Chapter 10

**Kyle's POV**

Oh shit! I’ve messed up. I can’t believe I’m the one who led Kate to her divorce. And today, after seeing her, I don’t even know how I feel. She’s changed so much. Kate has become someone I never imagined—so confident, so damn beautiful. That’s undeniable. And her attitude? Badass.

As I sit in the car, driving toward my grandfather’s house, my mind keeps drifting back to her. Pamela, sitting beside me, won’t stop complaining about being humiliated by Kate. She also won’t shut up about the car I didn’t buy. Her whining is getting under my skin, but I tune her out as best I can.

“Kyle, you did wrong!” she suddenly shouts, snapping me out of my thoughts. I slam on the brakes in frustration, and we both lurch forward slightly.

“Please, step out now,” I say, my voice calm but sharp.

“What? Why… why are you acting cold toward me all of a sudden? I’m sorry if what I said made you angry. I didn’t mean it,” she pleads, reaching out to hold my hand gently.

I turn to look at her and sigh. “Grandfather called me. He said I should come alone, without anyone else.”

“Oh… okay,” she mutters, clearly taken aback. Then, as if trying to salvage the moment, she adds, “I’m sorry… We can get the car another day. That bitch ruined everything for us. She’s such a whore!”

I turn to her, forcing a smile to keep her from making a scene. She smiles back and leans in, pressing her lips against mine, trying to deepen the kiss. I gently pull away, pushing her back just enough to stop her.

“I should go now,” I say, my tone firm but still calm.

She smiles weakly and gives me a peck on the cheek before stepping out of the car. “Bye, Kyle,” she says sweetly, waving as she walks away.

I exhale deeply, my mind heavy with thoughts of Kate, before shifting the car into gear. My grandfather’s call sounded urgent, and I don’t want to keep him waiting.

After a few minutes, I arrive at Grandfather's house and adjust my clothes as I exhale before entering.

Let me tell you about Grandfather, Mr. Thonks. He’s one of the most influential people in the city. He has many businesses and even controls several gangs. He’s the enabler of the family—no one does anything without informing him first. He has this habit of bringing you up and building a company for you if he sees you have potential.

He’s the one who made me have an affair with Pamela. I don’t know the reason, but there’s something between him and Pamela, and he would do anything she told him. One of those things is making her my mistress. He also told me to burn down the baby's corpse...

Although Kate did wrong, I didn’t want to go that far, but I was pushed by Grandfather. When I tried to fight back, that was when the photo of Kate and that bastard she was cheating on me with surfaced, making it impossible for me to speak out.

As I walk inside the room, Mr. Thonks is sipping his tea while Noah, my cousin, is with him.

I bow and greet him, “Good day, Father.”

He sips his tea once more before clearing his throat and begins, “Hey, I heard you mistreated your cousin because of your ex-wife!”

I glance at Noah. He’s already here to feed Father his lies.

“No, Father. I just stopped him from causing trouble.”

“Shut up! You… still have feelings for her, I’m sure of it. And you’re even speculating about getting her back,” he says.

I seethe. Pamela has already called him.

“Kyle, if you ever do that, I assure you, I will stop sponsoring you! Not only you but your parents as well!” he yells.

I bow and gently reply, “I understand… I would never do that.”

“Good,” he says, motioning for me to sit down, which I do carefully.

“You two have caught my interest in building your companies, and I’m very happy I made the right decision to sponsor you. Now it’s time to return the favor,” he says.

“Sir, I’ll do anything you want,” Noah states.

Father nods and chuckles. “Yeah, you know… actually, the awaited Empress of the Hera family is back!”

Noah and I both raise our heads in surprise.

“Yeah, I was secretly informed by one of the family members. The Hera kingdom will reopen and return to business. They will surely look for partners and collaborators. I want you both to do all in your capacity to make sure each of your companies is chosen. I will also send my own representative to secure a deal.”

I’ve been requesting a collaboration with them for a while. Being a collaborator with the Hera family is a blessing—it will open doors to many opportunities and profits.

“As you know the advantages this will bring to the family, if all my companies get to be collaborators, you have to make this happen,” he says.

“We will do our best,” Noah says.

Mr. Thonks slams the table. “Shut up! This isn’t about trying your best, but making it happen! If one of you fails to secure the partnership, I will stop sponsoring him and remove him from my favorites!”

I bow and state, “Understood, sir.”

The conversation shifts to him asking about my parents. “Good thing your father has a smart child like you. I wouldn’t have taken him back otherwise. He’s just a simp.”

I bow and nod. I was born out of mistake—father had an affair with one of the maids, resulting in my birth, so he threw them away.

My father struggled to get on his feet and suffered a lot for me. I grew up witnessing that suffering, and I vowed to do whatever it takes to become rich and lift my parents out of poverty. When I learned about Mr. Thonks, I did everything I could to become his favorite. And here I am.

As we’re released, Noah and I walk out. He turns to me.

“Brother, your ex-bitch is pretty, but she’s also arrogant and wronged me. I’m going to take my revenge on her. Grandfather has already given me permission to do what I want with her, so don’t interfere,” he says.

I clench my fists in anger, my voice boiling with rage, but I dare not say anything. I don’t know why, but my feelings for Kate intensified after seeing her today. I can’t fathom the idea of Noah doing something bad to her, but Grandfather has made it clear I shouldn’t intervene.

I just stare at him before walking away.