Chapter 22 The Cemetery
Diana got up slowly, looking like a mess. Her white dress was all dirty and torn, with bloodstains at the bottom.
Her face was smudged from being thrown down, and her hair was all over her eyes. She pushed it back with her hand.
She stared right into Charles's eyes, not a hint of fear in her gaze.
Charles frowned a bit. There it was again, that fierce, untamed look.
Diana's voice was clear, but her words were sharp. Since they were already at odds, there was no point in holding back.
Diana said, "You keep saying my mom took advantage of Juniper's kindness to get you to marry me. Did she beg Juniper to make you marry me?"
She paused for a second, then went on, "And you, the president of the Percy Group, a big shot in the business world. If you wanted, you could've said no. You could've married someone else to reject me. But you didn't. Because to you, it doesn't matter who becomes Mrs. Percy. You didn't do it for Juniper; you did it for yourself! Marrying me was just convenient, making Juniper happy while using my feelings for you to trap me into signing the unfair agreement."
Diana, actually Sophia, had laid bare the real reasons behind their marriage.
Since it was all about mutual benefit, why should Charles blame Diana for everything?
Back then, Bianca had accidentally saved Juniper, and they hit it off, becoming good friends.
At that time, Diana had just graduated from college and met Juniper with Bianca.
The original Diana was well-protected, pure, kind, and lively.
Juniper liked her right away and thought of Charles at home, who was great in every way except being too cold and focused only on work.
When Charles was seven, he lost his mom and was taken under Juniper's wing.
In the Percy Mansion, everyone was eyeing the Percy Group's assets.
But Juniper felt sorry for him. She went against everyone, raised him, and handed the company over to him.
Since his mom's death, Charles had become quiet and reserved. He didn't get emotions and didn't know how to show love.
Charles only knew that all the relatives at home hated him and wished he were dead.
So when Charles took over the company, he used ruthless methods to crush these relatives, leaving them powerless.
Charles loved the feeling of victory and even wanted to get rid of everyone who wanted his position.
Juniper saw this and hoped Diana could heal Charles and soothe his childhood trauma with love.
Diana didn't want to marry the stranger Charles at first. She believed in marrying for love and hated arranged marriages.
But when she met him, she found Charles to be amazing. He had a chiseled face, deep eyes, a high nose, and sexy thin lips.
Charles only needed to stand there, doing nothing, to be incredibly charming. What's more, such a handsome man was the president of the Percy Group.
Diana's heart completely fell for him. 'Marrying a man like Charles? It's simply too lucky,' she thought to herself.
So, Diana agreed to Juniper.
Their wedding date was set.
But on the day of the marriage registration, Charles had Nolan deliver a prenuptial agreement.
It meant that after marriage, they wouldn't interfere with each other and couldn't cheat. They would act as a couple in front of Juniper, and as long as Diana behaved well, Charles would let her enjoy wealth and luxury.
But after two years, the agreement would expire, and they would automatically divorce.
By then, Juniper was already gravely ill, with not much time left. She was just hanging on, waiting for the good news of Charles and Diana's marriage so she could pass away peacefully.
Diana had never been in such a situation before. After crying her eyes out to no avail, she signed the agreement and secretly vowed to make Charles fall in love with her within two years.
Because of this, Diana kept overestimating herself and trying to win him over again and again.
The marriage didn't start on solid ground. Two people with no real connection forced together—there was no way it would end well.
One was deceived by appearances, the other just trying to appease family. Both were at fault; neither could escape.
Charles felt a mix of anger and embarrassment after being called out. "So many people are lining up to marry me. I footed the bill for all your meals, drinks, and outfits after we got hitched. If you had just been a decent Mrs. Percy, you could have had anything you wanted. But you had to come and disgust me."
Diana sneered and mockingly asked, "Really? Should I thank you then? My family may not be as wealthy as yours, but I'm still a socialite. I'm so beautiful; what kind of man couldn't I choose? Charles, you should be grateful you're handsome. You captivated me; otherwise, I wouldn't have wanted to marry you!"
Charles was momentarily speechless, not knowing how to retort, pointing at her. "You!"
Diana glared at him. "What about me? Did I say anything wrong? I thought you were smart, which is why I wanted to cooperate with you. I'm not asking to remarry you; I just want to buy my company back!"
Charles clenched his fists, on the verge of losing it.
Diana was a bit scared, so she took a step back and continued, "Do you want to kill me? Fine, do it in front of Juniper. After all, this is a cemetery; dying here would be fitting."
Charles suddenly felt like he was meeting Diana for the first time.
She used to wear heavy makeup and flirt in front of him. She had even disrupted his work several times, so to him, Diana was a huge nuisance.
They had never confronted each other like this, but today's argument made Charles see Diana differently, thinking she wasn't so foolish after all.
He recalled a saying: A woman was most beautiful when she loved herself.
The Diana in front of him was confident, like a debater on a stage, feeling proud because her opponent was speechless.
If Diana knew Charles thought this way, she would be utterly exasperated. He wouldn't listen when she spoke nicely, but he responded better when she scolded him.
For a moment, they were at a stalemate, neither giving in.
The atmosphere was eerily quiet until a weak voice suddenly asked, "Mr. Percy, what's going on?"
The speaker was an elderly man, Tony Gibson. His hair was white, and his body slightly hunched, but he looked very robust. It was unclear how long he had been listening.
The sudden voice startled Diana.
Charles squinted slightly, remembering that Tony was the caretaker of the Percy Family cemetery.
Seeing someone had arrived, Charles didn't want to argue with Diana anymore and remembered his purpose for coming.
With his cold expression again, Charles said to Diana, "Diana, you should have said these things to Juniper long ago."
Then, Charles turned to Tony and said, "Tony, keep an eye on this lady. She spoke disrespectfully about the Percy Family. Let her stay here for a day and properly apologize to Juniper."
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