Chapter 37
Alexander's POV
Elizabeth's voice suddenly rose, carrying a hint of barely noticeable tension. Her almond-shaped eyes unnaturally avoided my gaze.
She was using the child in her belly as a bargaining chip, lifting her chin with an air of determination to win.
I narrowed my eyes slightly. This woman seemed more complex than I'd imagined. That reckless courage she possessed even earned a touch of my admiration.
"Hand over your parents' belongings to me for safekeeping. Just like before, put your most important things in my custody, and I'll let you move freely."
She bit her lip, dissatisfaction nearly seeping through her clenched teeth.
I knew how important those things were to her, because I'd had similar experiences. Using this as leverage made it especially effective.
"This is your only choice. Think it through carefully."
I looked at her, as if delivering an ultimatum, yet secretly anticipating what kind of response she'd give.
After about half a minute, she finally seemed to compromise. She looked up at me and nodded, "Fine, I agree. The items can stay with you, but in exchange, you must guarantee my safety."
She was quick to react and knew how to negotiate.
I watched that look in her eyes—not truly panicked—and couldn't help but smile slightly.
"Of course. We'll do as you say. Give me your most important things, and I'll meet your demands too."
My voice softened a bit. There was a question nagging at me, and I was hesitating whether to ask it now.
Elizabeth got the answer she wanted and was about to leave when I stopped her.
"Yesterday at the hospital, why didn't you let me deal with Aiden?"
Today, driven by motives I couldn't quite explain, I'd specifically had my assistant investigate everything between Elizabeth and Aiden in the past.
After reading the files, I reached one conclusion: Elizabeth had once been madly in love with Aiden.
Even the child in her belly existed because she genuinely wanted a child with Aiden. With someone like that, my biggest concern was that she might still have feelings for him.
As long as feelings remained, she might soften. The task I planned to give her might be compromised because of it.
Elizabeth looked at me and spoke slowly, "I just felt that kind of punishment would be too easy on him."
I studied her expression. She didn't seem to be lying, as if that's truly what she believed deep down.
Would simple punishment be too easy on him? This answer piqued my curiosity.
"Then let me see what you'll do."
I wanted to know how far Elizabeth could go, and to see if that persistent ruthlessness in her bones could help me.
Elizabeth left. I turned my attention back to work.
Recently, other branches of the Windsor Family had become increasingly restless, causing me trouble both openly and secretly. One wrong step and I could fall into their traps.
After my parents died, I took over the Windsor Family, but my position was far less secure than outsiders imagined.
There were too many uncontrollable factors, too many people to guard against.
I didn't have many people I could trust. My parents had an almost obsessive fixation on my child, but whether Elizabeth could keep this baby depended on her being smart enough.
Only a woman smart enough and ruthless enough deserved to stand by my side and safely deliver my child.
How Elizabeth dealt with Aiden was both a show I looked forward to and a test of sorts.
By the time I finished work, it was nearly midnight. I deliberately went to Elizabeth's room and quietly opened the door.
She was sound asleep, lying in bed completely unguarded, seemingly quite comfortable in my environment.
The next morning, Elizabeth left the villa right after breakfast, even taking the car keys from me.
I asked what she was doing. She only said she was going to watch a good show.
Soon, I knew what show she meant.
The negative news about Aiden from last night had continued to trend until now. At this moment, the Smith Group building was surrounded by reporters with cameras.
The online public opinion offensive was clearly her handiwork, even involving the hospital, creating impacts on multiple fronts.
Charles came up to me, very surprised, "Mr. Windsor, since when are you interested in this kind of gossip?"
Looking more carefully at my screen, he couldn't help adding, "Oh, it's about Ms. Spencer. Mr. Windsor, you haven't fallen for her, have you?"
I gave him a cold look, and he immediately shut his mouth.
"Elizabeth is just a woman temporarily staying here. With all your years as my assistant, do you think I'd fall for that type of woman?"
Elizabeth's image involuntarily surfaced in my mind. Judging by appearance alone, she was indeed the type that could catch my eye.
But in these twenty-some years, I'd never put emotions first. That sort of thing was just a transaction when necessary.
Who I loved, who I married—these weren't things I truly cared about. I would only choose the person most beneficial to me at the most appropriate time.
And right now, Elizabeth was that person.
"Go assign two people to follow Elizabeth. Don't let her get into real danger," I instructed Charles.
Charles nodded repeatedly and immediately went to arrange it.
After the meeting, I listened to Charles's report and learned that Aiden had called a press conference to salvage his reputation.
At the conference, Aiden admitted he had no feelings for Elizabeth and publicly confessed to Bianca, claiming Bianca was his true love.
He wanted to use this method to directly break off the engagement with Elizabeth while naturally getting together with Bianca.
Though he was still criticized by public opinion, through his passionate confession to Bianca, he successfully created an image of someone who couldn't be with his true love due to pressure.
This maneuver minimized the negative impact on the company. The press conference had already ended.
"What about Elizabeth? After seeing all this, how did she react?" I asked Charles.
Charles was clearly prepared, "Ms. Spencer seems to have driven straight home. She was right outside the conference venue. If she'd wanted to, she could have rushed right in."
"Is that so?" Remembering Elizabeth's confident look last night, I couldn't help but snort coldly. "She talks about revenge, but doesn't know how to seize such a good opportunity. Didn't she say she'd make him pay?"
At a time like that, she should have rushed right in and exposed all the embarrassing facts publicly.
Could it be that Elizabeth heard Aiden's words about only loving Bianca and got hurt?
Realizing this possibility, I couldn't help but frown.
No, I needed to go back and confirm.
"Cancel all my unimportant appointments this afternoon."
I grabbed my car keys and, after instructing Charles, got up and left directly.