Chapter 6 · He Chose His Muse, I Chose My Crown

The contract was for seven years, starting from the day it was signed. That meant there were still two full years left.

For the next two years, every acting job, endorsement deal, and variety show appearance of Henry would require my written approval.

After he became famous, he thought the contract was too harsh and tried to break it several times. And I always gave in, letting him do whatever he wanted, never actually enforcing the terms.

He probably thought the contract was long gone. Or maybe he believed that even if it was still around, I'd never have the guts to enforce it.

I closed the folder and texted Kelly. [Find me a reliable entertainment lawyer. The sooner, the better.]

Kelly replied instantly: [Got it. I'll send you the number this afternoon.]

I started the car and drove to the office.

I wasn't going to work. I was there to pick up my personal stuff.

The receptionist gave me a complicated look, like she wanted to say hi but didn't dare.

I headed straight for my old office.

The door was open, and someone was already inside.

It was Bella.

She was rifling through my file cabinet.

When she saw me, her hand paused for a moment, and then she shut the cabinet as if nothing had happened. "Winnie, what are you doing here?"

"To pick up my stuff." I walked over to my desk and opened the drawer. Someone had already gone through it.

"What were you looking for, Bella?" I asked.

Bella's smile was a little stiff. "Oh, nothing. I was just organizing some files for the handover. You know how many files Henry has. I don't want to miss anything."

"Henry's files are all backed up in the company system. You don't need to go through my cabinet."

Her expression faltered, and she forced a laugh. "Henry sent me over. He said you might have some of his old contracts here and wanted me to dig them out for the records."

I stared at her, but she wouldn't meet my eyes.

"Bella," I said as I packed my stuff into the bag, "you've been with me for three years. Deep down, you know exactly how I've treated you."

She hesitated, lips moving, but stayed silent.

"Whatever Henry wanted you to look for, you won't find it here." I grabbed my bag. "Because it was never here."

As I walked out of the office, I ran into Peter in the hallway.

Peter had been Henry's assistant for two years. He used to always say hi to me with respect every time he saw me, but now he just nodded and walked right past me.

I didn't care.

As I reached the elevator, I heard someone call out behind me. "Ms. Sterling."

I turned around.

It was Amy, the intern, hugging a stack of files and looking a little unsure. "Ms. Sterling, um, there's something I don't know if I should say it."

"Go ahead," I said.

She glanced around nervously and then lowered her voice. "Yesterday, when Henry came in for a meeting, I overheard him talking to Mr. Miller right outside the conference room.

"Henry asked him to a company statement, accusing you of serious professional misconduct while you were here, and to make it clear they're officially cutting all ties with you."

My fingers tightened around the bag's handle. "What did Mr. Miller say?"

"Mr. Miller seemed hesitant. Henry threatened to take his whole team and jump ship if he didn't go along with it."

I nodded. "Thanks for letting me know."

Amy bit her lip. "Ms. Sterling, I think this is so unfair. You've always been so good to us, and everyone here knows you're the one who made Henry what he is today."

The elevator arrived. I stepped inside and glanced back at her. "Amy, have you thought about what you want to do next?"

She blinked, a little lost. "I'm still interning, so I haven't really figured it out yet."

"When you do, let me know."

Then the elevator doors closed.

Later that afternoon, Kelly introduced me to a lawyer.

His name was Victor Cross, in his forties, and he was well-known for handling legal disputes in the entertainment industry.

I handed Victor the original copy of the contract. After going through it for a good ten minutes, he finally took off his glasses and looked at me seriously. "Ms. Sterling, this contract is legally airtight.

"It is notarized, both parties signed, and the terms are straightforward. Any business Henry is conducting right now without your written authorization is a clear breach of contract, legally speaking."

"Can he break the contract on his own?" I asked.

"Under the contract, if he wants out, he'll have to pay a penalty." Victor pointed to a clause. "Right here.

"It says if he ends the contract without your approval, he'll owe you thirty percent of everything he's made during the contract period as a penalty."

Chapter 6

The contract was for seven years, starting from the day it was signed. That meant there were still two full years left.

For the next two years, every acting job, endorsement deal, and variety show appearance of Henry would require my written approval.

After he became famous, he thought the contract was too harsh and tried to break it several times. And I always gave in, letting him do whatever he wanted, never actually enforcing the terms.

He probably thought the contract was long gone. Or maybe he believed that even if it was still around, I'd never have the guts to enforce it.

I closed the folder and texted Kelly. [Find me a reliable entertainment lawyer. The sooner, the better.]

Kelly replied instantly: [Got it. I'll send you the number this afternoon.]

I started the car and drove to the office.

I wasn't going to work. I was there to pick up my personal stuff.

The receptionist gave me a complicated look, like she wanted to say hi but didn't dare.

I headed straight for my old office.

The door was open, and someone was already inside.

It was Bella.

She was rifling through my file cabinet.

When she saw me, her hand paused for a moment, and then she shut the cabinet as if nothing had happened. "Winnie, what are you doing here?"

"To pick up my stuff." I walked over to my desk and opened the drawer. Someone had already gone through it.

"What were you looking for, Bella?" I asked.

Bella's smile was a little stiff. "Oh, nothing. I was just organizing some files for the handover. You know how many files Henry has. I don't want to miss anything."

"Henry's files are all backed up in the company system. You don't need to go through my cabinet."

Her expression faltered, and she forced a laugh. "Henry sent me over. He said you might have some of his old contracts here and wanted me to dig them out for the records."

I stared at her, but she wouldn't meet my eyes.

"Bella," I said as I packed my stuff into the bag, "you've been with me for three years. Deep down, you know exactly how I've treated you."

She hesitated, lips moving, but stayed silent.

"Whatever Henry wanted you to look for, you won't find it here." I grabbed my bag. "Because it was never here."

As I walked out of the office, I ran into Peter in the hallway.

Peter had been Henry's assistant for two years. He used to always say hi to me with respect every time he saw me, but now he just nodded and walked right past me.

I didn't care.

As I reached the elevator, I heard someone call out behind me. "Ms. Sterling."

I turned around.

It was Amy, the intern, hugging a stack of files and looking a little unsure. "Ms. Sterling, um, there's something I don't know if I should say it."

"Go ahead," I said.

She glanced around nervously and then lowered her voice. "Yesterday, when Henry came in for a meeting, I overheard him talking to Mr. Miller right outside the conference room.

"Henry asked him to a company statement, accusing you of serious professional misconduct while you were here, and to make it clear they're officially cutting all ties with you."

My fingers tightened around the bag's handle. "What did Mr. Miller say?"

"Mr. Miller seemed hesitant. Henry threatened to take his whole team and jump ship if he didn't go along with it."

I nodded. "Thanks for letting me know."

Amy bit her lip. "Ms. Sterling, I think this is so unfair. You've always been so good to us, and everyone here knows you're the one who made Henry what he is today."

The elevator arrived. I stepped inside and glanced back at her. "Amy, have you thought about what you want to do next?"

She blinked, a little lost. "I'm still interning, so I haven't really figured it out yet."

"When you do, let me know."

Then the elevator doors closed.

Later that afternoon, Kelly introduced me to a lawyer.

His name was Victor Cross, in his forties, and he was well-known for handling legal disputes in the entertainment industry.

"Can he break the contract on his own?" I asked.

"Under the contract, if he wants out, he'll have to pay a penalty." Victor pointed to a clause. "Right here.

"It says if he ends the contract without your approval, he'll owe you thirty percent of everything he's made during the contract period as a penalty."