Chapter 5
Knox’s breathing stopped for a moment.
As the reality of what he’d just heard sank in, his voice escalated into an uncontrolled roar:
“What did you just say?!”
“The project quotes are company confidential! How would outsiders know them? What the hell are you people doing over there?”
“Wasn’t Manager Vale responsible for this project? Where is she? Find her immediately! Why are you bothering me with such trivial matters? Am I paying you to sit around doing nothing?”
The subordinate froze, stunned into silence by the outburst. After a long pause, he stammered:
“Mr. Reynolds… after you left the office, Manager Vale left too. She hasn’t returned, and HR said-”
The employee stopped abruptly, causing Knox to bark impatiently:
“Said what? Spit it out!”
“HR said Manager Vale has already resigned. She won’t be handling company business anymore.”
Resigned… Hearing those words, Knox felt like he’d been struck by lightning. He responded in disbelief:
“What? Resigned? Who authorized that? Who let her leave without my signature?”
“But… you already signed Manager Vale’s resignation letter, sir. The process is complete…”
The world seemed to pause in that moment.
Knox’s eyes widened as the scene in his office replayed in his mind.
The divorce agreement he’d signed had three signature lines.
But a normal divorce agreement only needed two signatures, not three…
Had Raven tricked him into approving her resignation?
17:13
One Glance Too Many–From CFTY’s Wife to Vival Base
Chapter 5
Knox ran his fingers through his hair in frustration.
“I’ll contact her myself.”
“Find out which company is behind this. Check if we’ve had any previous dealings with them. And if there’s a mole in our company that you can’t identify, don’t bother coming back to work!”
With that final threat, he hung up the phone.
In ten years of entrepreneurship, Knox had never felt this flustered.
Before, whenever problems arose, Raven had always been by his side.
Together, they could strategize and solve any issue with ease.
But now, with Raven seeking divorce, he’d have to face everything alone.
An overwhelming sense of exhaustion and defeat instantly engulfed him.
Knox suddenly felt that his decade of hard work had lost all meaning.
All their projects being poached meant every bit of his initial investment had gone down the drain.
Without successful collaboration, the company was about to face the worst crisis since its founding.
He wanted to scream, to rage, to release all his pent–up emotions–but was stopped by a passing
nurse:
“Sir, please keep it down. No loud noises in the hospital.”
The nurse pointed to a warning sign on the wall before walking away.
Knox could only take deep breaths, his mind replaying the confrontation with Raven in his office that morning.
It was just a typical argument–why had she gotten so angry?
She had personally created and participated in every company project.
Now with this crisis, even if they were divorcing, she was still part of the company and should stand united with him.
17:13 C
One Glance Too Many–Fro CEO’s Wife to Rival Boss
Chapter 5
This thought finally dispersed some of his frustration.
Then he took out his phone and tentatively sent Raven a message.
“Are you home? No need to rush moving out. You can stay until you find a place–half the house is
yours anyway.”
“I’m sorry about this morning. I was too impulsive. I didn’t mean anything by it. Marlow is just my secretary. I’ve been so biased toward you that the employees naturally felt disheartened.”
“The company’s in trouble. If you’re free, call me back so we can figure this out together.”
His heart nearly jumped into his throat as he pressed send with trembling fingers.
But he seemed to have forgotten that I hadn’t even responded to his previous message. The notification “You have been blocked by this contact” appeared once again.
Staring at the screen, his typing stopped abruptly, and his blood ran cold.
It was just a divorce–the company they built together still existed. They were still business partners. Would Raven really cut him off so completely?!
Knox’s eyes reddened. Just as he was about to call Raven to demand answers, the hospital room door
opened.
Marlow peeked out, clutching the bandage on her forehead, her expression pitiful.
“Mr. Reynolds… I’m fine. You don’t need to wait here for me.”
“Has your wife… calmed down yet?”
“I’m so sorry. I was thoughtless and upset her. Maybe I should apologize to her? Divorce isn’t a small matter–she was probably just speaking out of momentary anger.”
Knox took a deep breath, forcing himself to calm down, and slowly said:
“All our projects have been poached. The competitor knows our pricing.”
“What do you think about this situation?”
