When I woke up, it was already dark outside. We previously planned on having a barbecue tonight. I went to the barbecue area out in the garden to find that my colleagues were already eating. The only spot left at the table was beside Zachary, so I had no choice but to sit there.

As soon as I took my seat, Zachary questioned, "Where's your wedding ring?"

"I threw it away."

Zachary slammed his cutlery down and roared, "That's enough! When did you become so unreasonable anyway? You're giving me attitude when all I did was spend the day with Anna!

"Her health is frail, so what's the big deal if I help her out a bit more? Why are you so vicious? Don't you have even an ounce of sympathy in you?"

"Zachary's right," Isaac chimed in. "You should be a kinder person, Elaine. You even refused to get the medication for Anna's headache. She would've been in so much pain if I hadn't had the foresight to pack some just in case."

Anna also pretended to be extremely hurt. Leaning against Zachary, she started rubbing her eyes.

They all eyed me with disgust as if I were a sewer rat.

"That's enough. We were all having so much fun. Don't let Elaine bring down the mood," Sean said before placing a plate of barbecued meat in front of Anna.

"Hurry up and dig in, Anna. Don't bother getting upset over people who don't matter. Your health is more important."

Zachary stroked Anna's head comfortingly before saying to me, "Anna doesn't want to see you. Go and get her some cocktails. She loves those. Remember to give her a toast in apology when you come back!"

I left the table, but it wasn't to buy any alcohol. I went to get myself some dinner. After buying a hamburger, I sat at the fountain beside the garden and ate it.

The fountain show was beautiful, and that assuaged the pain I felt a little bit.

I got a text from Zachary asking why I wasn't back with the drinks yet. He'd forgotten that I was allergic to alcohol and never bought any before. In fact, alcohol was never a part of any of the meals I was at—and Zachary was the one who insisted on no one else having alcohol in my presence to protect me.

I blocked Zachary's number.

"What are you doing here? Why aren't you buying the cocktails?"

I looked up and saw Anna.

"If you want one, buy it yourself. What's the matter? Can't afford it?" I shot back, which infuriated Anna.

"Why are you putting on airs, huh? All your money came from Zachary anyway! Do you have any idea how much money he'll give me if I ask him for it? Trust me, it won't be long before he kicks you to the curb and marries me!"

Nodding back at her, I said, "I trust you! You'd better ask him to hurry up and divorce me."

Now I knew she was only in it for the money. I was curious to see if she would still be with him once he ended up with nothing after our divorce.

Frustrated that she failed to rile me up, she sneered before grabbing me and screaming, "Please don't be mad, Elaine! It's all my fault!"

Then, she shoved me into the fountain behind me, making me fall headfirst into the water. I couldn't breathe; it felt like I was drowning.

I was scared of water and didn't know how to swim. In the past, I wanted Zachary to teach me, but he said he would always be around and would never let any danger befall me.

Now that I was in danger, he didn't care at all. It was another female colleague of ours who pulled me out of the fountain.

Once I came back to my senses, I saw Zachary standing nearby. He was hugging Anna to console her.

Seeing that, I made up my mind.

"Elaine, you're such a deplorable woman!" Zachary fumed. "Why did you push Anna when she already apologized to you? You even jumped into the fountain to pretend to be the victim! Why did I marry someone like you?"

Rising shakily to my feet, I retorted, "Since you feel that way, let's get a divorce!"

I dragged myself back to my room and took a shower before falling asleep right away. In the middle of the night, I woke up to find myself running a fever.

I had to muster up the strength to call the front desk for help. After taking the fever medication that was delivered to me, I fell back into a hazy sleep.

When I woke up once again, all of the company staff had checked out—no one came to tell me.

I called my parents and asked them to send a car for me, but to my surprise, they came in person. I threw myself into their arms, finally feeling a sense of warmth.

"Mom, Dad, I'm joining Stellar Group. I've also decided to get a divorce. Please help me find a lawyer."

Patting my back reassuringly, Mom replied, "Alright. You have our full support. It's no loss to you to leave a broke and penniless man! We can easily make his life a living hell."

"I've already prepared an office for you," Dad declared. "Working for our family company is way better than working for someone else!"

After I spent a few days at home recuperating, I got a call from Sean. He said that our new business partner was at Northcrest Co. for an inspection and urged me to go over as soon as possible.

Seeing as how it was the last deal I closed, I decided to head over to settle matters properly.

However, once I got there, I realized it was just a trick.

As soon as I entered the office, Zachary brought out the divorce agreement and threw it onto the desk. Glaring at me, he snapped, "What's the meaning of this?"

The lawyer was so efficient that he already prepared the divorce agreement and sent it to Zachary.

"It means we're getting a divorce. Sign it."

Zachary grabbed the divorce agreement and ripped it to shreds.

"If we get a divorce, what's going to happen to the company?"

"After the divorce, my family will pull out our investment, of course. The company will belong to you and you alone," I said.

Once I finished speaking, Zachary fell silent for a while. Then, he took my hand and pressed me down onto a chair.

"I know you're upset. Give me a chance to explain things."

Just then, Anna came into the office and said, "I'm here to apologize, Elaine."

She abruptly fell to her knees and said, "It's all my fault. I didn't know how to keep my boundaries. From now on, I'll stay far away from Mr. Lowe!"

After just a few short sentences, her tears were already streaming down her face.

Right on time, Isaac and Sean showed up as if it were all planned from the start. They quickly came in, armed with tissues to boot. With one on either side of Anna, they started wiping her tears for her.

"Don't push it, Elaine! You know very well that Anna's health is frail! Why are you letting her kneel?"

Zachary quickly helped Anna to her feet, and the three men eased her onto the couch.

"That's enough. She has already apologized, so stop causing a fuss. Hurry up and come back to work. Don't make Anna do your job for you!" Zachary snapped.

I understood what was going on now—Zachary just felt bad for his precious Anna.

Ignoring him, I started packing my things in the office, but Sean and Isaac refused to stop. They grabbed my things and tossed them onto the floor, saying, "Why are you being so stubborn and ungrateful when we've already compromised with you?"

Staring at the shattered glass tower on the floor, I felt as if my heart was breaking into a million pieces too.

It was a souvenir from a trip the core team of Northcrest Co. went on together. At the time, I had just brought Isaac and Sean into the company. When we met, they had just been fired by their previous company, which also illegally appropriated their research work.

I was the one who helped them get the research project back. I even linked them up with a professor so that they could join a competition and earn some prize money.

When we stopped by a church during our trip, they made a prayer, saying that even when Northcrest Co. became a success in the future, they would never forget the favor they owed me for recognizing their talents and trusting them.

But now, they no longer had any respect for me.

My desk was a mess. My cup was broken, and the floor was covered in glass shards.

Avoiding the glass, Isaac came up to me and grabbed me before hauling me over to Anna.

"Since you want to leave, hand the keys to the company's filing room to Anna!"

I couldn't get myself out of Isaac's grip. Stumbling as he dragged me by force, I ended up tripping and falling right on top of the glass.

The pain shot through my entire body, making me shriek. It was so painful that I couldn't even move.

Zachary seemed to instinctively want to help me up, but Anna stopped him. "Elaine isn't even bleeding, Mr. Lowe. You don't need to help her."

I was wearing black today. In reality, the shards of glass pierced my thighs, making them bleed.

Anna moved in front of Zachary before instructing Isaac and Sean to pin me to the floor.

"Let me teach her a lesson, Mr. Lowe! That's the only way to make her cooperate!"