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Home / Eight Years Imprisoned, One Night of Revenge / Kabanata 1 - Kabanata 10

Lahat ng Kabanata ng Eight Years Imprisoned, One Night of Revenge: Kabanata 1 - Kabanata 10

10 Kabanata

Chapter 1

A muscle in Arthur's face twitched.He stared at the court-stamped receipt, his whiskey glass frozen halfway to his mouth.Whiskey ran down the side of the glass and dripped onto the carpet, leaving a dark stain.He slammed the glass onto the table and grabbed the copy of the receipt.Rip! The sound of tearing paper cut through the living room.He ripped it into pieces and threw them into the air."You think you can get rid of me by changing your last name?"Arthur brushed the scraps off his hands, his arrogant gaze sweeping over Kate and me."Dream on."He pulled his phone from the inside pocket of his suit jacket, dialed a number with practiced ease, and switched the call to speaker.The phone rang once before someone answered."Good evening, General Ashford. This is your private banking manager, Dana Brooks. How may I assist you?""Freeze the joint account held by Luke and Kate. Effective immediately."Arthur locked eyes with me as he gave the order over the phone."Of course, Gener

Chapter 2

Early the next morning, my phone buzzed nonstop.The screen was filled with unread messages from the family group chat.I opened it. Arthur's girlfriend, Vanessa Reed, had posted a long rant.Every word painted her as the victim while blaming me."Arthur has done everything he can for these children. He's called in favors, used every connection he has, and even given up his weekends to help build their future."But Allison doesn't appreciate any of it. Instead, she manipulated both children into changing their last name and turning against their own father.""Arthur was so upset last night that he didn't sleep at all. His heart condition almost acted up. What kind of selfish mother would ruin her children's future just to win an argument?"Under the post was a photo of Arthur sitting in his study, rubbing his temples. The picture had clearly been taken from behind.The whole family immediately rushed to his side.Someone replied, "How ungrateful! Arthur has sacrificed so much for that

Chapter 3

three days, Kate's phone barely stopped ringing.At lunch one day, her business partner, Noah Bennett, called in a panic. His voice was so loud I could hear every word from across the table."Kate, we've got a problem! Our lead investor just emailed. They're pulling out."Kate jumped to her feet."Why? We passed due diligence just last month!""They wouldn't tell me much. They only said we suddenly failed their risk review. My contact told me General Ashford called them himself. Anyone who invests in us now will be making an enemy of his entire network."Noah's voice cracked."Kate, the gap is too big. Without this round of funding, we'll be bankrupt by next week."The call ended. Kate stood by the window, her shoulders trembling.She had built that company through countless sleepless nights and more cups of coffee than either of us could count.Now, one phone call from Arthur threatened to wipe it all away.I poured her a glass of water and carried it over.Kate turned to me, her eyes

Chapter 4

The moment the doors swung open, the chatter inside died.It was supposed to be a family dinner celebrating Luke's eighteenth birthday.Arthur sat at the head of the table with a glass of red wine in his hand.He watched us walk in. His eyes swept over our formal clothes, and the corner of his mouth curled into a sneer."At least you know what's good for you." He set his wineglass on the table. "You had the sense to dress properly before coming here to apologize. At least you didn't disgrace the family."The weight of his authority filled the room.The relatives on both sides of the table lowered their forks and stared at us.One of the elders rapped her knuckles against the table. "Allison, you're here. Apologize to Arthur and end this. Don't throw away your son's future over your foolish pride.""That's right," Richard Ashford said. "Arthur has already been more than generous. Apologize, and he'll let this go."I watched their shameless worship of power with cold indifference.Arthur

Chapter 5

Arthur froze for a split second.He quickly snatched the declaration away and covered the exposed corner of the photograph."Stop waving that old photo around like a lunatic!" His voice rose. "We're talking about Luke's education! The call's still connected. Do you really want him to lose his chance at college?"He turned the speaker volume all the way up.Robert's hurried breathing echoed through the silent private dining room.Margaret spoke up, trying to smooth things over. "Allison, have you been under so much stress that you're imagining things? Arthur froze your bank cards. How are you supposed to live? Can those old keepsakes put food on the table?"She pointed at the dishes spread across the table. "Look at this dinner. Arthur paid for every dish. Just swallow your pride, your children will still have a future, and you can all get on with your lives."The other relatives nodded in agreement. For the sake of their own financial interests, they continued to take Arthur's side.I

