"W-What? I cook, I clean, I go to work, I do the laundry, I run errands—I do everything around the house! And you think I haven't been useful?!" Ayla paused, her eyes widening in disbelief.
Ezra Hale frowned, eyes dropping to Ayla's trembling figure.
She wore loose clothes, so he could see the hollow around her collarbones. Her once fair, smooth arms were still beautiful but now rough and blackened.
They seemed to have worsened since the last time he saw her.
His pupils dilated, but he said nothing.
That's right.
She still needs to go through this humiliation to come to finally to her senses.
A woman like her didn't like to do things if she wasn't convinced of it. So until she was convinced she married the wrong man and files for divorce, he wouldn't…
"Doing all of that is nothing to brag about, you brat," Talia's snort from the side broke into his thoughts and he tilted his head to look at her.
She was fuming in righteous indignation as she pointed at Ayla irritably.
"You're his wife and he works five days a week, should he come home to cook and do his laundry by himself after a 9-to-5?"
Silas picked up the divorce papers and waved them toward the loan sharks.
"Didn't you come to take her? You're free to take her. I'll even pay you if you make her sign this divorce agreement."
Their eyes gleamed at the offer. But before they could move, Ezra released his grip on Ayla and stared down at her coldly.
"Enough. Go upstairs, pack your things, then come back and sign the divorce papers."
Ayla was still heartbroken from how the chores she tirelessly did all these years was reduced to nothing and quietly went upstairs.
Relieved, Silas flashed Ezra a thankful smile, "Mr. Hale, I apologize you had to see this. That woman can be so unreasonable. Thankfully, this will be the last time you'll have to see her."
Coyly tucking a strand of hair behind her ear, Elena smiled with a flirtatious tilt of her head.
"Yes, Mr. Hale. Whenever you visit, I'll make sure the house is nice and ready for you. It'll be much quieter without her."
But the man didn't spare them a glance. His eyes were fixed on the staircase, waiting for Ayla to return.
After a minute passed, Talia hissed and slumped on the chair behind her, "Hmph! She's sure taking her sweet time!"
"She's going to a dump, Mother. I'm sure she just needs a few minutes to look around one last time." Elena retortedly in a small voice.
Talia beamed, clapping in excitement upon hearing Elena, "Oh, you're so respectful calling me 'Mother' already. That wench took five years before she could say that word. As if I'm the one who made her an orphan!"
Something flickered in Ezra's eyes, but he didn't turn to face them.
After a while, Elena excused herself, claiming she needed to use the bathroom.
But instead, she climbed up to the rooftop and answered the buzzing phone in her pocket.
The gentle smile on her face instantly disappeared as she yelled into the phone.
"I told you I'd take care of it! His wife is no problem and he's a fool."
"Oh, the money? Don't worry. I'll stick around just long enough to become his wife, then I'll divorce him and ask for everything he owns."
"No, the kid isn't his. I told you—he shoots blanks. I'll just let him think it's his for as long as possible…"
She trailed off when the sight of a shadow behind a pillar caught her eyes.
"…Yeah, I'll call you back. I need to get back before they notice I'm gone."
Slipping the phone into her pocket, she glanced behind her before cautiously approaching the pillar… unsurprised to find Ayla cowering behind it.
Scoffing, she reached over to poke her with her foot, "Like I thought, it's the about to be divorcée. Did you enjoy what you heard?"
Ayla swallowed and quickly got on her feet.
Relief had washed over her the moment she finished packing.
She didn't like it when Silas did everything alone, so was she really overreacting simply because he used her identity to borrow money?
He had proposed to Elena the moment she got upset about the loan, could he have engaged Elena just to provoke her?
Exhaling sharply, she scowled at Elena.
"You're one detestable woman, aren't you? First you make such a lovely man as Silas cheat on his wife, now you're saying the child isn't his?"
Elena scanned her and sneered, "You're actually quite stupid. A perfect fit for your dumb husband, really."
"Goodness, you're so foolish I feel ashamed for you. In what universe does a wife get tossed about the way this family tosses you? If anything, I'm doing your stupid self a favor by getting you a divorce from him."
However, Ayla didn't take her words to heart and gnashes her teeth in fury.
Even until now, she still saw Silas as the most perfect man she'd ever meet and couldn't take being in this woman's presence anymore.
Marching past her she hissed, "Don't you dare try to confuse me! I'm going down right now and playing this recording for Silas—so he'll finally know who you really are!"
It was definitely her sheltered life that made her underestimate the woman in front of her.
A woman capable of planning something so vile was capable of anything.
Elena had long since grown tired of her. She wasn't about to let her ruin everything she had worked for all these years.
So without a second thought, she grabbed the woman by the neck…
…and violently hurled her off the roof.