Chapter 279 Fallen from Power

Chapter 279 Fallen from Power

"Why not? You're William's aunt by marriage. If you ask him for a favor, he'll surely listen," Alexander assured his wife.

Victoria's teeth clenched in fury. "But he's the one who sent me to prison in the first place! You think he'll listen to me now?"

Seeing her anger flare, Alexander quickly backpedaled. "He will, he definitely will. Times have changed—you're out now, aren't you? You're still his aunt. Don't worry, we're family after all."

Alexander's placating words only stoked Victoria's rage. Looking at her husband's anxious, ingratiating smile, she suddenly felt her anger dissipate, leaving nothing but emptiness. All fight drained from her as she nodded woodenly.

Seeing her acquiesce, Alexander beamed with delight. He pressed a forceful kiss to her lips. "Darling, you have no idea how much I've missed you."

At his words, Victoria suddenly remembered she still hadn't settled the score about his dalliance with those women.

"Weren't you perfectly happy surrounded by your female admirers?" she said coldly. "How could you possibly miss me?"

Hearing this, Alexander immediately realized Victoria's anger hadn't subsided.

He hastily explained, "Darling, you're completely misunderstanding. I went to the Velvet Vortex Club because William said he had a gift for me. I had no idea how I ended up in that private room with all those women. I was confused and had just a tiny bit to drink, but I swear I didn't do anything to betray you. I only had a few drinks and danced a little. That's all."

Alexander's voice grew progressively quieter as he anxiously glanced at Victoria.

When Victoria heard that William had sent him there, she paused. What a coincidence—Alexander had just gone, and she'd received that video. He claimed nothing inappropriate happened, but she didn't believe him for a second.

Victoria suddenly realized William had set a trap, but it was too late now. She had fallen into his scheme, made a scene, and landed everyone in prison. She had even implicated her two brothers, and all her business interests were gone. Everything was gone.

Thinking about how she had lost everything, Victoria felt overwhelmed with grief. Tears fell from her eyes. "Alexander, your family has been absolutely ruthless. How could you take back all my businesses and the Knight family factories? How am I supposed to survive now?"

As she spoke, she covered her face and began to sob.

Seeing her tears, Alexander panicked again.

"Darling, don't be upset. You have me, don't you? I have shares and companies. Whatever I earn is yours."

Victoria shoved him away in frustration. "How much can you possibly earn? You never handle company matters. You don't understand anything about business."

"It doesn't matter! We still have William, don't we? He said he'd hire a professional manager to run my company. We'll just collect the profits."

Alexander's words nearly made Victoria faint with anger.

What a fool—he couldn't even see that his life was completely in William's hands.

How did she end up married to such an idiot?

Victoria couldn't help but cry harder.

Alexander had no idea what he'd said wrong and stood helplessly as his wife's sobs filled the car.

Soon, they arrived at the Sterling estate. Alexander opened the door and carefully extended his hand to help Victoria.

After crying the entire journey, Victoria had finally accepted her current situation. She wiped away her tears and placed her hand in Alexander's as she stepped out of the car.

The moment they entered the main gate, they were stopped by Brad.

"Mrs. Victoria Sterling, Mrs. Irene Sterling has instructed that you need to undergo a cleansing ritual since you've just been released from prison."

Victoria trembled with rage. This was clearly meant to humiliate her.

"What do you intend to do?" she asked, her voice shaking.

With a wave of Brad's hand, servants stepped forward carrying basins. They dipped branches in the water and sprinkled it forcefully on Victoria.

Victoria screamed at the sudden assault, covering her head with her hands.

Nearby, Alexander called out reassuringly, "Don't worry, darling. Mother arranged this. Once the cleansing is done, everything will be fine."

After the water ritual was completed, Brad finally allowed her to enter the main house.

Inside, Irene sat in the place of honor. When she saw Victoria, she merely glanced up without speaking.

Seeing his mother's cold demeanor, Alexander pulled Victoria to kneel on the carpet at Irene's feet.

"Mother, Victoria has returned," he announced.

Irene set down her teacup and fixed her piercing gaze on Victoria. "Have you learned your lesson?" she asked coldly.

Afraid Victoria might act defiant, Alexander quickly interjected, "Mother, Victoria knows she was wrong. Please forgive her."

Irene snorted. "None of your business. I'm asking Victoria."

Alexander turned to his wife anxiously. "Darling, say something. Tell her you've learned your lesson."

Victoria bit her lower lip hard before finally speaking. "I was wrong. It won't happen again."

Upon hearing this, Irene's expression softened slightly.

"Good that you recognize your mistake. From now on, live properly with Alexander. Remember, everything you have comes from the Sterling family. Stop creating problems constantly!"

With that, she rose and left.

After she departed, Alexander led Victoria to their private wing of the mansion. There, Victoria learned everything that had happened during her absence. When she heard that Anna had returned and become a partner in the Sterling Group, she was furious. She immediately called Grace.

When Grace saw Victoria's incoming call, she answered nervously. "Godmother, you're back?"

Victoria ignored her pleasantries and got straight to the point. "You useless waste, what's going on with Anna? How far have things progressed between you and William?"

Grace remained silent until Victoria finished her tirade. Then she slowly replied, "Godmother, you can call me useless if you want. I've decided to give up. William loves Anna. No matter how hard I try, I can't win his heart. Since that's the case, I'm stepping back."

"You're giving up?" Victoria could hardly believe her ears. This ungrateful girl was abandoning everything—what had all Victoria's efforts been for?

"Grace, you can't just decide to give up. How could you treat me this way?"

Victoria seethed through clenched teeth. "Don't you believe I'll tell William and everyone else about this? I'll tell them you came to the Sterling family with ulterior motives, that you were after William."

By now, Grace had grown disillusioned and weary. "Go ahead if you want," she said listlessly. "Even if Mrs. Sterling and William want to throw me out, I have nothing more to say."

Since Grace remained unmoved by her threats, Victoria angrily threw her phone across the room.