Chapter 4The Assistant and The Axe

Isabelle's indifference was a cold slap in the face.

Kevin roared with laughter. "That's it? She hung up? What'd she say? Let me guess: 'figure it out yourself'?"

My father-in-law looked at me, his eyes wide. "Alex, is that really what she said?" I could see the anger starting to burn in his gaze, not for my sake, but at his own daughter's callousness.

"Dad, Isabelle said she's in a meeting. She's busy."

"That's no excuse!" he boomed. "She just can't be bothered with us!"

"He's right. Ms. Ross doesn't want to be bothered with you," Kevin gloated. He then turned to me with a smug grin. "I bet you I can get her here with one phone call."

"She's in a meeting," I repeated, realizing how naive I sounded even as the words left my mouth. "She won't come for anyone."

Kevin was already dialing. He put the phone on speaker. It rang once before she picked up.

"Kevinnnn," she cooed, her voice now a playful, sugary purr. "I'm in a meeting, you know."

The same words, but a universe of difference in tone. The cold indifference was gone, replaced by a flirtatious warmth.

"I know, Ms. Ross," Kevin chuckled. "I just missed you. Wanted to hear your voice."

"Oh, stop it. Call me Isabelle. Don't be such a stranger."

Hearing my wife's syrupy voice made me want to laugh. In all our years of marriage, I had never heard her speak like that, never once seen her act playful or coy. The Isabelle I knew was a powerhouse, a force of nature. Apparently, that was just for show.

My father-in-law stared at the phone, his face a mask of disbelief, as if he couldn't process that the voice belonged to his daughter.

Before he could speak, Kevin cut in. "Isabelle, I've run into a little trouble here. Can you come down?"

"Of course," she said instantly. "Send me your location. I'm on my way."

In a meeting? No time?

I let out a bitter, silent laugh. I couldn't imagine a more humiliating moment. Whose wife was she, exactly?

Kevin turned to me, his chest puffed out. "You hear that? Isabelle's on her way. Anything else you'd like to say?"

He looked so triumphant. I had lost, completely and utterly. But I had been preparing myself for this. The disappointment was real, but now I was more curious to see the look on Isabelle's face when she saw her parents.

Forty minutes later, a news alert popped up on my phone.

Leo Ross, former chairman of Ross Industries, has passed away due to illness at the age of 89.

My father-in-law saw the notification over my shoulder. His face went from confusion to rage, and finally, to utter despair. They knew. Even if we left now, it was too late.

The chance to see his father one last time was gone. A wound that would never heal.

Just then, a sleek sports car pulled up. Isabelle stepped out. So much for being "in a meeting"—she was perfectly made up, dressed not in her usual power suit, but in a sexy, form-fitting knit dress and stilettos that drew stares from everyone around.

"Isabelle, over here!" Kevin waved her over.

She saw him and broke into a smile I had never seen before—warm, tender, and undeniably intimate. The old me would have been consumed by jealousy. The new me felt nothing.

When she finally saw me, the smile vanished. "Why did you park in Kevin's spot?" she demanded. "You deserved to have your car smashed."

"There was a reason," I started. "I was with—"

"I don't want to hear your excuses," she cut me off.

"Fine. Then pretend I never said anything."

"What's that supposed to mean? Are you blaming me?"

Faced with her irrational anger, I simply turned away. She was about to erupt when my father-in-law emerged from the restroom.

The first words out of his mouth when he saw her were, "You unfilial child! You finally decided to show up!"