Chapter 253: What Did You Just Hear?

Chapter 253: Chapter 253: What Did You Just Hear?

"Roya, I’m truly devoted to you. I even divorced for you." Terrence Lloyd gripped her shoulders, his tone earnest. "Just have this baby safely, and I’ll do my best to give you anything you want. As for your Starlight contract, I’ll go find Zane Rivers and help you terminate it soon."

"Don’t!" Roya Winters panicked, immediately grabbing his arm. Her eyes were filled with urgency. "The contract termination—don’t bring it up for now, whatever you do!"

She couldn’t bear to lose Starlight’s platform and resources, and she especially couldn’t bear to lose Zane Rivers.

Once the contract was terminated, she’d have truly burned her bridges, with no chance of ever staying by Zane Rivers’s side.

Terrence Lloyd’s gaze turned cold. He narrowed his eyes, his tone scrutinizing.

"Is it Starlight you can’t let go of, or Zane Rivers?"

Roya Winters’s eyes darted around nervously as she mumbled a cover-up.

"No... I just want to wait until I’ve fully recovered to talk to President Rivers myself."

...

「Inside a private room at a high-end café.」

Jean Fanning arrived at the address on the note, just as planned.

Pushing open the door, she immediately saw the woman sitting poised on the sofa. Her features were exquisite and beautiful, her demeanor cool yet gentle, and she exuded an air of noble composure.

A sense of vigilance rose within her, and she wondered silently.

’Could this be another one of Terrence Lloyd’s affairs?’

At that moment, she suddenly understood why Terrence Lloyd had spent years fooling around outside and grown tired of her.

Everyone loves beauty. A woman of such devastating looks and remarkable presence was indeed far superior to a plain, stay-at-home wife like herself. Any man would be captivated and fall for her.

"And you are...?" Jean Fanning collected herself and asked.

Vesper Grayson looked up, a gentle, faint smile on her lips. Her tone was sincere and friendly, immediately putting one at ease.

"Ms. Fanning, hello. I’m Vesper Grayson, the General Manager of Grayson Group. I took the liberty of asking you here today to ask for a small favor."

That gentle and composed aura instantly dispelled Jean Fanning’s suspicions.

The woman before her was dignified and magnanimous, with a broad perspective—a stark contrast to the vulgar, man-dependent Roya Winters.

Jean Fanning sat down calmly, her tone even.

"I’m just a housewife who’s been out of the workforce for years. I have no power or influence. Why would President Grayson seek my help?"

"Ms. Fanning, you shouldn’t sell yourself short." Vesper Grayson’s gaze was clear, and her every word struck a deep chord. "From what I understand, you and President Lloyd have spent more time apart than together in recent years, and your marriage grew distant. Yet, for the last three years, you have been Mother Lloyd’s personal caregiver. You’ve single-handedly managed all of the Lloyd Family’s domestic affairs and social obligations. The world only sees President Lloyd building his glorious career, but they forget that it was you who secured the home front—managing the household, caring for his parent, and handling all his worries so he could focus on his work without distraction. That’s how he achieved the success and fortune he has today. Your contributions were never insignificant."

Those few words instantly struck the heart of the grievances Jean Fanning had suppressed for years.

For so many years, Terrence Lloyd had taken her sacrifices for granted, never offering a single word of empathy or thanks. He never brought her to any public events. No one knew she was the legitimate Mrs. Lloyd; everyone just assumed she wasn’t good enough for the successful Terrence Lloyd.

This was the first time someone had seen her forbearance and sacrifice and acknowledged her worth.

The distance in Jean Fanning’s eyes quietly faded, and her expression softened.

"You have a real way with people, President Grayson. So, what do you need my help with?"

Vesper Grayson explained concisely, recounting the whole affair involving Roya Winters.

After listening, Jean Fanning’s eyes filled with surprise, which was quickly followed by a knowing chuckle.

’She had thought it was some earth-shattering crisis, but it turned out to be for something this trivial.’

"To be honest, President Grayson, Terrence Lloyd and I have already signed the divorce papers." Jean Fanning said frankly, readily agreeing. "I’ll help you with this."

’She was already fuming inside.’

’Terrence Lloyd was heartless and ungrateful. His compensation was stingy, and he even dared to threaten her.’

’This was a rare chance to make that scumbag and his mistress miserable. Why wouldn’t she take it?’

Vesper Grayson was momentarily taken aback, not expecting her to agree so readily. Then, she smiled faintly in thanks.

"Thank you for your righteous help, Ms. Fanning. If the person is found, I, Vesper Grayson, will owe you a favor."

...