Chapter 6

Arthur roared into the speakerphone. "In my capacity as a Major General, I order you to revoke every one of Luke's admissions offers immediately! Put him on the blacklist for every college in Briarwood!"The line went silent for two seconds. Then came a hesitant replied, "Understood, General Ashford. We'll update the system immediately."Arthur hung up and tossed the phone onto the table, his chest heaving.Arthur ended the call and tossed his phone onto the table. He straightened his tie, the smug look returning to his face."Money will not save you from real power." He pointed at Luke. "You can have all the money in the world, and I'll still make sure you can't survive in Briarwood!"Seeing the turn of events, Vanessa immediately pulled out her phone and started recording.She aimed the camera at me, her voice full of fake sympathy. "Everyone, take a good look. This is the selfish woman who'd rather satisfy her own pride than think about her children. She forced their father to cut t

Chapter 7

The lead officer, Rachel Monroe, walked straight to the head of the table and stopped in front of Arthur.She took an ID from her jacket pocket, flipped it open, and held it up for Arthur to see. "Mr. Ashford, we're officials from the Education Bureau."We've received a formal complaint alleging that you abused your position to threaten personnel in our admissions office and deliberately interfere with the normal admissions process."Arthur froze, the photograph still raised in his hand. His expression shifted before he forced himself to remain calm. "This is a misunderstanding. I was only concerned about my son's education and called the head of admissions to discuss the situation."He tried to brush it off as a routine family matter.The official ignored his explanation. Another investigator removed a certified call transcript from an evidence folder and placed it on the table."The threats you made during that phone call triggered our admissions office's compliance review system. Th

Chapter 8

Arthur tore open the envelope and pulled out several pages bearing the hospital's official seal.He jabbed a finger at the diagnosis."September 14, eight years ago. You lost your mind, smashed a glass in the living room, and cut yourself with the broken pieces!"He held the medical records high for everyone to see."To protect your dignity—and to keep the children from having a mentally ill mother—I agreed to the divorce. I even asked the court to restrict where you could live so you could receive treatment!"I looked at the medical records, picked up the glass on the table, and took a sip of water. "Arthur."I set the glass down with a soft click and let out a cold laugh. "Didn't it ever occur to you to find out where the doctor who signed that report is now?"Arthur scoffed. "The records are right here in black and white, complete with the doctor's signature. Are you still going to deny it?"Steady footsteps echoed from the corridor outside the room.A middle-aged man in a trench co

Chapter 9

Just as Arthur's fingers were about to reach the USB drive, Luke stepped forward and delivered a sharp kick to Arthur's outstretched wrist."Don't touch it!"Luke stood in front of the table, glaring down at him. "You're an abuser!"Arthur clutched his wrist and stumbled to the floor, but he still refused to back down.He looked up, his face flushed red, and roared, "I'm a Major General! If you people lay a finger on me, the courts won't let you get away with it! By tomorrow, I'll have every one of you behind bars!"He still clung to the delusion that his rank could shield him from any crime.I stepped over the mess on the floor and stopped in front of him, looking down at him from above. "How much longer do you think that rank of yours will protect you?"I reached into the deepest compartment of my handbag and took out the last document.I flung it into Arthur's face. "This is the complete record of how you transferred assets during our marriage, accepted undisclosed kickbacks through

Chapter 10

The investigators stepped up to Arthur and read from the document without expression."Arthur Ashford, you are suspected of falsifying official medical records, possessing assets from unexplained sources, and are subject to the reopening of an eight-year-old domestic violence case. You are hereby taken into custody in accordance with the law."With a sharp click, a pair of cold handcuffs locked around Arthur's wrists.Two investigators hauled him to his feet, one on each side.His legs gave way beneath him, and he was almost dragged toward the door.As he passed me, he suddenly struggled and turned to look at me.The arrogance had vanished from his eyes, replaced by desperate pleading. "Allison... for the children's sake... please say some good words for me. I can pay the money back. I was drunk back then..."Kate slipped her arm through mine and cut him off coldly. "Our father died eight years ago. You're nothing but a criminal."Arthur opened his mouth, but before he could say anothe

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