Chapter 5
Charles was stunned, too. He whipped his head around to look at Vera, his eyes wide with shock. He thought, 'I deleted those chat logs. How did Rosalyn know?'
Lauren was as stunned, her eyes darting between Charles and Vera, her face full of disbelief.
Rosalyn watched them panic, sneering inside.
In her previous life, she only learned after her death that on their wedding night, after Charles went to the guest room, he spent the whole night messaging Vera, trading all sorts of dirty talk.
Vera had later boasted about it to her face, recounting every sordid detail herself.
Rosalyn fixed her gaze on Vera, whose face had turned pale, and added, "Oh, and let's not forget your birthday last month. Charles gave you that 6-thousand-dollar necklace.
"You wore it around your neck every day, telling me it was something you bought for yourself. Do you mind pulling it out and showing everyone now?"
Vera instinctively touched her neck. She'd made sure to leave that necklace at home today, but somehow, Rosalyn knew all about it.
Vera panicked, tears spilling down her cheeks. "Rosalyn, you've got it all wrong. It's not what you think. Charles and I are friends. Don't listen to those ridiculous rumors."
"Rumors?" Rosalyn stood up, stepping closer with every word. "On the fifteenth last month, Charles said he was on a business trip, but he was actually out with you for three days in the neighboring city, wasn't he?
"And you guys booked the hotel with my membership card, right?"
With every accusation, Vera's face grew paler. By the time Rosalyn finished, Vera's legs buckled, and she dropped onto the couch, shaking all over, unable to say a single word.
The evidence was undeniable. She had no way to defend herself.
Charles also freaked out. He shot to his feet, desperately trying to explain to Rosalyn. "That's not it. Hear me out. We're friends. We only went on a business trip together. You got us wrong."
"Friends?" Rosalyn sneered. "Do friends text each other 'I miss you'? Do friends buy each other a 6-thousand-dollar necklaces?
"Do friends spend three days together in another city, sharing a hotel room? Charles, do you think I'm stupid?"
Lauren was floored by the truth. She'd always thought Vera was an innocent girl; she never expected her own son would actually cheat.
Still, she quickly decided to defend her son. She snapped at Rosalyn, "So what if Charles and Vera are close? It's perfectly normal for men to have mistresses.
"It's all because you make such a bad wife. You kicked your husband out on your wedding night, so naturally, he went looking for someone else."
Rosalyn was so mad that she almost laughed. She'd never seen someone so ridiculous.
She turned to Lauren, her eyes icy. "Lauren, are you saying Charles's cheating is all my fault?"
"Of course." Lauren shot back, chin held high. "If you treated him right, would he need to go find someone else?"
"Great," Rosalyn said, nodding as she pulled out her phone and hit stop on the recording app.
She'd recorded every word Lauren said, plus all of Charles and Vera's frantic explanations.
"Why are you recording us?" Charles's face went pale as he tried to grab her phone.
Rosalyn stepped back, dodging him, her voice icy. "I need proof. Charles, you got caught hooking up with my best friend the day after our wedding.
"Imagine if I uploaded this recording, your messages with Vera, and your hotel receipts for everyone to see. What do you think would happen to you two then?"
Charles's face turned ashen. He was at a critical point in his career right now. If news of his cheating got out, his career would be ruined.
Vera was scared out of her wits. She'd worked every connection she had to get into a top firm, and if this scandal broke, she'd not only lose her job but be laughed at by everyone in Larsbond.
"Rosalyn, don't." Vera sobbed, throwing herself at Rosalyn. "I'm sorry. It's all my fault. I promise I'll never do anything like this again. Please don't put it online."
Rosalyn stepped aside, watching Vera sob her eyes out, but she didn't feel a trace of sympathy.
In her previous life, when these two destroyed her family and left her with nothing, they never showed her a bit of mercy.
"Get lost," Rosalyn said coldly. "Get the hell out of my house. And don't ever show up again. Otherwise, I'll let everyone in Larsbond know your shit."
Vera didn't dare stick around for another second. She stumbled and crawled off the couch, so panicked that she forgot her bag, and tore out of the house.
Now, the only ones left in the living room were Charles, Lauren, and Rosalyn, who looked intimidating.
Charles stared at the phone in Rosalyn's hand, his legs going weak. He knew that from this day on, he'd never have any leverage over Rosalyn again.
Rosalyn looked at him, smirking. "Do you still want me to go to my family and get 300 thousand dollars for Harry?"
Charles shook his head frantically, forcing a smile. "No. Rosalyn, I was wrong. I never should have asked you for that. Please don't be mad. Could you delete the recording?"
"Delete it?" Rosalyn sneered. "Not a chance. I'm keeping this recording. If you ever do something behind my back again, this little piece of evidence will come in real handy."
She stuffed her phone into her pocket, spun around, and headed straight for the bedroom, shutting the door.
Charles and Lauren stared at each other in the living room. It finally hit them that Rosalyn wasn't the pushover they could manipulate anymore.
Inside the bedroom, Rosalyn leaned against the door, smirking.
She won again.
She thought, 'Vera, Charles, this was only a taste of payback. The real revenge is getting started.'
*****
After Vera was thrown out, Charles and Lauren behaved themselves.
Lauren no longer dared to point fingers at Rosalyn. She always spoke carefully, afraid she'd trigger her to release the recording.
Charles was all smiles every day, acting like a perfect husband, hoping she would delete the recording.
However, Rosalyn didn't fall for any of it.
In her previous life, she heard his sweet talk for three years and had already seen through his fake nature.
She knew Charles was playing nice. The second he saw an opening, he'd turn on her and stab her in the back.
She had to prepare as quickly as possible, take back everything that belonged to her, and cut off Charles's way out.