Lahat ng Kabanata ng DIVORCE ME, MR. BILLIONAIRE: Kabanata 21 - Kabanata 30

"This is it," Ryan said, slowing the car in front of a narrow row house, its paint peeling, the windows covered with faded curtains that hadn't been opened in years by the look of them. "You still want to do this?"Amelia stared at the house, her hands twisting together in her lap. "I didn't come this far to turn around now."They stepped out together, the morning air sharp and cold, the street quiet except for a distant dog barking somewhere behind one of the fences. Ryan walked slightly ahead of her, his eyes scanning the block with the same careful attention he brought to every boardroom negotiation."Let me do the talking first," he said. "If this is Samuel Reyes, he might not trust either of us right away.""He knows who I am," Amelia said. "That's not going to be the problem."They climbed the short steps to the front door, and Ryan knocked twice, firm but not aggressive. A long moment passed before they heard movement inside, slow footsteps, a chain sliding free.The door opene

"All rise."Amelia stood beside Gregory at the long table, her hands folded tightly in front of her to keep them from shaking. Across the aisle, Victor sat beside his lawyer, his expression composed, almost bored, like the entire hearing was beneath him despite the fact that he was the one who'd requested it.The judge settled into her chair, glancing briefly at the files in front of her before addressing the room. "This hearing concerns an emergency motion filed by Mr. Victor Hale requesting an immediate freeze on all Whitmore Global assets, pending investigation into alleged fraud during the transfer of inheritance to Miss Amelia Hart. Counsel, you may proceed."Victor's lawyer stood, smooth and confident, launching into an argument built on suspicion rather than evidence, questioning the speed of the inheritance transfer, the circumstances surrounding Arthur Whitmore's final months, the sudden and convenient timing of Amelia's rise to power. Amelia listened, her jaw tight, forcing

"Explain now," Amelia said, gripping Gregory's arm before he could steer her toward the exit. "Not later. Not after whatever he's planning happens. Now."Gregory glanced across the room, where Marcus Whitmore still stood beside Damian Cross, unbothered, sipping his drink like he had all the time in the world. "Not here. Too many people are watching.""Then somewhere private," Ryan said, appearing at Amelia's side, his eyes tracking the same terrace, the same tension building beneath the surface of the room. "There's a study off the east hallway. Private, quiet."Gregory hesitated only a moment before nodding, and the three of them moved quickly through the crowd, weaving past conversations that barely registered their passing. Behind them, Amelia caught one last glimpse of Marcus watching her go, his expression unreadable, patient in a way that unsettled her more than open hostility would have.The study door clicked shut behind them, muffling the noise of the gala to a distant hum. G

"Don't," Marcus said, stepping forward, his hand raised carefully. "Victor, think about this. Whatever you play in that ballroom, it exposes you just as much as it exposes us.""I don't care anymore," Victor said, his thumb still pressed against the recorder. "I've lost everything already. The board, my reputation, the investigation the district attorney's office is building against me. There's nothing left to protect."Amelia studied him carefully, searching for the calculated man from the boardroom and finding instead someone unraveling in real time, desperation replacing every trace of his usual composure. "What exactly did you record, Victor?""Enough," Victor said. "Marcus admitting his involvement in your grandmother's death. Enough to destroy whatever fragile redemption he's trying to build tonight. And enough to remind everyone in that ballroom that the Whitmore legacy is built on secrets far uglier than anything Whitmore Global's investors realize."Gregory emerged from behin

"How does he already know about Marcus?" Ryan asked, reading the message over Amelia's shoulder. "We only just walked back inside.""I don't know," Amelia said, her thumb hovering over the reply button. "But I need to find out."She typed back quickly. *Where are you?*The reply came almost instantly. *Coat check hallway. Alone.*Amelia glanced at Ryan, then at Gregory, who had joined them by now, his expression tightening the moment he read the exchange over her shoulder."I'll come with you," Ryan said."No," Amelia said. "He said alone. If I bring anyone, he might close up again, the way he almost did at the café.""After everything that just happened on that terrace," Gregory said, "I don't think you should be meeting anyone alone tonight.""I'll be thirty feet from the ballroom," Amelia said. "Watch the hallway from the doors if it makes you feel better. But I need him to actually talk to me, and that means going without an audience."Ryan's jaw tightened, but he nodded eventuall