Chapter 4

Two days later, by 2:00 pm, a crowd had already gathered outside my company. Over two dozen of Holly's relatives from the Sullivan and Tate families had shown up.

Eric arrived with several other livestreamers. They were all holding up their phones to stream the whole thing.

Quite a few onlookers had gathered and were also filming the company entrance with their phones.

The moment I got out of my car, a barrage of insults came flying at me.

"The scumbag's here!"

"That's the sleazebag who hired a prostitute the night before his wedding! The nerve of him to show his face!"

"He's nothing but a filthy loser who hits his wife!"

Holly stood in the middle of the crowd in a white dress and with very little makeup on, leaving the swollen patch on her face exposed.

The moment she saw me, tears streamed down her cheeks.

"Logan, I never wanted things to come to this. Why did you have to force my hand?"

As soon as she said that, the comments in the livestream went wild.

Eric came to her side and declared righteously, "Logan, this is the last time I'm giving you advice as a friend. Since you made a mistake, you should own up to it. Don't make a woman like Holly suffer the consequences alone."

I glanced at the tool bag in his hand, which wasn't fully closed. I spotted a metal handle poking out. It was a wrench.

Suddenly, a flood of words appeared before my eyes again.

"That's the wrench he'll use to bash your skull in! It's obvious he's planning to do it no matter what happens. Once you're taken to the hospital, Holly's going to choose to forgo treatment even though you can be saved. And because she's your wife and insists that you're the one who attacked him first, he gets to walk away unscathed!"

The scenes foretold by the hovering words sent chills down my spine.

I confronted the situation head-on, with Michael right beside me.

I connected my phone to the LCD screen in the lobby, and we made sure all the surveillance cameras were on, with the footage saved in real time.

Joseph threw down an agreement, demanding, "Sign it! Scum like you doesn't deserve to own a house and a company. Marrying you is the worst thing that has ever happened to Holly!"

I flipped through the agreement. It was the same one Holly had sent to me. They refused to return the money I'd given her, but they expected me to hand over my house and almost half of my company. I was also expected to provide monetary compensation for her emotional distress.

Setting the agreement back down on the table, I answered, "I'm not signing this."

Eric immediately shoved his phone in my face and said to his livestream audience, "Heard that, guys? We have all the evidence right in front of us, and he still refuses to admit it! We mustn't forget about Holly's injuries, the woman who showed up at the club, and the transaction records! How can any of that be faked?"

Holly tugged on his arm and said tearfully, "Please stop. I'm scared."

The more "scared" she acted, the more agitated Eric became. He reached into his tool bag and pulled out the wrench.

"Logan, men like you won't learn your lesson until someone beats it into you."

Henry and two other employees of mine immediately stepped in front of me, but Eric kicked Henry aside. He fell hard, his arm striking against the hard surface at an awkward angle, making him groan in pain.

Some people in the crowd yelped in alarm, and the livestream footage shook violently, too.

Meeting Eric's gaze, I said evenly, "If you bring that wrench down on me today, it won't count as an innocent attempt to stand up for someone else. It'll be treated as assault."

Eric's eyes were bloodshot as he snarled, "Are you threatening me? I caught you cheating red-handed, and you still have the nerve to act tough?"

I took out my phone and played an audio recording of my call to the police from the hallway at The Aurelian.

"Someone has used my identity to arrange an illegal transaction and is attempting to fabricate evidence of my supposed infidelity before my wedding…"

The crowd quietened down a little.

Eric immediately shouted, "Who's to say you weren't just putting on an act? If you did nothing wrong, how do you explain the chat records and transaction records?"

Nodding, I replied, "Good question."

I started a video call. Steven appeared on the screen. It looked like he was sitting in front of a computer in some kind of lab, with several pieces of forensic equipment arranged behind him.

Eric scoffed. "You think you can clear your name by hiring some old loon?"

A police officer from the nearest police station arrived, and he was stunned when he saw the face on the screen.

"Captain Archer! What are you doing here?"