Freya Langdon tried to scramble up from the floor, but the way she had fallen was too pathetic. After several failed attempts, she simply sat there, pointed a finger at Aria Sterling, and spat, "If your parents knew you were this shameless, they would have disowned you long ago!"
SLAP—SLAP—
Two more slaps landed on Freya Langdon's face.
Aria Sterling's expression was icy. "It seems I was still too gentle. As for whether my family of three betrayed the Sterling Family, I think you know the truth perfectly well. And if you don't, I'd be more than happy to release the evidence. We'll see then who becomes infamous—your family, or me!"
At this point, Aria Sterling crouched down, her gaze locked on Freya Langdon, calm and mocking.
"I ran into Uncle in a bar yesterday. He was with three girls who looked even younger than me. He had his arms around them, having the time of his life. He never told you about that, did he? So tell me, between the two of us, who's the one who's really been cast aside?"
Sure enough, the color drained from Freya Langdon's face. It was deathly pale, and her lips trembled slightly.
"What nonsense are you spouting?!"
"Tch—"
Aria Sterling suddenly laughed, her beauty utterly bewitching. She opened her chat with Julian Grant and showed the photo to Freya Langdon.
Watching Freya Langdon's face shift between pale and flushed, Aria Sterling's lips curled into the faintest hint of a smile.
'If she's going to make me miserable, fine. Then no one gets to be happy.'
That evening, Aria Sterling heard Freya Langdon and Colin Sterling having a furious argument downstairs.
The argument dragged on until midnight, ending only when Colin Sterling stormed out, slamming the door behind him, leaving Freya Langdon to her endless tears and hysterics.
The next day, as Aria Sterling was dealing with a pile of documents, her office door was thrown open with great force, and Colin Sterling burst in, his face contorted with rage.
"Aria Sterling, what is the meaning of this!"
Aria Sterling didn't even look up.
"Don't you know how to knock?"
Colin Sterling was seething with anger, his teeth clenched.
"Don't you go too far!"
Aria Sterling couldn't help but find it amusing.
"And what, exactly, am I supposed to have done?"
Colin Sterling, his face livid with rage, slammed a palm down on the desk in front of Aria Sterling.
"Stop playing dumb with me! Freya told me everything. This is your doing!"
Only then did Aria Sterling feign a look of sudden realization.
"Uncle, I was just worried about your health. You're fifty this year, aren't you? Your body isn't what it used to be. Messing around with those young girls all the time can't be good for you."
"If there's nothing else, you can leave."
"You!" Colin Sterling's face darkened. "Aria Sterling, I've already made concessions, but don't push me too far."
Hearing this, Aria Sterling let out a light laugh, dripping with sarcasm and mockery.
"As long as you know your place, Uncle, and keep the people around you in line—and learn what should and shouldn't be said—I won't make things difficult for anyone."
With that, she gave Colin Sterling a cool, detached look, the smile completely gone from her face.
"Stay out of my business. You have no right to judge me. I can let this go, but next time won't be so simple. Get out, Mr. Sterling."
She bit out the last two words, her warning crystal clear.
Colin Sterling was fuming, ready to argue with Aria Sterling and teach her a lesson. But now, meeting the woman's icy gaze, he found he didn't dare lash out.
Yes, she had leverage over him.
And now she had even more.
Leaking that photo might not have any major repercussions, but the public persona and image he had cultivated for so many years would be destroyed in an instant.
He had no desire to see his scandal plastered all over the news.
Colin Sterling shot Aria Sterling a resentful glare before storming out in a rage.
...
The top-floor office of the Xavier Group.
Damian Xavier sat behind his desk with a grim expression as his assistant, Kevin Keane, reported on the happenings at The Sterling Group.
"Colin Sterling caused a scene in Aria Sterling's office this morning. It didn't end well. Aria Sterling's situation at The Sterling Group is not looking good."
Damian Xavier sneered.
'Of course he knew Aria wouldn't have an easy time at The Sterling Group. Otherwise, he wouldn't have made their three-year marriage public.'
'He was curious to see just what tricks Aria Sterling had up her sleeve, and how long she could keep her cool.'
"Get the car ready."
Damian Xavier rose and walked out of the office.
Kevin Keane followed him. "Mr. Xavier, where are you going?"
"To The Sterling Group, of course."
Damian Xavier felt he had to go see for himself just how overwhelmed Aria Sterling was.
Half an hour later, Damian Xavier arrived at The Sterling Group.
He went straight up without any obstruction and found Aria Sterling's office, but the staff there told him she wasn't in. She had gone out for a site inspection.
'Good. Very good. He'd managed to miss her.'
Damian Xavier's face was dark.
'Had he come all this way for nothing?'
Kevin Keane glanced cautiously at his expression and quickly stepped forward to ask, "Mr. Xavier, would you like to see Colin Sterling?"
Damian Xavier raised an eyebrow.
"Let's go."
When Damian Xavier arrived at the door to Aria Sterling's office, the door wasn't fully closed but was ajar, and he could hear people talking inside.
Colin Sterling was lounging on the sofa, with a few middle-aged men who looked like board members sitting beside him.
They seemed to be discussing something quite amusing, and Colin Sterling looked utterly pleased with himself.
"Sterling, don't you worry. No matter how capable Aria Sterling is, she's just a girl in her twenties. What can she possibly do?"
"That's right. At best, she can throw her weight around in front of you elders because the old man doted on her, but when it comes to actually running the group, she's not up to the task. She's been putting on a good act these past few days, but it won't last long. In a few more days, she'll show her true colors."
"Exactly, I think so too. When it comes to managing the company, we have to rely on our Mr. Sterling. He's been in charge of so many things here, top to bottom, and when has he ever made a mistake? This little girl doesn't know the first thing about what she's doing. Just wait a few more days. She'll have to give up her position to Mr. Sterling and beg him to manage the company for her."
The men were practiced flatterers, and Colin Sterling was soaking it all in, feeling absolutely wonderful.
He was practically floating on air, his eyes smiling so much they were narrowed into slits.
"You flatter me, gentlemen. But my niece is no pushover. After dealing with her these past few days, I've found she's much more troublesome than I imagined."
A slightly younger-looking director beside him said,
"Mr. Sterling, you're just too soft on the younger generation. She parades around acting high and mighty, and you can't bring yourself to discipline her, so she thinks she's hot stuff. She should take a good look at herself. What is she? Nothing but a woman Damian Xavier got tired of playing with. Damian Xavier doesn't want her anymore, and she has the gall to come running back to the Sterling Family. Now look at her, lording it over everyone!"
BANG—
Before Colin Sterling could respond, the door to his office was kicked open.
Colin Sterling roared, "Who is it! Do you have a death wish?!"
Damian Xavier sneered as he walked in. "It's me. I'm curious to see just how Mr. Sterling plans to kill me."
Colin Sterling looked toward the door.
Only then did he see that the intruder was none other than Damian Xavier.