Chapter 301 Infidelity
Michael suddenly leaned in, the scent of his cologne enveloping her. "Emma, can you guess who he wants to see the most right now?"
Outside the floor-to-ceiling windows, the first snow of the winter began to fall. Emma watched her reflection merge with the swirling snowflakes. Three years ago, on a similar snowy day, she had been rescued from a burning building by Mia and Ethan, her body covered in blood. Warm blood had dripped from her trembling fingers onto the snow, creating a trail of crimson flowers.
"He should meet hell." Her red nails scraped across the photo of George in the news and produced a harsh sound on the tempered glass.
At the top floor of the Russell Group building, George hurled his whiskey at the projection screen.
Amber liquid trickled down the words "Auris Group Acquisition," and in the dead silence of the conference room, Joshua nervously handed over a tablet. "The real estate project on the west side of Lakeside Haven has a huge funding gap. We can't cover it."
The atmosphere in the room was heavy, Joshua's voice striking George's heart like a hammer.
George couldn't stop smile bitterly. It seemed Emma had made her move.
If he could trade the Russell Group for Emma's return and forgiveness, he would make that deal.
He was willing to hand the Russell Group over to Emma, but never to Michael! That man was too cunning; his intentions with Emma were far from pure.
Emma was so kind-hearted; she must have been deceived by him!
Just then, his phone buzzed, interrupting his thoughts. It was Phoenix calling. He answered, hearing her urgent voice. "George, I have something important to tell you! Isabella and Michael are together. They're meeting at a café, and I caught them!"
George's heart tightened as he heard that. He hung up immediately and rushed to the café.
At the café entrance, the wind howled, and snowflakes swirled. George pushed open the door and his gaze locked onto the three people sitting in the corner. Emma, Michael, and Phoenix. The tension between them was palpable, like a powder keg ready to explode.
"What are you doing here?" George's voice was cold and commanding.
Phoenix stood up, a smug smile on her face. "George, I discovered that Isabella is unfaithful. She's cheating with Michael! I even saw them exchanging something. They might be plotting to take over the Russell Group!"
Michael frowned slightly, clearly displeased with Phoenix's accusation. "Do you have any proof?"
"Proof?" Phoenix sneered, her eyes shifting to Emma, hoping for an explanation.
Emma simply smiled, her gaze calm and confident.
"George, do you trust me?" Emma finally spoke.
"If you say it, I believe it." George's voice was always gentle when he spoke to Emma.
Emma replied, "Michael and I are just business partners."
"George, don't be fooled by her sweet talk," Phoenix interjected, trying to deepen George's suspicion of Emma. "She has a knack for manipulating emotions!"
"Enough!" George's voice rose and he cut Phoenix off, his gaze sharp as a knife. "I don't want to hear any more from you!"
He turned, his eyes fixed on Emma. "Isabella, come with me."
He grabbed Emma's wrist and led her out of the café without hesitation. Phoenix shouted angrily after them, "George, don't be deceived by her! She's not worth your trust!"
But George ignored her, his mind focused on protecting Emma and keeping her away from Michael.
Outside, the cold wind and falling snowflakes brought a rush of complex emotions to George. He turned to Emma, his eyes filled with determination. "No matter what happens, I won't let you get hurt again. But you're married to me now. Promise me you won't see Michael anymore, okay?"
"Okay." Emma agreed quickly, but George couldn't tell if she was sincere.
Of course, Emma was lying.
Her meeting with Michael was just a test, but Phoenix had followed her and reported directly to George.
This was a warning to Emma to be more careful in her actions.
Emma smiled as she nestled into George's embrace, wondering if he would like the big surprise she had planned for him.
The Russell Group had a major event coming up. Miss Lady was set to launch a "Blood Iris" jewelry collection in collaboration with the Russell Group.
The security at the launch event was tight, but to Emma, it was useless.
Wearing contact lenses embedded with an iris simulation chip, she breezed through three security checkpoints. As the hem of her black mermaid gown swept past the entrance to the banquet hall, the ruby bracelet on her wrist caused a barely noticeable resonance with the security scanner—Michael had provided her with a quantum disruptor from abroad, enough to interfere with the surveillance for a while.
"Mr. Russell reserved a spot for you in the main exhibition hall." The usher, wearing an iris flower brooch, led the way. Emma recognized the design as the bait she had "accidentally" leaked to the Russell Group's procurement department.
In the center of the main hall, a 58-carat pink diamond rotated inside a bulletproof glass case.
Twelve laser beams projected onto the diamond from different angles, casting a dreamy array of light spots on the white dome. Guests marveled, unaware of the unusual regularity in some of the light patterns.
"Isabella, you have an interest in optical art?" As George approached, Emma could smell the tequila on his breath.
Emma's shoulder blades hit the edge of the display case, George's cufflink pressing into her bare back.
She met his gaze, noticing the blue gemstone in his tie clip, part of the "Blood Iris" collection.
"While studying diamond cutting," she traced her finger along George's throat, "I discovered that every 17-degree angle creates a specific light distortion, like..." Her words were drowned out by the sudden swell of symphonic music.
The dome lights dimmed, and the twelve laser beams turned blood red.
The pink diamond erupted with countless flickering points of light, forming a cascade of codes on the walls. George released her and rushed to the control panel, only to see his secretary aiming a phone camera at the flashing lights.
"Stop him!" George's roar was drowned out by the sound of shutters clicking.
Guests, thinking it was a meticulously planned holographic show, eagerly captured the flowing data on the walls. In reality, this data, the core algorithm of the Russell Group's new energy project, was being streamed live to Auris Group's quantum computer.
Emma wanted to transfer the data openly to make the whole Russell Group doubt George's abilities, knock him off his pedestal, and humiliate him.
She hadn't forgotten how the Russell family had publicly shamed her.
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