Chapter 257 The Wedding Date Set
The unease caused by Anna's disappearance briefly affected everyone's mood, but it was quickly overshadowed by an even bigger piece of happy news.
To put everyone's mind at ease and announce his determination to the world, Stefan made a high-profile decision.
Three days later, the Hensley Group's official website, leading financial media, and major social platforms simultaneously released a bombshell announcement—Stefan, President of the Hensley Group, would marry renowned designer Amelia on the 18th of next month at Eternal Love Church.
As soon as the news broke, the entire Harmony City business community, and even the country's social networks, were abuzz with talk.
Although rumors about the two had spread like wildfire before, they had never received a direct response from the people involved.
Many thought it was just a rich Playboy's passing fancy.
Especially since the Hensley family and the Clark family had a prior engagement, no one expected Stefan to go this far—not only breaking ties completely with the Clark family over the daughter of a pasta restaurant owner, but now actually marrying her.
Speculation and gossip spread like crazy.
Some envied Amelia for marrying into a wealthy family.
Others were not optimistic about the marriage, believing the social gap was too wide and problems would arise sooner or later.
Stefan and Cecilia ignored all the outside noise.
This news was the most effective boost for themselves and their families.
Dione and the Martinez couple were overjoyed, throwing themselves into wedding preparations with full enthusiasm, busy and happy every day.
And this news reached Rufus almost instantly.
In the Chapman Group's top-floor CEO office, the atmosphere was suffocating.
The floor was a mess.
An expensive antique vase lay shattered into hundreds of pieces, a limited-edition cigar box was crushed out of shape, and even priceless paintings had not been spared.
Elodie huddled in the corner, shaking uncontrollably.
She kept her head down, not daring to breathe too loudly, afraid the man, in a rage, would turn his fury on her.
"A wedding... he actually dares!"
Rufus stood before the huge floor-to-ceiling window, phone in hand, the screen showing the Hensley family's wedding announcement.
In the photo Stefan had personally selected and posted, Cecilia leaned against him, smiling bright and radiant—a look of happiness Rufus had never seen before.
That smile pierced Rufus's eyes deeply.
His chest heaved violently, his eyes turning red with jealousy and rage.
Cecilia was his.
From the moment they met on that boat, she was destined to be his woman.
He had searched for her for so many years, loved her for so many years—why?
Why could Stefan, that thief, so easily take her away, and even give her a wedding the whole world would watch?
No, he would never allow it.
Rufus let out a suppressed roar, suddenly turned around, and kicked over the desk beside him.
The heavy, solid wood desk crashed to the ground with a thunderous sound, scattering documents, computers, and decorations everywhere.
Elodie screamed in fright, shrinking even tighter.
She watched Rufus, driven mad over another woman, her heart seething with jealousy and resentment.
Weren't she and that woman called Amelia both substitutes for his dead wife?
To play this role well, she had worked hard to imitate Cecilia's every habit, every little gesture, even learning her tone of voice perfectly.
She believed she resembled the deceased Cecilia more than Amelia did.
But why did Rufus's eyes and heart only hold Amelia?
He would even fight Stefan to the death over her.
And what about herself?
In his eyes, she was nothing more than a plaything to be summoned and dismissed at will, a tool to vent his anger on.
The enormous injustice and grievance made Elodie's eyes red, too.
After venting for a while, Rufus finally seemed to exhaust his energy.
He panted heavily, irritably loosened his tie, then collapsed onto the sofa.
"Come here," Rufus commanded in a hoarse voice.
Elodie, in the corner, stiffened but did not dare disobey.
She carefully stood up, shuffled to the sofa, and looked at him timidly.
"Rufus..."
Rufus opened his eyes, those bloodshot eyes full of violence.
He pointed at the phone on the floor.
"Pick it up."
Elodie did not dare question him and immediately complied.
On the screen was that glaring photo.
"Does it look good?" Rufus suddenly asked.
Elodie did not know how to answer and could only vaguely respond, "...Yes."
"What looks good about it?" Rufus pressed, his voice carrying a sick curiosity.
"She... her smile looks good," Elodie answered with difficulty.
"Her smile?" Rufus sneered.
He stood up, walked in front of Elodie, and looked down at her from above. "You can smile too. Smile for me."
Elodie's face instantly turned pale.
How could she possibly smile at a time like this?
"I said smile!" Rufus's tone suddenly turned cold.
Elodie could only stiffly pull at the corners of her mouth, forcing out a smile that looked more like a grimace than a smile.
Rufus's eyes filled with contempt and disgust. "What a crude fake."
He kicked away the phone in Elodie's hand, crouched down, grabbed her chin, and forced her to look up.
"Tell me, how exactly are you like her?"
"I..." Elodie's tears flowed from the pain. "I don't know..."
"You don't know?" Rufus's fingers tightened. "You look in the mirror every day—how could you not know? Stefan went to great lengths to find you precisely because of this face, didn't he? But now, when I look at your face, I only feel disgusted."
"Your face does not deserve to be compared to hers."
"Rufus, please... I was wrong," Elodie begged, breaking down.
"What did you do wrong?" Rufus's voice remained calm, but beneath that calm was a volcano about to erupt.
"I should not have... I should not have imitated her."
"No, your biggest mistake is that you are not her!" Rufus suddenly threw her aside, stood up, and paced irritably around the office.
"Wedding... wedding..." he kept muttering.
"Stefan, do you think a wedding can settle everything? Do you think that by claiming ownership, she will really be yours?"
"I am telling you, impossible."
He suddenly stopped, turned to look at Elodie.
"Tell me, under what circumstances would a woman hate a man the most?"
Elodie was too scared to speak and just kept shaking her head.
"When she thinks she has all the happiness in the world, then she watches it all turn to nothing right before her eyes."
A cold smile played at Rufus's lips.
He suddenly thought of another person.
A woman who also hated Stefan and Cecilia to the bone, someone he could use.
Anna.
Getting her out of detention had taken Rufus considerable effort.
He had originally wanted to let her suffer more as punishment for pushing Cecilia down the stairs.
But now it seemed this chess piece was ready to be put to use.