My CEO Ex: Let Me Go.-Chapter 116

A quick glance at the messages revealed a flood of insults, curses, and personal attacks.

I furrowed my brows deeply, my face darkening with fury as a blaze of anger ignited within me.

I couldn’t even begin to imagine the kind of pain Vivienne must be feeling seeing such a relentless barrage of abuse.

The thought of Vivienne enduring this alone—silently bearing the unjust treatment while carrying on with her work—stirred an indescribable ache in my chest.

In the brief moments I’d turned on my phone, more harassing calls and insulting messages continued to pour in.

I opened WhatsApp, scrolling through the homepage, but I couldn’t find any messages from Director Steven.

It was clear that after Vivienne had blocked him, she’d also deleted the entire conversation history.

Something crossed my mind, and I began sifting through my screenshots. Sure enough, I found the evidence Vivienne had saved.

The last message from Director Steven was: "...I’ll give you the sponsorship for that show next season. Come to the hotel tonight and keep me company?"

A coldness spread through my eyes as I snapped my phone shut with a sharp "clack" and placed it down on the table before dialing a number.

"CEO Hawthorne? What a rare surprise to get a call from you!" The person on the other end sounded both surprised and delighted, almost disbelieving.

"I heard Steven Tarantino has a pretty popular idol show?"

"Yes, yes! CEO Hawthorne, are you interested in investing? I wouldn’t recommend this program though; there are a lot of unprofessional aspects. Although nothing major has happened yet, trouble is bound to come."

"Trouble is bound to come? Then let’s make sure it’s a big one! Let’s ruin Steven Tarantino’s reputation in this industry for good! If all goes well, I’ll consider investing in your other shows."

The person on the other end was ecstatic, repeatedly assuring me, "Don’t worry, CEO Hawthorne. You’ll see!"

Later that night, I had a social engagement.

By the time I left the private room, it was already close to 10 PM.

My business partners treated me with great respect, personally escorting me to the elevator and even attempting to follow me inside. I gestured for them to stop and entered the elevator with Jane.

James had already driven the car down to the underground parking lot elevator.

As I stepped out of the elevator and opened the car door to get in, I suddenly heard someone call out, "Mr. Hawthorne!"

I turned toward the voice and saw Julian walking straight toward me, his eyes fixed on mine.

"Mr. Hawthorne, may I have a word?"

I studied him for a moment before responding, "What do you want to talk about?"

I hadn’t forgotten—Julian was Vivienne’s lover.

And Julian had spoken ill of me in front of Vivienne.

"It’s about Vivienne," Julian said, his tone firm yet calm.

I gave Jane and James a subtle look.

They immediately understood and stepped away from the car.

I slid into the back seat, and Julian entered from the other side.

The car was utterly silent.

I leaned back in my seat, breaking the stillness first. "Go ahead."

"Mr. Hawthorne, I advise you to leave Vivienne alone."

I raised an eyebrow, watching him.

Julian’s expression was extremely serious. "I imagine no one has ever spoken to you like this before."

"So?"

"You’re a man who can get whatever he wants with ease, always called lucky. You can have your way with countless women, but you shouldn’t be messing with Vivienne! And you definitely shouldn’t make her pay for your mistakes, bearing the wrath of the internet. She’s not like those other people."

"And what does this have to do with you? What gives you the right to speak to me like this?"

"Friend. Vivienne’s friend."

"Friend? A friend with ulterior motives?" I shot back, my words hitting their mark.

Julian didn’t hesitate. "Yes, it’s because I care for her that I feel for her. People like you will probably never understand what that feels like. If I could, I’d bear all of this in her place."

Before all this happened, I had been an investor in Empire of Shadows and Vivienne’s de facto brother, and Julian had treated me with politeness and respect.

But since the news broke, his attitude toward me had taken a drastic turn.

In his eyes, I’m nothing more than a reckless playboy living two lives and refusing to take responsibility for either. I’m completely unworthy of Vivienne!

As for our relationship, he must think I forced Vivienne into it!

He probably believes that, as Grandpa’s health declines, I’ve started showing my true colors, and that Vivienne, unable to fend for herself, is just staying with me out of fear that her relationship with Grandpa might affect his final years.

That’s how he must see it.

“So, what you’re saying is, you’re using your own bad press to draw the fire away from her?” Julian asked.

Instead of answering directly, he threw another question at me. “Do you know why I hit that guy?”

Before I could respond, he played a recording from his phone. “Listen for yourself.”

The voices on the recording were clear: “...looks pretty cheap.”

“Oh, you heard that? Smell something fishy?”

“I was watching that day. Her hips, her waist... they’re so seductive...”

“If it were me, I’d make sure she’s satisfied all night...”

“She has so many clients. She won’t even notice you.”

After a few more crude remarks, the sound grew chaotic. It seemed like a fight had broken out.

Someone could be heard shouting, “Julian, you’ve got so many fans. You can’t just go around hitting people.”

When the noise died down, an even more offensive voice continued, “Vivienne came to see your class. You’re not one of her bed guests, are you? You’re defending her so much... I guess she’s been taking good care of you... Shameless woman, do you think people won’t talk?”

My hand, resting on my knee, tightened slowly. The veins on the back of my hand bulged, my knuckles turned white, and my eyes darkened, a cold, menacing aura radiating from me.

I closed my eyes for a moment, and Director Steven’s last WhatsApp message flashed in my mind.

If curses and insults were enough to make someone angry, then sexual humiliation was the most direct weapon to destroy a person’s soul.

But the victim could never defend themselves. Even if they found the courage to clear their name, they’d only get caught in a vicious cycle.

Julian stopped the recording.

After listening to it again, his rage was still palpable. He took a deep breath before continuing. “This is just what I overheard. Who knows how many people are gossiping about Vivienne when we’re not around, saying even worse things than this? You’re a man—you don’t have to tell me you don’t know what they’re thinking! She shouldn’t have to deal with this! Why should she? And it’s all because of you! If you have any conscience left, stay away from Vivienne and go be with your mistress, Isabella!”

I stayed silent for a long time before answering, “If you want to use her to clean up your negative press, then congratulations. You’ve succeeded.”

Julian’s anger flared. “What do you mean, ‘using her’? You want me to clean up your mess?”

“Isn’t that exactly what you’re doing?”

I gave a low laugh. “Do you like her, or are you just using her to get closer to our family? Julian, you can fool her, but you can’t fool me!”

Vivienne had clearly told me she didn’t like him.

Julian was still pretending to feel sorry for her, which could only mean he had hidden motives.

His expression twisted like I’d just struck him with my words.

The veins on his hand bulged as he clenched and unclenched his fists. “Forget it, there’s no point in talking to you! I’ve said everything I needed to. I hope you think this through and leave Vivienne alone!”

With that, Julian slammed the car door and stormed off.

I stayed in the car, frozen.

Julian’s plan had been exposed, and he was humiliated.

Watching him leave in a huff, Jane and James exchanged glances before getting into their own cars.