The Tainted Ring

How did his cufflink end up in my bag?

Cora traced the cold edges of the crystal. Considering his immense wealth, Gideon surely wouldn’t miss a single cufflink. She dropped the heavy piece of jewelry back into her handbag and locked her car.

The loud click of her heels echoed across the polished marble as she strode into the ground-floor corridor of the Lockwood Group Tower. Suddenly, her steps faltered.

Just a few yards ahead, Declan was walking shoulder-to-shoulder with a slender woman in a tailored skirt suit. He leaned in, laughing at something she said, his body language relaxed and intimate.

Cora narrowed her eyes. It was the same woman from the hotel last night.

Declan looked up. His smile vanished instantly, replaced by a flash of sheer panic. In his mind, Cora was supposed to be halfway to Oakhaven for a business trip.

The slender woman noticed his shift in demeanor. She leaned in, her lips grazing his ear as she whispered something. After exchanging a knowing glance with him, she pivoted toward the executive elevator. As she turned, her eyes met Cora’s.

The woman didn't look away. Instead, she offered a mocking smirk and deliberately tilted her head, brushing her hair over her shoulder. A dark, fresh hickey sat bruised against the skin of her neck.

Cora’s chest tightened. A cold realization washed over her. This wasn't a drunken mistake. His affair had been going on for a long time.

Declan cast a nervous glance around the lobby before walking over to Cora. Neither said a word as they stepped into an empty elevator.

The moment the metal doors slid shut, Declan let out a breath and dropped his rigid posture. “She’s my department director. She was just asking me about the quarterly report.” He adjusted his tie. “Didn't you say you were leaving for Oakhaven?”

Cora clutched her leather bag, her knuckles turning white. A wave of disgust churned in her stomach. Because of her past trauma, she suffered from a psychological barrier that prevented them from being intimate. They hadn't slept together once in their entire marriage. She knew Declan was an ordinary man with physical needs, and for a long time, she had carried guilt over it. But seeing him blatantly parade his mistress around the office killed any trace of remorse she felt about exacting her revenge with Gideon last night.

Cora kept her expression neutral. “Yesterday was our first wedding anniversary. I delayed my flight hoping to celebrate with you. But you texted me you were working late, so I didn't want to bother you.”

Declan stiffened. Guilt flashed in his eyes, but he quickly masked it as his hand darted into his suit pocket.

“I didn't forget,” he said smoothly, pulling out a small velvet box. He popped it open to reveal a diamond ring. “I bought this for you.”

Cora stared down at the ring. The intricate cut and the specific halo design were identical to the diamond earrings his director had been wearing just moments ago. He had bought a matching jewelry set. The earrings went to his mistress, and the ring went to his wife.

A surge of revulsion made her recoil. She yanked her hand back before he could touch her.

Declan frowned, genuinely confused by her reaction. “What’s wrong? Don't you like the cut?”

“I do,” Cora lied, reaching out to pluck the ring out of his hand and snapping the box shut herself. “But we’re at the office. You know the rules. It wouldn't be good if someone saw.”

Relieved, the unsuspecting Declan smiled and casually draped his arm around her shoulders. “Let me make it up to you. Let's get dinner tonight.”

Cora held her breath. The cloying, heavy scent of the director's floral perfume radiated off his suit jacket. It stung her nose. She planted her hands on his chest, ready to shove him away, but a loud ding interrupted them.

The elevator doors slid open. A female coworker from the marketing department stood in the lobby, her eyes widening as she took in their close posture.

Declan reacted with lightning speed. He shoved Cora’s shoulder, forcefully creating three feet of distance between them.

“Please be careful, Ms. Vance,” Declan said, his tone loud, sharp, and strictly professional. He gave the coworker a polite nod. “She lost her balance in her heels. I had to catch her.”

Cora stood frozen, her blood running cold. He was perfectly fine flirting with his boss in the open, but treating his own wife like a disease to maintain his single facade was his first instinct. What a joke.

“Thank you, Mr. Lockwood,” Cora replied, her voice dead and mechanical. She gripped her bag and walked straight out of the elevator. The lingering smell of the mistress’s perfume on his clothes made her want to vomit.

By two o'clock that afternoon, Cora was sitting in a sleek downtown law firm. She didn't hesitate as she paid the retainer fee to hire a lawyer to draft a formal divorce agreement. The marriage was dead. By handing him the papers first, she would retain the last shred of her dignity.

However, her decisive plan hit a wall the moment she walked out of the law office. Her phone rang. It was an emergency directive from the translation department. A critical issue had erupted in Brantley, and her presence was required immediately.

There was no time to return to the office, no time to review the drafted divorce papers, and no time to even pack a suitcase. Cora hailed a taxi on the curb and headed straight to the airport.