Chapter 157:
Kristian assumed her agitation confirmed his suspicions. “If not for the divorce proceedings, I would never have discovered your multitude of secrets.”
“I instructed you to leave!” Freya’s tone crystallized with increasing coldness.
“Freya,” Kristian pronounced her name before asking the question that ignited her fury. “I genuinely need to understand—were your demonstrations of kindness, attentiveness, and affection throughout these past two years merely an elaborate performance?”
“Perhaps you should direct that question inward,” Freya retorted sharply, overwhelmed by the impulse to gather her belongings and depart immediately. “Everything about me is authentic. On our wedding day, I clearly articulated that we could support each other. I’ve never deceived you.”
She addressed his inquiries with direct responses, choosing strategic silence for questions she couldn’t answer.
“How can you possibly make such claims?” Kristian’s gaze intensified with frigidity, convinced she embodied deception. “Have you conveniently forgotten your assertion that you were Hugh Briggs’s daughter? How do you explain that? Was that not a deliberate falsehood?”
Freya found herself momentarily speechless. She hadn’t fabricated anything. The true deceivers were her father and sister.
Furthermore, it wasn’t precisely deception; during that period, Freya had genuinely been safeguarding her sister like her personal bodyguard.
Anyone who dared victimize Ethel inevitably faced her formidable wrath.
“You needn’t issue the apology statement,” Kristian declared, wishing to terminate the conversation. His words carried unintended venom. “I prefer that people remain unaware I once had a deceptive, jealous wife.”
With that pronouncement, he departed.
𝙑𝙚𝙧𝙞𝙛𝙞𝙚𝙙 𝙘𝙤𝙣𝙩𝙚𝙣𝙩 𝙛𝙧𝙤𝙢 g𝙖𝙡𝙣𝙤𝙫𝙚𝙡𝙨ⳓ𝙘𝙤𝙢
Though anger toward Freya consumed him, his grandfather cherished her deeply. Compelling such a resolute woman to apologize would devastate her dignity, likely breeding resentment toward him. For his grandfather’s sake, he would excuse her behavior this once. Just this singular time.
Freya remained oblivious to his internal reasoning. As she observed his departure from the second-floor corridor, she followed him downstairs.
After he closed the door behind him, she decisively changed the security password.
Upon returning to her study, she discovered a message from Frederick. He wrote, “When are we releasing that apology letter? I’ve crafted it perfectly—it will definitely provoke public condemnation of both Kristian and Ashley.” Daring to mistreat his beloved Freya essentially meant disregarding him completely.
Freya responded succinctly, “We’re not posting it.”
Bewilderment overwhelmed him. Why abandon their plan? His initial assumption was that Kristian had intimidated Freya, but then he recalled that the apology statement originated with Kristian.
What mysterious developments were unfolding?
Consumed by confusion, he called her, plunging directly into the subject the moment their connection was established. “Freya, why are we canceling the post? Weren’t we planning to expose Kristian and Ashley’s scandalous behavior?”
“We settled on new terms,” Freya stated, her gaze unflinchingly anchored to the laptop screen that displayed the intricate collaboration project between Briggs Group and Shaw Group. “He conceded that an apology wasn’t necessary.”
Frederick’s eyebrows shot up in surprise. “But how does skipping the apology connect with our plan to expose his affair?” he queried, his voice tinged with confusion.
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