Marriage Named Hatred Chapter 04
Annelise froze, her fingertips turning pale as they gripped the violin strings.
Everyone present exchanged uneasy glances, but no one dared to speak.
Only Talia stepped forward with a bright smile and gave a graceful bow. “Thank you, Mr. Ryland, for giving me this opportunity. I’ll do my best.”
“Replacing me is fine,” Annelise said suddenly, her voice calm and steady. “But I’d like a reasonable explanation.”
Bastian said nothing more and stood up, walking away without a word.
Annelise quickly set down her violin and hurried after him.
If the other woman’s skills had truly surpassed hers, she wouldn’t have objected.
But the off-key notes echoing in the rehearsal hall had already made the truth obvious.
“Bastian.” Annelise stepped in front of him, blocking his path. “Just to humiliate me, you’re willing to let someone this unprofessional ruin the orchestra’s work?”
Bastian lowered his gaze to her, the corner of his lips curving into a faint, ambiguous smile.
He didn’t answer her question. Instead, he raised his hand and pinched her cheek.
“Since when do you get to question me?” His voice was low. “If anyone should be asking questions, it’s me.
“Why do you want a divorce?”
The wedding band on Bastian’s ring finger pressed painfully against her cheek.
Forced to tilt her head back, Annelise met his dark eyes. “Don’t you like Talia? I’m giving you what you want.”
Bastian narrowed his eyes, tightening his grip. “Since you know that, then I’m using my authority as an investor to replace you isn’t unreasonable, is it?”
Annelise said nothing, her brows knitting slightly from the pain.
She had almost forgotten the extent of Bastian’s power.
If he could easily hand the Vasquez family multiple projects, then it was just as easy for him to strip her of her position with a few words.
Tears welled up involuntarily and fell onto the back of his hand.
He frowned and shoved her away, then pulled a divorce agreement from his suit pocket. “Do you know something? When the lawyer delivered this, your father happened to come see me.
“At his age, he was bowing and scraping outside my office,” he said slowly, his tone thick with undisguised mockery. “Begging me not to sign. Saying things like, ‘Anna is immature. Please don’t hold it against her,’ and even, ‘Mr. Ryland, you should discipline this daughter for me.'”
Annelise’s fingers curled slightly.
She had always known her parents favored others over her, but she hadn’t expected it to be this degrading.
In their eyes, she wasn’t a daughter, only a bargaining chip.
Bastian stepped closer, closing the distance between them.
“Robert has already gone this far,” he said, looking down at her. “How could I possibly refuse him?”
With a sharp click, Bastian flicked on his lighter.
The divorce agreement slipped from his fingers onto the ground. Flames licked at the paper, curling it into blackened ash.
The light in Annelise’s eyes dimmed bit by bit.
She closed her eyes briefly, then spoke slowly. “Then I’ll see you in court.”
Bastian paused for a moment.
“It seems you’ve made up your mind,” he said as he lit a cigar, the smile on his lips deepening. “Fine. Go ahead and struggle. Let me see what you’re capable of when you go up against me.”
Sunlight fell across Bastian’s face, overlapping with the image of who he had been at 18.
But Annelise could no longer find the feelings she once had.
The music in the rehearsal hall finally came to a stop as Talia walked between them.
Bastian naturally took Talia’s hand. Before leaving, he didn’t forget to sneer at Annelise. “I’ll be waiting for the day you come back and beg me.”