Gilded Lies

A surge of hatred welled up within me. Before I could even react, Jade slapped herself across the face twice. A piercing scream shattered the night. She lunged forward, tumbling over the railing and plunging straight into the sea. Her frail body thrashed desperately against the waves.

I hadn't even processed what was happening when Jordan shoved me hard to the ground. Without sparing me a glance, he turned and dove in after her. As he brought Jade back on board, she sobbed uncontrollably in his arms.

Jordan looked at me without any love in the eyes of the past. "Willa, have you lost your mind? This is what you call 'letting go of the past'? Jade found out about what happened to you and came all the way here to check on you, to explain the misunderstanding from back then. How could you lay a hand on her?"

I lay on the ground in disarray, my clothes disheveled, revealing red marks on my skin. My expression grew colder. "Misunderstanding? The so-called misunderstanding from back then, don't you owe me an explanation? If it weren't for you, I wouldn't have fallen so low that she'd feel the need to 'visit' me!"

His brows furrowed, a flicker of panic flashing across his eyes. "What explanation? You knew the Schmidts went bankrupt back then. I took you in out of kindness! If you hadn't been so disobedient and run off today, none of this would've happened! What did you expect me to do? Even if I were a god, I couldn't watch over you every second! You brought this upon yourself, why blame Jade? If anything, blame yourself for being reckless! Willa, apologize to Jade!"

Before I could respond, tears streamed down Jade's face. "No, please, don't make things difficult for Willa. It's all my fault that the Schmidts went bankrupt. I didn't stop Jasper in time and I owe her for that. As for today, let's just treat it as my way of making it up to her. If she hates me this much, then let's not contact each other anymore. I don't want to put you in a difficult position."

My nails dug into my palm, breaking the skin, drops of blood falling silently. As I watched the two of them walk away, arm in arm, I knew it was over. Five years of love turned to ashes at that moment. Around me, the murmurs of onlookers swirled like a storm. "So, this is the infamous Mrs. Griffin, the one who's been 'ruined' twice? She has the nerve to go after Miss Jefferson when she's nothing but a used woman. How shameless!"

"No wonder Mr. Griffin never takes her out in public. He's probably embarrassed. A CEO marrying a woman like her? And that miscarriage, who knows whose child it even was? the Griffins' reputation is in shambles because of her!"

"Miss Jefferson and Mr. Griffin make such a perfect couple. I heard they were together in college. If she hadn't gone abroad, there's no way this woman would've gotten a chance. Honestly, no one else would be blind enough to marry her."

***

I staggered back to the private lounge. The blood had already seeped through my dress. After washing up, a message from Jordan finally came in. [Don't overthink what happened tonight. Jade is technically my sister-in-law and there were many business partners from the Griffins on that yacht. If you had hurt her, it wouldn't have looked good. Asking you to apologize was just for show.]

[I'll come back and make it up to you once I've taken care of her injuries, alright? I promised to give you a gift—don't be upset.]

I knew this wasn't an act for outsiders but for me. He had kept up this illusion of love for five years. Now, it was finally time to end it. I signed the divorce papers and attached screenshots of the video from his phone, setting them to send on a timer. After taking the medication, I sat on the edge of the bed until the early hours. Unfortunately, he never came.

Only a hotel staff member arrived, bringing news. "The President of Griffin Company spent the night on the yacht, risking everything for his beloved."

Jade just caught a cold from falling into the water and he called up all the doctors on the yacht. He didn't hesitate to spend millions on it. I called him at dawn, but he was busy auctioning jewelry for Jade and didn't have time for me.

The place was lit up like daytime. The guests around were all full of envy. Only then did he remember to pick up my call. "Willa? I'm preparing a gift for you. Are you feeling unwell? I'll send the doctor over first. I'll be there soon."

I looked down, watching the email countdown on the screen tick by. Down in the hall, Jordan was hugging Jade tightly. "It's fine. You're busy, I won't bother you."

"Alright, be good and wait for me in the room. I'll be there soon, wifey." The call ended. Then, I turned around and left.

The auction ended. As always, Jordan gave the jewelry to Jade. He kept the gift box and went back to the private room. Jordan's heart sank as he found out that the room was empty. Just as he was about to call me, his friend suddenly burst through the door with an ashen face.

"Something's wrong, Jordan. Willa is in trouble! Those people from last time, they didn't leave the yacht as planned. Someone saw them taking Willa away!"

Before he could react, Jordan's phone rang.