At the same time, Ellis was struggling with a far more pressing issue—her own financial situation. How could she get rich overnight? If she had money and power, she could live freely, without restrictions, without worrying about what anyone thought.

The beeping sound of the disconnected call reminded Morty that Ellis had hung up on him. Weird. Had they really divorced? He frowned, considering it for a moment. This time, he didn’t bother confirming it with Easton. Looking up someone’s marital status was a simple task. Besides, with Ellis’s personality, she wasn’t the type to lie about something like this.

Copying her number, he pasted it into the WhatsApp search bar. A second later, her profile popped up. Without hesitation, he sent a friend request with a note: “Accept it. I’m adding you to streamline our work communication.”

Ellis, however, hadn’t even looked at her phone. Casey was a perfectionist and notoriously difficult to please. He had called her to his lab, where she spent the entire night entering complex experimental data, carefully categorizing it for easier access and review. By the time she finished, it was nearly dawn. Casey was still deep in his experiments. Ellis gave him a perfunctory reminder to get some rest before heading out.

She didn’t have a car, and taxis weren’t allowed inside the estate, so she had to walk to the main gate to catch a ride. Stepping out of Casey’s house, she let her mind go blank as she walked down the quiet road. But after a short distance, she felt an odd sensation—like someone was watching her. Turning back a few times, she finally spotted him, Morty. He was standing on the balcony of his house, his face obscured by the darkness, but from the angle he was facing, it was obvious he had seen her. And judging by how he was standing there, relaxed and interested, he was watching her.

Morty had cornered her before, but all he’d done was run his mouth. Because of that, she wasn’t worried he’d try anything now, nor did she regret telling him she was divorced. Even if she hadn’t said it, Easton would’ve told him eventually. And as for Morty specifically requesting her to liaise with him? Until Lois officially assigned her, she had no obligation to deal with him. With that in mind, Ellis looked away and quickened her pace.

Morty stepped onto the balcony, letting the cool night air wash over him. By chance, he had caught a glimpse of Ellis leaving the neighboring house. Pouring himself a glass of red wine, he took slow sips while watching her retreating figure. The slight bitterness of the wine was just right, bringing a smirk to his lips. A new neighbor had moved in, and suddenly, Petal Estates felt like a place of good fortune—almost like a wishing well. Lately, everything he wanted had been falling into place.

Once in the taxi, Ellis absentmindedly scrolled through her phone, browsing her WhatsApp messages. She had barely read a few when an incoming call interrupted her. The Hudson family’s butler. Riley? Why was he calling her? She hesitated but picked up. Before she could say anything, Riley’s concerned voice came through.

“Mrs. Hudson, do you know where Mr. Hudson’s beaded bracelet is?”

Ellis instinctively filtered through her memories, trying to recall where it might be. A moment later, she corrected him, “Riley, I’m no longer Easton’s wife. Stop calling me Mrs. Hudson. Also, I have no idea where that bracelet is. If it belongs to Easton, you should be asking him, not me.” If it wasn’t a rare or sentimental item, she wouldn’t have paid attention to it. “Understood. Sorry to bother you,” Riley responded efficiently before hanging up.

The call ended, and her screen returned to WhatsApp. She continued checking her messages. One from Amelia caught her attention.

“Ellis, do you know Mr. Morty from Nexus Group?”

Ellis frowned. Why was Amelia asking about Morty? And not just Morty, but specifically Mr. Morty? It wasn’t hard to guess who she meant. Morty Unity’s company was Nexus Group. If there was another Mr. Morty at Nexus Group, Amelia probably wouldn’t have known about him. So for her to suddenly ask now? Suspicious.

“Why do you ask?” Ellis replied. After sending the message, she exited the chat and noticed a pending friend request. “Accept it. I’m adding you to streamline our work communication.” Just from the wording, she knew—this was Morty.

Ellis’s frown deepened. People naturally gravitated toward their own kind. That was a fact that never changed. The only reason Easton and Morty had been friends since childhood was that they were both insufferable. Who in their right mind would willingly add someone like that to their contacts? Just the thought of it felt like bad luck. Without hesitation, she ignored the request and deleted the notification. Then, as an extra precaution, she disabled the setting that allowed others to find her on WhatsApp. The whole process took less than a minute. By the time she finished, Amelia had sent multiple messages.