Chapter 6
Eden felt like every sob Claire made was cutting into his flesh, each one hurting him more than the last.
Somehow, it brought Elvira back to the past.
She and Eden had nothing, but they still refused to quit, determined to make the Becker Group rise from the ashes.
Elvira was always hustling for Eden, day and night, never catching a break.
One time, some rich kid grabbed Elvira's hand and started making sleazy jokes.
Eden lost it. He charged at the guy like his own life didn't matter, and beat him within an inch of his life.
Back then, Eden made a vow to Elvira.
He swore he'd never let her suffer that kind of humiliation again.
However, later, to help Eden land more business partners and make sure the Becker Group kept moving forward, Elvira did everything she could, sacrificing herself for Eden's business and the company's future.
She drank with clients, went to all those business dinners with Eden, just to keep things going.
In those private rooms, she inhaled a great amount of secondhand smoke.
But Eden, who once held her close, ended up falling for another woman.
Her eyes burned with tears as she forced a mocking smile.
She said, "Eden, I'm quitting. I don't want the Becker Group anymore."
Eden refused to let her quit.
He lowered his eyes, a calculating glint flickering in them.
He asked, "Elvira, the Becker Group is something we built from the ground up together. Are you really willing to leave it all behind?"
Eden figured anyone could bail on the company if they wanted, but not Elvira.
He felt that she cared too much about it to leave it.
Elvira saw how certain Eden was, and could only scoff at his confidence. It was almost laughable.
Back then, no one ever thought she'd throw away her life as the Rice family heiress just to be with Eden, who didn't have a dime to his name.
Now, Eden still couldn't believe she'd leave behind all those years of struggle and walk out on him for good.
Elvira's sharp nails dug into her skin.
None of those people understood her, and Eden didn't understand her either.
Eden went with Claire to the hospital for her check-up.
Elvira locked herself in the study, her face icy as she hammered out her resignation letter.
She took Eden's personal stamp from the safe and pressed it onto the resignation letter.
Then, she pulled out the divorce papers Eden had already signed.
She remembered when Eden handed them to her back then, he was joking that it was his way of making sure she'd be taken care of.
Elvira gave a mocking smile.
Then she grabbed her phone and called her personal attorney.
As soon as she hung up, the door burst open.
Eden marched straight up to Elvira.
He snatched her wrist, squeezing hard. "Come with me."
Elvira yelped in pain.
But Eden didn't even flinch, like her pain didn't register at all.
"Let go of me!" she shouted.
She wrenched her hand free from Eden's grip.
The divorce papers were just sitting there on the desk.
Eden only needed to look down to spot them.
But his eyes stayed locked on Elvira's face.
Eden's jaw was tight as he spoke. "Claire got picked up by the cops. Mr. Meyer's pressing charges. You are close to him. Go talk to him and see if you can smooth things over for her."
As soon as he finished, Elvira scoffed.
"Eden, what do you take me for?" she snapped.
She'd worked herself to the bone just to help the Becker Group lock down this massive deal.
She'd pulled every string she had just to get to meet Charlie.
However, Claire wrecked it all.
After Claire screwed things up so badly, Eden still wanted her to fix it.
Elvira did not want to get involved in this mess.
Eden knew Elvira wouldn't give in so easily.
Seeing the fury on her face, he grew eerily calm.
He pulled out his phone, opened the photo album, and set it down in front of her.
He said, "There are fifty-seven intimate photos of you in here. Every minute, I'll upload one online. Elvira, it's your call. Are you going, or not?"
She felt her whole world shatter, her thoughts scattering in every direction.