Chapter 2Joyride to Jail

By the next morning, the hashtag #JaxonReleased was trending at number one.

I frowned, clicking on the attached video.

Jaxon looked perfectly disheveled, his blond hair intentionally messy to give him that tragic, victimized aesthetic.

He offered the camera a weak, teary-eyed smile.

"Thank you to everyone who stood by me. I am safe now."

"I was set up. I guess when you shine too bright, people try to drag you into the dark."

"Thank god my CEO benefactor believes in me. If it weren't for her, I might have been..."

He let a single tear slip down his cheek right on cue. The comment section went feral.

[Our baby suffered so much! Thank god Victoria is protecting him!]

[It broke my heart seeing him dragged like that. That military jerk abusing his power is pure evil!]

[Hah, the guy is just a glorified pilot. Did he really think he could stand up to the Ashford empire? Victoria handled him!]

The sheer audacity of it all was nauseating.

Victoria was willing to burn the world down for a two-faced actor.

I immediately dialed my legal counsel.

"Lawyer Bennett. Draft the divorce papers."

"And file federal charges against both of them for trespassing on a restricted military installation and tampering with classified assets."

Hanging up, my eyes landed on the wedding portrait resting on my nightstand.

In the photo, Victoria was leaning against my chest, her smile radiant and full of promises.

I still remembered our wedding day. A black-ops mission had gone south, delaying my arrival.

I had sprinted into the cathedral smelling like cordite and ash, beating the clock by mere seconds. That was when I heard Victoria's unwavering voice.

"I know Tony carries the weight of the country on his shoulders. I know his boots can never stay planted in one place for me."

"But from this day forward, I, Victoria Ashford, will be his invincible shield back home!"

Because of those very words, I gave her everything. I poured my trust, my soul, and the Kingsley family's vast resources into building her corporate empire.

The vows still echoed in my memory, but the woman who spoke them was long dead.

I packed my duffel bag, ready to head back to the base.

As I opened the front door, I nearly collided with Grandpa Ashford, who was dragging Victoria inside by her arm.

She was still wearing yesterday's clothes, clearly having spent the entire night pulling strings to get Jaxon out of federal custody.

"Tony, my boy," Grandpa Ashford greeted, forcing a warm, apologetic smile.

"Victoria acted out of line. I have already given her a piece of my mind."

"She only did this because she loves you so much. She just wanted to make you a little jealous."

"Sit down, talk it out. There's nothing a husband and wife can't fix."

Before I could even process the absolute absurdity of that statement, Victoria pointed a manicured finger at my face and shrieked.

"You are so utterly despicable, Tony! If you hadn't gone crying to Grandpa, he wouldn't have frozen all of Jaxon's contracts!"

I could not help but laugh.

"Crying to him? Or did your massive PR circus to bail out a criminal make so much noise that the board of directors noticed?"

The icy contempt in my eyes hit her like a physical blow. Her eyes went bloodshot with rage.

"You bastard!"

She grabbed a heavy, die-cast model jet off the console table and hurled it directly at my head.

I dodged instinctively, but a jagged piece of the metal wing grazed my jaw, drawing a thin line of blood.

"You ungrateful wretch!"

Grandpa Ashford roared, his cane slamming against the hardwood floor.

"How dare you raise your hand against your husband! Apologize to him this instant!"

Victoria clenched her fists, panic and toxic pride warring in her eyes.

"Why should I apologize?! He forced my hand!"

I felt the warm trail of blood slide down my neck, soaking into my collar. The last ember of warmth in my chest died out completely.

Taking a slow, deep breath, I looked at her with total detachment.

"Victoria. We are getting a divorce."