the summer holidays had begun. Brynlee was out of school and staying with Jane and Warren Chavez for a while. They missed their granddaughter and wanted her around.

Finnian had no objections. Elaine Sanders wasn't thrilled, but she didn't argue either. Taking care of a child required time and energy, and lately, Elaine was obsessed with playing mahjong with her wealthy socialite friends. With no time for Brynlee, letting Kaia's parents take over made sense—after all, the girl's last name was still Sanders.

With her parents watching Brynlee, Kaia had significantly more breathing room. Today, she needed to visit a new herbal remedy supplier to negotiate a partnership.

Sourcing the right medicinal herbs was a critical task, so Kaia personally led her team to inspect the facility.

HerbSource Manufacturing previously supplied Aethelstan Biopharma, and this time, they were pitching Veridian as well. Their focus was high-end, premium raw materials.

Kaia was greeted with immense enthusiasm and VIP treatment upon arrival.

"Dr. Chavez, welcome! We hope this leads to a very fruitful partnership." The plant manager rushed over to greet her. After exchanging polite pleasantries, Kaia got straight to business.

The manager led Kaia and her team directly to their main warehouse.

The moment she stepped through the doors, the rich, earthy scent of medicinal herbs washed over her, instantly bringing a sense of calm.

She bent down to examine the bags of sliced herbs, occasionally picking one up to smell it while an expert explained the aging and origin of the crops.

"This batch of Astragalus is three years old. Look at the texture here..."

Kaia listened intently, analyzing the samples as they walked deeper into the heart of the massive warehouse.

It was the dead of summer, the heat blistering and everything bone-dry. Right as Kaia was negotiating with the manager, someone suddenly screamed, "Fire! The back warehouse is on fire!"

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