Chapter 329: Ellis on the Run

"Ellis snorted. If you’re sick, get treatment. What’s there for me to gloat about?"

Finished.

"Do you take no pride in what Easton has done for you?" Victoria’s gaze was venomous, as if she wanted to devour Ellis alive.

Aware that slapping Ellis could trigger a backlash she and her family couldn’t afford, Victoria forcibly held back her anger.

"You’re kind of funny!" Ellis shot a cold look at Victoria. "What has Easton ever done for me? What could he possibly do?"

"Easton hasn’t really done anything for me! No, that’s not right—he has done things, but mostly he’s just driven me to the brink."

“You!” Victoria wanted to shout about Ellis’s shamelessness, reaping benefits and acting innocent.

"If it weren’t for Ellis, would my family be in such dire straits?"

She should have been Easton’s wife by now, not suffering from her family’s downfall.

Realizing she was dealing with a sworn enemy, Ellis couldn’t be bothered to engage with Victoria any longer and turned to enter the supermarket.

"Victoria’s looking like that, maybe Easton dumped her and she’s using me to vent. Why should I stand here and let her take it out on me?"

Watching Ellis’s retreating figure, Victoria remained motionless. In fact, her fists were clenched, her sharp nails itching to scratch Ellis’s face—hoping to mar it into a mess, to see if Easton could still harbor any affection for that disfigured face.

Despite her swirling thoughts, Victoria was stuck with the same old plan. If her family couldn’t survive under Easton’s pressure, then Ellis had no right to live either.

With a heavy huff of resentment, Victoria left the place she had come to specifically for this unwanted encounter.

Ellis wasn’t a high-profile person of power; her low status made her easy to track. Her movements and favorite hangouts were all too easy to find out. Victoria had staked out the location well and prepared several contingency plans, ready to pick the most suitable one when the time came.

The prospect of a fight to the bitter end was daunting, yet inevitable, and the encounter with Victoria weighed heavily on Ellis’s mind. So much so that as she shopped, perhaps influenced by her sixth sense, she felt an impending danger drawing near. She picked out her groceries distractedly, constantly looking around for any sign of a threat.

Having bought too many items, she called Maya to bring the car around.

Chapter 20: Ella on the Run

Maya found Ellis at the supermarket entrance, looking troubled, and asked with concern, “What’s wrong?”

Hearing this, Ellis relayed everything that happened before she entered the supermarket.

As she finished her story, the air seemed to thicken, as a murder of crows had flown overhead.

Finished:

Maya’s expression grew serious. “The Brooks family is going under. Victoria wouldn’t be taking her anger out on you, would she?”

“Obviously!” Ellis felt as if a huge burden had unjustly fallen on her. “I haven’t done anything, and she’s taking it out on me. Victoria must be really sick!”

“All your misfortunes stem from your ex-husband,” Maya believed she wasn’t wrong: Ellis’s bad luck originated with Easton and was still being influenced by him.

“Damn it, what did Victoria mean by what Easton has done for me?” Ellis reflected on Victoria’s words, suspecting Easton had spoken ill of her to Victoria before dumping her.

Why else would Victoria say those things? And it definitely wasn’t a chance meeting. Ellis had a nagging feeling that Victoria had been there to stake her out!

If she couldn’t afford to pay someone to take revenge, Victoria was likely planning to take matters into her own hands.

The old fears and paranoia swept over her simultaneously, causing Ellis to frown slightly.

“Maybe you shouldn’t stay in Stonebridge for a few days. Why not fly to another city until the Brooks family completely collapses?” Maya suggested.

“Yeah.” Stonebridge felt fraught with danger. Deciding against staying put, Ellis booked a flight to another city.

This time, she wouldn’t stay in the country but go abroad.

The news of Ellis’s brief return to Stonebridge and her departure after just a few hours reached Easton the next day.

Easton’s brows furrowed deeply as Taylor reported on their work progress. His expression made Taylor deeply introspect about where she might have gone wrong in her duties, or perhaps which part of her report was unsatisfactory.

Taylor slowed her speech, treading carefully, until Easton glanced up at her. “Alright, go do your work.”

“Okay, Mr. Hudson.”

Relieved to be dismissed, Taylor walked away faster than usual.

As Easton’s fingers scrolled through his phone, he saw Ellis’s flight information heading towards Scandinavia. He felt like he was grasping at sand; the tighter he tried to hold it, the faster it slipped through his fingers.

Ellis was tough as nails—no, that wasn’t quite it; Ellis was immune to brute force. He hadn’t tried a gentler touch yet.