Mr. Villain's Lovely Wife

Chapter 231
"Congratulations on your success," Liam smiled as he handed a champagne glass to Izzy. "I knew you could do it."
Izzy smiled. "Did you?" She accepted the glass.
"I never had a doubt." Liam said as he sat next to her, staring straight at her. "But
you don't seem happy."
Izzy smiled at that. Doesn't she really look happy?
Izzy took a sip of the champagne and rested the glass on her knee. The celebration was quiet, the way she preferred it. The
lights were low.
The view from the penthouse window stretched across the skyline, but her eyes weren't on it. She watched the reflection in the
glass instead-Liam's beside hers. Solid. Still. Always watching.
"I'm not unhappy." she said. "It's just... enough, for now."
He didn't answer right away. He shifted slightly, turning toward her. His arm brushed against hers. He didn't move away.
"I didn't think I'd have to keep doing this forever," she continued. "I didn't think I'd have to keep fighting."
Liam reached for her hand, not sudden, just steady. His fingers closed around hers. Warm. Grounding. No pressure. He waited.
She didn't look at him. "They never stop. Frederik, the Rossi board, and even the media. I wake up, and there's always
something new-another headline, another meeting, or another problem. And no matter what I fix, it doesn't end."
"You don't have to do it alone."
She looked down at their hands. His thumb brushed against the side of hers.
"I know," she said. "But even when you're not alone, it still feels like it's on you. Because no one else really understands what's at
stake." She pulled her hand away gently, only to set the glass aside. Then she turned fully toward him, folding one leg beneath
her on the couch. "The problem isn't that they're trying to push me out. The problem is I don't know who's really behind it. The
leaks, the timing, the press-it's coordinated."

Liam nodded once. He didn't ask for more. He waited.
"And I- I don't want to keep fighting an invisible enemy, Liam. I just- I don't think I can do this all the time. Be on defense. Not
being able to sleep property at night, thinking someone might be planning to end my life anything and I-” she swallowed. "I didn't
want to drag you with me."
"Hey Hey you are not-"
She shook her head, interrupting him."There's only one way to know," Izzy said. "One way to see who the real enemy is."
She stared at him for a long time. The silence stretched between them. It didn't feel awkward. It felt necessary. Like she needed
to see if he would flinch.

He didn't.
"What do you need me to do?" he asked.
Izzy's chest tightened slightly-not with anxiety, but something else. She reached up and unfastened the top two buttons of her
blouse. Slowly. Deliberately. She didn't break eye contact.
"I need you to listen," she said. "And follow my lead. No questions. No hesitation."
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Liam leaned forward. His knees touched hers. "Then tell me what's next"
Izzy smiled faintly. "We set a trap. And we watch who takes the bait." This time, she's willing to do everything just to find out who
her enemy was.
"Miss Cassy's apparent suicide attempt-it's just..." Maria exhaled and shook her head. "The timing couldn't have been more
convenient, but so far, the only source confirming it is a brief statement from her attending physician. No hospital admission
details. No official report. She's vanished from social media. Everything is a mess"
Across the table, Nolan Reeve-lead counsel for Horvath Industries-turned his laptop toward her. His expression stayed
composed, but the screen displayed a red-drenched market dashboard.

"The stock is getting hammered," he said. "Both Horvath Industries and Rossi Group. Someone's aggressively shorting it. The
losses aren't just incidental- they're coordinated. We managed to hold the board votes, and both Miss Rossi and Mr. Horvath
retained their positions, but the damage to market confidence is real."
Maria nodded slowly. This wasn't surprising. Cassandra Jones wasn't just another scandal-ridden actress. She was an
established figure in Hollywood. A fall this dramatic, this public, was bound to ripple. But something still didn't sit right.
"It's not organic," she said. "The way the headlines are spreading, the speed of the media pickup-it feels planted. Like someone
is buying reach just to keep this in rotation."
Nolan leaned back in his chair. "And we still don't have her location. No emergency calls. No official admission records. For all
we know, she never attempted anything at all."
Maria's eyes narrowed slightly. "It could be another play. A diversion. Something to discredit the Horvaths and derail the court's
attention before the hearings even start."
Nolan didn't disagree. "Until we find her-or at least verify her condition-we're stuck playing defense."
Maria crossed her arms. "And someone out there is making sure we stay on the back foot."
"Miss!" one of Maria's assistants burst through the door, tablet in one hand, a remote in the other. She didn't wait for permission.
She crossed the room quickly and switched on the large wall-mounted screen at the front of the boardroom. Maria stood slowly
as the screen lit up. The live stream was already running. A press backdrop. Microphones. Dozens of reporters. And there-center
frame-was Isabella Rossi.
Maria's stomach dropped.

Izzy stood at a podium, composed, her hands resting lightly on the sides. There was no teleprompter. No speech in front of her.
She looked straight into the cameras.
"Effective immediately," Izzy said, "I am stepping down from my position on the Rossi Group Board."
Gasps could be heard from the press pit. Someone's pen slipped off a table. In the boardroom, Nolan straightened in his chair.
Maria didn't blink.

Azzy continued, "This is a personal decision. One I've made after serious consideration. My role in the group has never been
about power or influence. It was about honoring my grandfather's legacy. But at this point in my life, I want to shift my focus."
She paused briefly. The cameras zoomed in.
"I want to focus on my family. On my marriage. On my husband. And as such, I've named Liam Horvath my sole legal
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beneficiary, moving forward."
The room behind Maria went still. She barely registered it. Her eyes stayed on the screen.
A reporter shouted, "Is this resignation related to Miss Sarano's suicide attempt?" Another yelled out, "Are you stepping down to
avoid accountability in the harassment and slander charges filed against Mr. Horvath?"
A third voice pushed through, "Is your marriage real, or just a cover to protect his
position?"
Izzy didn't answer immediately. She simply stood there, letting the questions
stack. Maria recognized the tactic. Control the tempo. Don't flinch.
More voices followed.
"Did you pressure Miss Sarano into silence?"
"Is this part of a larger deal between the Horvaths and the Rossi estate?”
"Why resign now, after all your public defense last week?"
Izzy held her posture. She lifted the microphone slightly closer.

"I'm not here to argue with rumors," she said. "I'm here to make a personal decision known. The Rossi Group will continue to
thrive without me. They don't need my name on a document to succeed."
A few reporters tried to follow up, but the moderators were already motioning toward the final questions.
Maria turned away from the screen, her fingers tapping the side of her phone. She already had a call lined up with lan Morcant.
There would be fallout. Of course, there would be. But something about this timing-
She looked back at the screen. Izzy was still on camera, but her eyes looked past
the room now. Focused. Certain.
"She's not backing down," Nolan said behind her.
Maria sighed. But first, she had to call Izzy.
Sorry for the delay. I am super busy right now. I got sick[pink eye- everyone in my
family got it T.T] then I have a vacation to Singapore next week and I have been
very busy. T.T