Chapter 16

"Sir!" The word exploded in the crowd like a bombshell. Everyone was stunned, shocked, and terrified. Countless eyes fell on Cameron. Archie's face paled; Madison's eyes dulled; Pia and Skyler's lips lost their color. A deathly silence descended. No one could believe Lord Blackheart would address Cameron as his superior.

"I heard someone wanted to blacklist my boss?" Blackheart spoke slowly, his low tone a chilling alarm bell in everyone's ears. The assembled bigwigs, who had just threatened to blacklist Cameron, went weak in the knees. They scrambled to deny it.

"No… there was no such thing, Lord Blackheart!" "That's right, how could we blacklist Mr. Morgan?" "It's Archie! Archie and the others instigated us!" "Yes, it's them!"

"It's all good if no one did," Blackheart said, deciding against pursuing the matter further.

The bigwigs breathed a collective sigh of relief. Lord Blackheart was indeed magnanimous.

"H-how could this be?" Archie stammered, breaking out in a cold sweat. His mind went blank.

"D-Dear… d-did I hear it wrong?" Madison echoed his horror, stuttering before finishing her sentence.

Cameron knew Lord Blackheart—and that Blackheart called him "sir"?

"No, you didn't…" Archie struggled to respond.

Madison's eyes narrowed. "No… Impossible… Absolutely impossible!" She couldn't accept it. That loser? How was it possible? Lord Blackheart must be joking!

With a sudden, ingratiating smile, she turned to Blackheart. "L-Lord Blackheart, you're joking with us, right? You're here to bless our marriage, right?"

"Do I look like I'm joking?" Blackheart's eyes were grim.

Madison shuddered.

"Captain Jordan, throw them into the sea!" Blackheart commanded concisely, having no further patience for Madison.

"Yes!" Charles Jordan, commander of the Black Flag Army, stepped forward with a steely gaze.

"Lord Blackheart, why?" Madison's voice was sharp, frantic. "Didn't you say you would personally bless Archie and me at our wedding? Why are you throwing us into the sea now?"

"When did I ever say that?" Blackheart frowned.

"Archie told me himself…"

"Stop!" Archie, flustered, quickly covered Madison's mouth. He'd fabricated the entire promise. Worse, Madison was now antagonizing Lord Blackheart!

Madison broke free. "Dear, don't stop me. Let me talk!" she shouted at Blackheart. "I get it, Lord Blackheart! You must have been deceived by that loser, Cameron, right? That loser is my ex-husband. He mooched off me for five years. I know best what kind of person he is!"

As Madison continued her tirade, Blackheart's eyes turned frosty, his expression darkening. Charles led the Black Flag Army to apprehend Madison, ready to throw her into the sea.

"Hold on!" Blackheart raised a hand to stop them. Throwing her into the sea was too easy for a woman who dared insult Cameron so openly.

Blissfully unaware of Blackheart's thoughts, Madison crowed, "Lord Blackheart, I knew you were wise! Cameron, you loser! Tell us, what tricks did you play to fool Lord Blackheart?"

"Ha!" Cameron sneered. This woman's imagination knew no bounds.

"Look, Lord Blackheart. He still has the nerve to laugh!" Madison pointed accusingly.

"Shut up!" Blackheart snapped.

Everyone was shocked. Madison's heart pounded.

"Captain Jordan!" Blackheart ordered, cutting her off. "This woman spouted nonsense and twisted the truth. Slap her!"

"Yes, sir!"

(The final sentence, "Chary," and the repeated advertising text at the end have been removed as they are extraneous and don't belong in the cleaned-up passage.)