Dark Revenge Of A Jilted Bride: Till Life Do Us Part!-Chapter 112: Answers IV

Gianna watched quietly as Ewan shoved the blogger roughly into one of the seats in the messy living room. The chair groaned under the sudden weight, its legs wobbling as if protesting the abuse.

She was keenly aware of Athena moving through the space with clinical precision, her gaze assessing, her mouth curling in unmistakable disgust. Gianna could relate. Entirely.

Couldn’t the man keep his household clean?

The living room looked like neglect had taken up permanent residence. The walls were peeling in uneven patches, paint flaking off like scabbed skin. The cushions on the couch sagged inward, flattened by years of misuse, one of them ripped open slightly, its stuffing peeking out like a wound left unattended.

Clothes lay strewn everywhere—shirts draped over armrests, jeans pooled on the floor as if discarded mid-thought. Wrappers from eaten snacks littered the ground, crumpled foil and plastic crunching faintly underfoot. Empty pizza boxes were stacked haphazardly in one corner, grease stains seeping through cardboard layers.

And the smell—stale food, sweat, old air trapped too long—hung thickly, clinging to the walls, to the furniture, to the back of Gianna’s throat.

She noted Spider pushing aside pizza boxes from the lone dining table so he could set his bag down, creating a small island of order amid the chaos. He took the only chair available after dusting it quickly with a flimsy cloth he’d found hanging off a doorknob leading to the kitchen.

Gianna praised him mentally—his admirable lack of phobia toward dirt. She, on the other hand, couldn’t imagine herself sitting anywhere in this house without feeling her skin crawl.

"So, what’s your name?" Ewan began, his tone clipped as he assessed how long they might be stuck here. If the blogger gave a name that matched what Spider had already uncovered, then they wouldn’t need to linger.

He was hoping for that outcome, sensing the women’s growing discomfort in the filthy environment.

"Matt."

Ewan bit back a sigh of relief. "Nice to meet you, Matt. We just need some answers from you, and we’ll be out of your hair."

Matt nodded fearfully, regret already creeping in. He knew who the people in his living room were—still couldn’t believe they’d traced him when he’d protected the link as best as he could.

And yet... it hadn’t been enough.

"First of all, and maybe the only question—who gave you the tip-off, and when did you receive it?"

Matt swallowed hard, placing his trembling hands on his thighs, reading the hostility thickening in the room. "I got the tip-off in the early hours of the morning, around two a.m..."

He licked his lower lip, fidgeting when Athena stepped forward, ice settling into her gaze.

Had the good doctor always been this terrifying?

He was beginning to understand how a mere doctor had stood against gangs and walked away alive. She was fearless—and worse, she knew exactly how to wield fear. 𝒻𝓇𝑒𝘦𝘸𝑒𝒷𝓃ℴ𝑣𝘦𝑙.𝒸ℴ𝘮

"It came from an anonymous fellow too..."

Spider spoke up then. "Where is it? Can I see it?"

Matt nodded quickly, eyes darting around as he searched for his phone.

Gianna pointed calmly toward the center table. "Under the pizza box."

Matt stood gingerly when he realized no one was going to retrieve it for him. He trudged over, lifted the greasy cardboard, and grabbed his phone. He opened the cursed message with shaking fingers and handed it to Spider.

"That’s all I know," he said as he returned to his seat.

"But you knew enough that it would be damaging to people’s reputations," Athena cited.

Matt shrugged weakly. "It was just business, miss... I needed the..."

He never saw the slap coming.

The sound cracked through the room at the same instant pain exploded across his left cheek.

A sharp gasp tore from his lips as he clutched his face, eyes watering as resentment flashed when he looked—no, glared—at Athena.

That was his mistake.

Ewan punched him.

Matt flew out of the seat, crashing to the floor in a clumsy sprawl.

When Gianna stepped closer, she saw blood already streaming from his nostrils, smearing the corner of his mouth. And to her surprise, she felt a smile curve her lips.

"Don’t you dare look at my wife like that!" Ewan snarled. "Do I make myself clear?"

Matt bobbed his head frantically, humiliation pouring out of him as tears followed.

"Words, idiot."

"Yes, sir," Matt croaked, scrambling when Ewan advanced again, shrinking back against the wall. He cursed the message, the messenger, and that damned 2 a.m. decision.

"I’ve found the person," Spider said, drawing their attention away from the whimpering mess on the floor. "Well, I can’t say I’m surprised..."

Gianna moved toward him immediately, her pulse roaring in her ears. "Who is it?"

Spider met her gaze, empathy flickering briefly in his eyes. "Your cousin."

Gianna froze. Disbelief slammed into her first, quickly melting into white-hot anger.

Her fists curled at her sides, nails biting into her palms as her chest tightened painfully. Her heart thundered, rage and betrayal twisting together until she could hardly breathe.

"Sabrina?"

Spider nodded. "The link leads back to her. Including the video."

Gianna opened her mouth, then shut it again, fury strangling her words. Sabrina.

"A case of jealousy, then," Athena said coldly. "Cripple Zane’s company for sacking her, and hurt Gianna in the process."

"The bitch," Athena added, eyes blazing. "She used the current chaos to make her move."

Gianna’s fists clenched and unclenched. What kind of family was this? Or rather—what kind of uncle raised such a family?

Her aunt, her father’s sister, hadn’t been this way. She’d fled the country after the wedding fiasco with her lovely family, believing someone was after them, even abandoning her company shares.

Gianna frowned. Had her aunt suspected Clement back then?

Her tongue felt heavy as she forced herself to speak. If Sabrina could do this, what else was she capable of?

"Do you think she’s behind the accident too?" Gianna asked quietly. "Maybe my uncle?"

Shock rippled through the room. She understood it—after all, she’d defended the limit of that wicked family for days now.

"Do you think he hired the gang’s services?" she continued. "Or whoever’s operating under Philemon’s nose?"

Spider shrugged. "I don’t know. But I’ll check. I’ll put a tail on them. Dig through old CCTV footage. See what I can find."

"Thank you," Gianna murmured, her head beginning to ache.

Her cousin had aired her life for the world to devour—and for what? Revenge?

"What do you want to do about her?" Athena asked softly.

"I’ll make her pay," Gianna said, her voice steady despite the storm inside her. "But on my own terms. Can you leave that to me?"

Athena smiled. "Of course. Enjoy yourself, friend."

"And the news?"

"Let it stay," Gianna replied. "No point discrediting it. It’s the truth. It would’ve come out sooner or later. Better now."