Pustaka
Cari
Beranda / Other / He Chose my Cousin, so I Chose Revenge / Forty three

Share

Forty three

Penulis: Ranya Vale
last update Terakhir Diperbarui: 2025-07-20 23:29:26

The news didn’t arrive all at once. It came in slivers, each one sharper than the last.

First, a subtle shift in the media narrative. Headlines no longer praised our bold unveiling or the depth of the investigative article. Instead, they questioned the timing. Asked whether the exposé had been coordinated to distract from “growing rumors of internal mismanagement.” Words like “financial desperation,” “leadership gamble,” and “fractured legacy” bled across articles like a slow leak, deliberate and insidious.

Then the calls began. A few vendors hesitated to confirm delivery schedules. One of our dye houses in Portugal sent a carefully worded email requesting “additional reassurances of stability.” A boutique in Paris that had previously requested an exclusive pre-season capsule quietly withdrew interest. There was no outrage, no accusation. Just retreat.

By noon, the worst of it arrived.

Simone came into my office with her tablet pressed tight to her chest. Her expression gave e
Lanjutkan membaca buku ini secara gratis
Pindai kode untuk mengunduh Aplikasi
Bab Terkunci
Bab sebelumnya Bab selanjutnya

Bab terbaru

  • He Chose my Cousin, so I Chose Revenge    Fifty one

    By the time the sunlight had fully reached the floors of the boutique, I could feel the pressure of the day beginning to settle against my chest like a weight I had already agreed to carry. Not because I wanted to, but because it was mine. It belonged to me in a way that was no longer avoidable.The article had shifted something. Not just outside, not just in the public conversation, but inside us. Inside me. It was no longer about silence or waiting or reacting. There was a current now, moving under our feet, and I knew that if I didn’t walk forward with it, it would drag me instead.Julian had gone back to his office just after we returned from the courtyard. He hadn’t said much beyond that quiet promise. The kind that does not beg for answers. The kind that leaves room for breath.Simone was still scanning the online threads, her fingers flying across the keyboard with sharp precision. Claudia was on the phone in the backroom, voice low and clipped, spe

  • He Chose my Cousin, so I Chose Revenge    Fifty

    I did not sleep the night after the interview. Sleep felt like a thing that belonged to other people, to lives less entangled. I stayed dressed, lying flat on top of my sheets, staring at the ceiling while the shadows in my room stretched and shifted. It felt as if the dark itself was listening, like the silence had grown into something sentient, waiting for me to move or speak or give it permission to release me.My phone started vibrating sometime around four. Mentions. Notifications. An alert from Lena that had been tagged “not urgent,” which told me it absolutely was. I sat up slowly and opened it, heart already bracing. The article had been published. Mode Verité did not use loud fonts or exclamation points. Their headline whispered with precision.Integrity Is Not a Campaign: Inside the Quiet Revolution at Cross Atelier.I read it once through with stillness in my body and a heart that beat faster with every paragraph. Then I read it again, slower. A

  • He Chose my Cousin, so I Chose Revenge    Forty nine

    The day began with a stillness that unsettled me more than any storm could have. The boutique was quiet, too quiet, like the silence that comes right before glass shatters. I stood in the fitting room hallway, fingers trailing lightly along the grain of the wall, trying to ground myself in the physical space I had fought so hard to reclaim. It felt surreal, this calm, as though the walls themselves were bracing for something they already sensed coming. Claudia was the first to arrive. She didn’t speak right away, just handed me a folder with tight lips and eyes that avoided mine. I opened it slowly, already knowing I would not like what I saw. Inside were printed screenshots of a thread spreading quickly across the industry’s internal forums, the kind usually reserved for suppliers, PR firms, and event coordinators. Someone had leaked partial financial records. Not current ones, but old enough to be misleading and carefully selected to suggest mismanagement, overspending, and a cash

  • He Chose my Cousin, so I Chose Revenge    Forty eight

    I didn’t sleep the night the press coverage broke. I tried—God, I tried—but my body stayed wired, half-braced, as if the walls might fall in at any moment. My thoughts wouldn’t quiet. Every time I closed my eyes, I saw headlines layered on headlines, their sharp fonts cutting through my skin like they had been designed to wound. By morning, I was already dressed. I hadn’t even undressed, really. I had pulled on a soft wrap and wandered barefoot through the boutique in silence, checking each room, touching each rail, letting my fingers brush against the fabrics we had chosen with such care. I didn’t need to do it. But I did. Just to remind myself this place still existed. That I still existed in it. Julian found me before the others arrived. I didn’t hear him come in, but when I turned around at the end of the hall, he was already there. Not in a suit. Just in a dark sweater and slacks, his sleeves pushed up, the sharp lines of his face softened by whatever long night he’d had. He di

  • He Chose my Cousin, so I Chose Revenge    Forty nine

    The day began with a stillness that unsettled me more than any storm could have. The boutique was quiet, too quiet, like the silence that comes right before glass shatters. I stood in the fitting room hallway, fingers trailing lightly along the grain of the wall, trying to ground myself in the physical space I had fought so hard to reclaim. It felt surreal, this calm, as though the walls themselves were bracing for something they already sensed coming.Claudia was the first to arrive. She didn’t speak right away, just handed me a folder with tight lips and eyes that avoided mine. I opened it slowly, already knowing I would not like what I saw. Inside were printed screenshots of a thread spreading quickly across the industry’s internal forums, the kind usually reserved for suppliers, PR firms, and event coordinators. Someone had leaked partial financial records. Not current ones, but old enough to be misleading and carefully selected to suggest mismanagement, overspending, a

  • He Chose my Cousin, so I Chose Revenge    Forty seven

    The boutique was quiet again. Not still, not truly silent, but quiet in the way a body is when it’s holding something in. The air carried the scent of steamed fabric and jasmine tea. Somewhere in the back, Simone was finishing a late call with the Zurich vendor. I could hear her pacing lightly, her words clipped and professional. But I stayed where I was, fingers curled against the smooth grain of the atelier’s main table. The one Julian had restored with his bare hands. The one I had bled on when I first came back.I didn’t want to move yet.My skin still held the memory of his touch from last night. Not rushed, not demanding. Just present. His hand had lingered at the base of my spine like he was afraid I might disappear if he let go. But he had let go. And I had walked away. Not because I didn’t want him. Because I did. So much that it terrified me. But I needed to face this storm without leaning on anyone else’s strength. Even his.Especially his.

Bab Lainnya

Anda juga akan menyukai

Jelajahi dan baca novel bagus secara gratis
Akses gratis ke berbagai novel bagus di aplikasi GoodNovel. Unduh buku yang kamu suka dan baca di mana saja & kapan saja.
Baca buku gratis di Aplikasi
Pindai kode untuk membaca di Aplikasi
DMCA.com Protection Status