Chapter 9 She Deleted Him

• Raiden glanced at Stefan and took the phone from him. "Hello?"
• The response on the other end was just a busy signal.
• Both Raiden and Stefan were speechless.
• "She might have accidentally pressed something." Stefan tried to cover for Isabelle. "She mentioned that she was busy, and I could hear she was a bit out of breath. She's probably on the road."
• Raiden didn't pay any attention to him and simply tossed the phone back. "Don't let unrelated matters interfere with our meeting."
• Stefan was speechless.
• Raiden turned his gaze to Barrett Patton, who had been observing the situation with a perplexed look. "I apologize for the disturbance, Mr. Patton."
• Barrett was in his sixties, and like Raiden, he was a prominent figure in the construction industry. However, he had been in the field for much longer, and he appreciated and warily eyed Raiden, who was the up-and-coming figure in recent years. His main purpose for coming today was to build a connection and discuss potential collaboration. So, in response to Raiden's apology, Barrett smiled and waved his hand. "Mr. Galloway, there's no need to apologize. We all encounter unexpected situations."
• After that, he couldn't help but glance at Raiden and added, "If you have something urgent to handle, please go ahead. I don't mind waiting, and I'm not in a hurry. I came here today just to have a casual chat with you."
• Raiden responded, "No problem."
• No problem...but his eyes kept drifting towards Stefan's phone.
• Barrett was an experienced individual. He smiled and said, "Mr. Galloway, how about we take a short break? I didn't sleep well last night, either. I had a tiff with my unfilial son all night long. A walk and a chance to clear my mind would be nice."
• Stefan promptly intervened, saying, "Let me show you around. There's some afternoon tea prepared at the restaurant downstairs, and you can grab a bite to eat."
• "Sounds good." Barrett smiled as he got up. "I'm feeling a bit hungry right now."
• Stefan signaled his assistant to lead Barrett and his entourage for a tour and then head to the tea break.
• The assistant quickly escorted Barrett out.
• Once the meeting room door was closed, Raiden immediately turned his head and asked with a hint of urgency on his face that he didn't even realize himself.
• “What did she say to you?”
• "She told me that she had transferred the money you sent to her brother back to your account," Stefan explained. "She wanted me to convey her thanks to you and mentioned that they won't need this money now or in the future. She also said if her family members approach you again, you should just ignore them."
• Stefan quickly relayed Isabelle's instructions and couldn't help but sneak a glance at Raiden.
• Raiden was silent for a moment, his expression looking somewhat unpleasant.
• "She can't talk to me directly and has to go through you to convey her message? Since when did you two become so close?"
• Stefan was speechless.
• He was unjustly accused, wasn't he? How was he supposed to know what kind of dispute was going on between these two? They should have spoken directly to each other instead of using him as a messenger. He didn't want to be in the middle of this.
• Stefan replied, "We're not close, Mr. Galloway. Perhaps Miss Berry couldn't reach you and was in a hurry, so she called my phone. After all, everyone knows you're usually with me." He gestured in the direction of Raiden's office before saying, "You forgot your phone when you left."
• Raiden raised his gaze and looked through the meeting room's glass wall toward his phone on the nearby office desk. After a moment of silence, he got up and walked toward his office, with Stefan following closely.
• Stefan observed as Raiden picked up his phone, turned it on, and unlocked it. Stefan's expression grew even more terrible as he looked at the screen.
• Despite his curiosity, Raiden's phone displayed no missed calls.
• Stefan chastised himself for jumping to conclusions and inadvertently raising false expectations for others.
• Raiden pressed his lips together and focused on his phone while lost in thought.
• Stefan called out worriedly, "Mr. Galloway?"
• Raiden didn't look at him and said, "You can go now."
• Stefan hesitated for a moment, then nodded and said, "All right." He turned and left the room.
• Raiden stared at his phone's clean interface and was silent for a moment. Then, he opened WhatsApp, and the message from Ellie was still there.
• 'Since it's someone you arranged, what's his name?'
• He played a voice message that said, "Raiden, don't keep covering for Isabelle. I know you're busy with work, but you should also manage your wife. After all, she is a married woman. Although I trust that she won't do anything inappropriate, it could lead to gossip if acquaintances see something."
• The text message sent afterward wasn't long enough to completely cover the picture Ellie had sent.
• Raiden's eyes once again fell on the photo of the man who seemed to be captivating Isabelle. He was a good-looking man and was not much older than them. He exuded an air of maturity, sharp features, and a tall, commanding presence that could easily make women swoon. He had no idea about her relationship with that man or why they planned to study abroad together. She hadn't even informed him about her intentions to go abroad for further studies.
• Raiden felt a surge of frustration when he thought about her secret plans for divorce and further studies.
• He turned off the screen, threw his phone forcefully to the side, then turned to leave but stopped, pacing back and forth in the same spot.
• Eventually, he turned around, picked up his phone, and opened Isabelle's WhatsApp. He tried to initiate a video call, but a message appeared. 'Isabelle has enabled friend verification. You are not yet friends. Please send a friend request, and once the request is accepted, you can chat.'
• He was speechless.
• He suddenly recalled their high school graduation party.
• Among the fifty-six students in the class, she was the only one who didn't attend due to a personal matter. After that, she disappeared without a trace.
• And now, she had made a similar choice. She chose to get a divorce and cut off all contact related to him, including sending messages through intermediaries about returning money.
• Isabelle was capable of doing such things.
• Raiden clenched her fist, and the muscles in his jaw tightened with the sudden surge of fierce emotions.
• Next moment, he clicked "Remove Contact" option in a fit of pique, but he hesitated at the confirmation message, "Delete contact 'Isabelle' and all chat records with this contact".
• His finger hovered over the "Remove Contact" button.
• As time ticked away, his fingertip trembled slightly, and he finally selected "Cancel" and exited the WhatsApp interface.
• After more than twenty years of living, he was experiencing a sense of confusion and helplessness for the first time. It felt as if a part of his heart was empty, heavy, and painful.
• In his understanding, he and Isabelle were supposed to live together happily forever.
• But now everything had changed. Not only had Isabelle requested a divorce, but she had also gone abroad with another man.
• Suddenly, a frantic thought surged through his mind.
• Find Isabelle! He had to find her!
• Without time to think further, he clutched his phone in his palm, leaned over to grab the car keys from the table. In his haste, he knocked the documents on the table to the floor. Ignoring them, he turned and hurried out the door."
• While passing by Stefan, Raiden weakly instructed, "Please entertain Mr. Patton for a while. I have something to attend to."
• Stefan immediately stood up. "Understood." He added, "Mr. Galloway, where are you going? About the dinner with Mr. Patton in the evening—"
• With hurried steps and without looking back, Raiden responded, "Cancel it!"
• Stefan was speechless.