Roya Winters was filled with resentment from being beaten and humiliated. On top of that, she’d unexpectedly discovered she was pregnant. Her emotions had been in turmoil for days, and she was an absolute wreck.

During her two days of recuperating in the hospital, she took advantage of a moment when Terrence Lloyd was out and she was unsupervised to secretly ask a doctor about an abortion.

The doctor told her she was only one month along. The gestational sac was still small, and her body was in a suitable condition for a medical abortion to terminate the pregnancy.

But she never would have imagined that the moment she finished her consultation, the doctor immediately contacted Terrence Lloyd.

Hearing the news, Terrence Lloyd rushed back to the hospital and immediately got into a fierce argument with Roya Winters. In a fit of rage, he brought in several bodyguards to watch her twenty-four hours a day, preventing any possibility of her getting an abortion on her own.

At the same time, he took the initiative to contact Zane Rivers and aggressively negotiated the termination of Roya Winters’s contract.

Zane Rivers was already incredibly annoyed with Roya Winters for causing one problem after another, and his dissatisfaction had been building. When he received Terrence Lloyd’s call, he readily agreed to terminate the contract, slapped them with a hefty termination fee ten times the normal amount, and cleanly washed his hands of the hot potato.

When the news reached Roya Winters’s ears, she completely lost control and flew into a rage.

Seeing the woman stubbornly resisting both his soft and hard tactics, Terrence Lloyd completely lost his patience. That very day, he forcibly took her back to his private villa and put her under house arrest.

Terrence Lloyd’s expression was cold and hard, his tone imperious and allowing no argument.

"Don’t even think about taking a single step out of here until you’ve safely delivered this child."

"You were the one who came on to me, who willingly became my woman."

"I threw away years of marriage for you and indulged your every whim. Now I’m asking you to have my child. What’s wrong with that?"

"If you keep acting up and don’t know what’s good for you, don’t blame me for being ruthless and getting rough!"

Roya Winters trembled all over, her eyes filled with tears, and she shrieked, completely breaking down.

"How is any of this for me? You just used me as an excuse, a convenient reason to get rid of that haggard old wife of yours!"

"You plotted against me behind my back, you secretly tampered with things to get me pregnant, and you personally ruined my acting career! This was all your premeditated conspiracy!"

"We never got a marriage license! I’m not your legal wife! This is false imprisonment!"

"I will never be your canary in a cage, and I certainly won’t be reduced to a baby-making tool for you to carry on your family line!"

Terrence Lloyd’s face darkened completely. All his patience was gone. His voice was sinister and bone-chilling.

"I gave you my heart and soul, cleared every obstacle for you, and catered to your every wish."

"And now you turn on me, ungrateful and heartless, is that it?"

He leaned in close, a vicious, malevolent energy churning in his eyes, and threatened in a cold voice.

"Believe it or not, I could tell Zane Rivers right now that you were the one who secretly schemed to have Yvonne Lowell sent to Khemara! Let’s see if you’ll have any foothold left in the Northolme entertainment industry then!"

The words had barely left his mouth when the sharp sound of shattering porcelain came from outside the door.

"Who’s there?!"

Terrence Lloyd roared and spun around, rushing out of the bedroom.

In the hallway, an exquisite porcelain vase lay shattered on the floor. Jean Fanning stood quietly to the side, her expression serene.

When Terrence Lloyd saw it was her, his face was instantly covered by a dark, sinister shadow, his eyes sharp and scrutinizing.

"When did you get here?"

A cold, mocking smile touched Jean Fanning’s lips as she met his gaze with unnerved composure.

"We haven’t finalized the divorce certificate yet. Can’t I come back to pack my things?"

"What... did you just hear?" Terrence Lloyd advanced on her, his tone full of suspicion and caution.

"Was there some dirty business you were afraid I’d hear?" Jean Fanning replied coolly, her composure unshaken. Then, she added pointedly, "I’d advise you to tone it down. It wouldn’t be much fun if one corpse turned into two!"

Those words were truly vicious.

With that, she walked straight past the frozen Terrence Lloyd and headed for the storage room.

Terrence Lloyd’s gaze was heavy as he stared at her back, then followed close behind her.

Jean Fanning stopped and turned back, her face full of impatience.

"Why are you following me? Are you afraid I’m going to steal something?"

"Take all of your personal belongings with you in one go," Terrence Lloyd said, his voice cold. "From now on, you are not to set foot in here ever again."

"Don’t worry." Jean Fanning sneered, her eyes filled with disgust. "Once I have the divorce certificate in hand, I wouldn’t give this place a second glance even if you begged me on your hands and knees." She casually picked up a few storage bins, her scornful gaze sweeping over him as her every word twisted the knife. "After all, just looking at you makes me feel dirty."