Chapter 9: A Slow Death

The celebration was still in full swing in the main hall, but for Ravelle, the air around the stage felt increasingly suffocating. The ruby necklace wrapped around her neck no longer felt like luxurious jewelry, but like a cold iron chain choking her dignity. After managing to get through a tiring photo session with the investors, Ravelle whispered near Kyle’s ear, making an excuse that she needed to go to the restroom to fix her makeup.

Kyle, still intoxicated by the praise of business colleagues and predictions of rising corporate stocks, only nodded casually and kissed the back of Ravelle’s hand in a performatively romantic gesture.

Ravelle walked away from the crowd, letting her maroon silk gown sweep across the quiet corridor leading to the hotel’s private area. Once the VIP restroom door closed firmly behind her, she immediately leaned against the marble wall, taking a deep breath to calm the nausea rising in her chest.

Just as she stood in front of the large mirror, the phone inside her handbag vibrated. A message notification came from a private number.

The time on the phone screen showed exactly 20:00.

Ravelle opened the digital document attached to the message. It was an official file bearing the letterhead of the forensic laboratory of Jhins International Hospital. Her eyes moved quickly, scanning line after line of medical terminology until her gaze locked onto a single conclusion at the bottom of the page: Trace amounts of the chemical Thallium and Arsenic were detected in daily fluid samples. Long-term accumulation causes atrophy of the reproductive system, decreased libido, and chronic migraines.

Ravelle’s fingers suddenly stiffened. Her phone nearly slipped from her grasp. Her face, which had been calm moments before, turned pale, losing all color.

Damn it… she cursed inwardly. Her body trembled violently under the wave of reality crashing into her consciousness without mercy.

No wonder. No wonder she had felt weak without reason over the past few years. No wonder her head often throbbed painfully until she could not stand, and her feminine desire seemed completely eroded, making her feel guilty every time she refused Kyle’s touch. All this time, she had thought her body was naturally weak, or perhaps it was due to the stress of managing the household and her mother-in-law’s pressure. In reality, there had been unseen hands rotting behind her meals.

Without wasting time, Ravelle pressed the call button on that number. The call connected immediately on the first ring.

“El…” Ravelle’s voice trembled, choking in her throat. She gripped the edge of the marble sink to support her suddenly weakened body. “This lab result… is it true that this substance is what made me infertile?”

On the other end of the line, a heavy sigh was heard from Erlan Jhins. The man’s voice sounded deep, filled with restrained anger held back tightly to maintain his composure in front of Ravelle.

“Medically speaking, that heavy metal poison slowly damages your uterine lining, Vel,” Erlan replied in his calm yet cold baritone. “That’s why the tests support a diagnosis of early ovarian failure. But the real target of this poison isn’t just to make you infertile.”

Ravelle closed her eyes, letting a single tear of anger fall onto her cheek. “Then what is it?”

“This substance is designed to kill you slowly, Ravelle,” Erlan hissed, a sharp crack of emotion breaking through his usually unshakable voice. “The dosage is carefully controlled. Little by little, it attacks your internal organs without being detected by standard blood tests. If you continue consuming it for another one or two years, you will experience total organ failure. To the public eye, your death would look like a natural chronic illness.”

Thud.

Ravelle’s heart felt as if it had stopped beating upon hearing it. A suffocating silence crept between them for several seconds. Only Ravelle’s increasingly heavy, ragged breathing could be heard.

In her mind, the pieces of the puzzle now came together in a horrifying way. Her mind immediately connected this poison to the fake divorce documents and Calysta’s birth certificate she had found in Kyle’s safe.

So this is your real plan? Ravelle thought, a chilling grin slowly forming on her pale face.

She misunderstood. In Ravelle’s mind, now filled with fog of rage, she believed Kyle was fully involved in this murder conspiracy. Why did Kyle forge divorce documents eight years ago but still keep her in the main house? Why did Kyle secretly marry Jessica but hide it from the world?

The answer was clear to Ravelle: Kyle wanted to use her as a decorative wife to build his business reputation, drain her remaining energy, and let her slowly die from “illness.” After her death, all assets, shares, and wealth believed to belong to this orphaned woman with no family would automatically fall into Kyle’s hands as the “grieving husband.” After that, Kyle would simply bring Jessica and Calysta into the house as the sole rightful heirs without public scandal in Manhattan.

“Vel? Are you still there?” Erlan’s voice broke Ravelle’s dark reverie. “Don’t go back to the hall. I’ll come pick you up now.”

“No need, El,” Ravelle replied, her voice suddenly turning extremely calm—a deadly calm, typical of a Branson ready to hunt. “Let it proceed. I’m hanging up now.”

Ravelle ended the call unilaterally. She stared at her reflection in the mirror. Her tears had dried, replaced by eyes as cold as Antarctic ice. Her sadness was completely dead tonight. What remained was only a burning desire for revenge.

Kyle Stevens… Jessica Hepburn… you want me to slowly die so you can take everything? Ravelle thought while gripping her phone tightly. Then let’s see who ends up crawling on the floor first.

Ravelle straightened her maroon gown, ensuring not a single trace of disorder remained in her appearance. With elegant and rhythmic steps, she opened the restroom door and walked back through the quiet corridor connecting the restroom area to the main hall.

However, after only walking a few dozen meters, Ravelle suddenly stopped near a corner leading to a dead-end hallway, a dim area usually used only by hotel staff.

Faintly, the sound of heavy breathing and fabric rustling could be heard from there.

Ravelle narrowed her eyes. She moved silently, pressing her back against the corridor wall near the corner, then peeked slightly into the secluded hallway.

There, under the dim wall light, two people she knew very well were standing close together.

Kyle Stevens and Jessica Hepburn.

Kyle had removed his tuxedo jacket, leaving only a white shirt with several top buttons undone. He pressed Jessica against the wall, both hands gripping the secretary’s waist possessively. Jessica, in her tight dress, tilted her head back, wrapping both arms around Kyle’s neck and eagerly licking his neck, leaving red lipstick stains on it.

“Ah… Kyle, you were amazing on stage earlier,” Jessica whispered between kisses, her voice a disgusting, sultry moan. “That kiss earlier… you really made me so jealous.”

Kyle let the woman toy with his neck, letting out a low groan before whispering, “Didn’t I already tell you? It was just an act for the investors, Jess. Our stocks need to rise tomorrow morning.”

Jessica paused, staring straight into Kyle’s eyes with a dense, obsessive glare. Her fingers slid from his chest up to his jaw.

“Kyle, remember this… I am your real woman,” Jessica hissed with sharp possessiveness. “Only I can give birth to your child. Only I gave you Calysta. That infertile woman out there will never be able to give you what I give you.”

Kyle chuckled softly, kissing Jessica briefly before fixing her hair. “I know, Jess. Just be patient a little longer. All of this will end soon.”

Behind the wall, Ravelle watched the entire scene without blinking. Her hand gripped her silk dress so tightly that her nails pierced the fabric. An intense disgust churned in her stomach, but the cold smile on her lips only grew wider.

Only you can give him children, Jessica? Ravelle thought, mocking their stupidity. Of course, because you two have poisoned me.

Ravelle slowly stepped backward without making a sound, leaving the secret lovers still absorbed in their passionate embrace in the darkness of the corridor. She walked back toward the main hall with her head held high.

Three days. She only needed to survive three more days in this charade before disappearing and bringing down the entire world Kyle and Jessica had built to the ground.