ch 2

She was descending the stairs of the villa with anticipation, slowly observing the scene around her. When she reached the bottom, the head maid stood in front of her, bowing her head slightly:

"Madam, breakfast is ready and everyone is waiting for you."

Eleanor looked in the direction Amanda the butler had pointed, but before she went there she turned to Amanda and spoke sternly:

"Misa, I don't want to hear that name again on my property."

The head maid bowed respectfully and said with understanding:

"I'll make sure that disobedient maid's leg is broken and she's fired."

She paused for a moment in doubt, then said:

"Just kick her out, no need to break her leg..."

Eleanor motioned for the maid to leave, then went into the dining room.

The old man stood up and slammed his hand on the table, shouting:

"Wait until my daughter comes and puts an end to your arrogance!"

"What is there?"

Eleanor interrupted the event by entering the dining hall.

"My mom!"

Iris ran into her mother's arms when she saw her, and Eleanor hugged her back tenderly.

The old man stood up and smiled arrogantly as he looked at his son-in-law who was finishing his food indifferently, then he muttered:

"Let's see how long your arrogance will last."

Eleanor looked between her husband and her father, but before she could speak, her father spoke up, saying:

"My daughter, look at your husband! He wants to oust me from the group's board of directors!"

At that moment, Eleanor remembered that she had made a fuss with her husband in her past life, and all she could think about was how disgusted she was to relive all of that.

She didn't even realize that her gaze, as it drifted into the past, had turned cold, surrounded by a frightening aura that made the old man fall silent in fear.

"My mom?!"

Her daughter's voice brought her back to reality. She smiled gently at her, then looked up at her father. But her smile wasn't as affectionate as her daughter's; it was cold.

"Sorry, Dad, but I think you guys are old enough to handle company matters without me."

She said that, then dropped her fake smile, and returned to her affectionate smile again as she looked at her husband:

"Dear, I'll drop Iris off today... Have a nice day."

She said this and then kissed his cheek before taking her baby girl to the car.

Despite his frozen face, he couldn't stop the corner of his eyes from twitching when her lips touched his. It wasn't because he was affected, but because of her unusual behavior.

"That useless bitch!"

The father roared angrily as he looked in the direction his daughter had just come out from.

But at the very moment those words left his mouth, the knife sliced its way into the side of his face, leaving a deep gash. The old man recoiled and slumped back onto the chair.

"I seem to have been too lenient with you."

He said that while wiping the corner of his mouth with a tissue.

"So much so that you forget who Charles Ashford is... but that's okay."

Charles stood up, then gestured to his assistant who was standing silently in the corner of the room:

"He stopped all forms of support and issued orders barring him from entering the company."

The old man pointed at him angrily.

"You can't do that; the board won't let you."

Charles smiled sarcastically as he approached the old man, then placed his hands on the sides of the chair he was sitting on and leaned over him with his terrifying, spine-chilling aura.

"You should be thankful you're my wife's father and my daughter's grandfather, or I would have buried you where you are."

The old man walked away, looking into that man's eyes, which made you feel like a whirlpool capable of swallowing the whole world.

Charles withdrew and left the dining room with his aide following behind him.

"Investigate what my wife is doing."

The assistant ordered in his majestic voice as he entered the car, followed by a fleet of guards.

"Okay, sir."

The assistant bowed and then went to carry out the task.

Eleanor was sitting in the car next to her daughter, who was telling her mother about her school schedule for the day. But Eleanor wasn't hearing anything her daughter was saying, as she was lost in her own world, immersed in fragments of memories.

"Dad, you'll help me get out of here, right?"

She was wearing prison clothes as she sat behind the dividing glass, holding the black phone in her hands and looking at her father sitting on the other side of the glass.

"Can I help you?... Yes, I will certainly help you, but first you have to tell me where your husband is."

Eleanor was surprised by the question and replied automatically:

"Where will he be? At home or at work."

He hit the glass with his hand angrily:

"Are you going to pretend you don't know that he took his daughter, seized the company's money, and left the country?!"

Eleanor was shocked and then muttered in a trembling voice:

"My daughter?... No, no, impossible!"

"If you don't tell me now where he went..."

His angry voice interrupted her, so she woke up from her reverie and said:

"Dad, really, I don't know!"

He hit the glass again, anger filling him:

"the curse!"