He married her to shield her from mockery; he had V.M. Fund set up in her honor; he erased the biggest stain on her character; he punished those who have wronged her… He had done so much and transformed her from a scorned Cinderella to the widely admired Mrs. Norton of the Finnor Group.
Yet, none of that seemed to have counted for anything, as the moment Evelyn reappeared, his heart was no longer with her. Perhaps it was as Evelyn had put it—she was only a brief fascination for whom Finnick would not stick with for long.
The biggest tragedy was how she still harbored a sliver of hope that all these might be untrue even in the face of the overwhelming evidence she had discovered.
Vivian wiped at her tears as she slowly got back on her feet. She told herself that she must be strong. Everything is going to be alright. Worse come to worst, we will just get a divorce. That was something she had mentally prepared herself for anyway.
Even if she was no longer wanted by Finnick, she would continue to raise the child on her own and make a good life for themselves together. She believed that she was capable of that.
If my mother could manage it, why not me?
Having sorted through her thoughts, Vivian turned and steadily made her way downstairs.
In the end, she chose not to enter the bedroom to expose Finnick and Evelyn. She could not bear to see the man she had once loved so deeply engaging the warmth of another woman. Just imagining it would be enough to drive her crazy.
On top of that, she wished to retain her dignity. She reckoned that she might break down into a sobbing mess were she to bear witness to the scene which awaited her inside. She may very well end up spinelessly clamoring for Finnick. Should that happen, even she would come to despise herself.
The sound in the bedroom stopped the moment Vivian departed.
Evelyn was dressed in a bathrobe inside the room. She looked rather prim and proper seated in bed and did not appear as one who was deeply engaged in sexual intimacy. She was the only one in the room. Where was the man?
Placed on top of the nightstand next to her was a laptop playing the deep drawls of a man’s voice on loop.
She eyed Vivian’s exit between the slit of the door and ceased her own lascivious enunciations. Disdain swept across her face. “You think you could stand against me, Vivian William? In your dreams!”
Evelyn smirked when she retrieved Finnick’s phone off the bed. Her smug smile turned to rage when she saw Vivian’s photo displayed on the phone.
“Sooner or later, you’ll be completely mine, Finnick.” Evelyn snarled under her breath before she got up and walked out.
Her heart was filled with glee. Before this, she was quite worried about Vivian actually barging in, which would have ruined her entire plan.
She surprised even herself that Vivian did not have the guts to do so. She is useless!
And hopelessly vapid too, falling for her trickery way too easily.
The woman leisurely made her way down and picked up all the clothing left on the floor before she returned upstairs, as though she was in her own home.
After she got changed, Evelyn stood in front of the full-length mirror to adjust her belt. She noticed the wardrobe to her side and reached out to open it.
Inside was Vivian’s clothes placed alongside Finnick’s. That left her livid, and she started grabbing and throwing all of them out.
“You’re not deserving enough to marry Finnick, Vivian William!” She needed to yell that out loud to let off some steam.
Reluctantly, she proceeded to replace the clothing and had them arranged properly after she cooled down. She could ill-afford to leave tell-tale signs for Finnick to chance upon.
