Cela's POV
The moment I stepped out of the car, I already felt the weight of what was waiting inside. My company towered in front of me, its glass walls glinting with the morning sun, as if mocking the storm that brewed in my chest.
Today, I wasn't just Cela.
I was Celestine Atira Dione—the rightful heir, the woman who carried this empire in her blood.
As I entered the lobby, I felt every pair of eyes on me. The employees whispered among themselves, but no one dared meet my gaze. My heels struck the marble floor with steady rhythm, each click a reminder of who I was.
When I reached the executive floor, the air shifted. Conversations died. Papers froze midair. And there they were—Zed and Isabel—standing far too close to one another.
Isabel's hand lingered on Zed's arm like she owned him, and the smug curve of her lips nearly made me laugh. Zed's face turned pale the second he saw me, his eyes widening in panic.
"Cela—" he began, his voice trembling.
"Celestine," I corrected sharply, raising my chin. "Address me properly."
The silence in the room deepened. Employees leaned closer, pretending to work but too eager to miss a single word.
Isabel, of course, was the first to break it. Her smile was venomous sweet. "Oh, Ms. Dione. What a surprise. You're early. Did you miss the company you abandoned to me and Zed?"
Her arrogance snapped the last string of my patience. I walked closer, slow and deliberate, until I stood right in front of them.
"You really have the guts to stand there," I said softly, but my words carried the weight of thunder. "Pretending you're more than what you are."
Isabel scoffed. "And what exactly am I? Enlighten us."
I turned to the gathered employees. My voice rose, steady and controlled, slicing through the heavy air. "This woman, Isabel, the secretary I trusted, the one I treated like family—was caught in my fiancé's office, half-naked on his lap."
Gasps erupted. Papers fell. Someone in the back muttered, "My God…"
Isabel's smirk faltered, her face draining of color. "T-That's a lie!" she shouted, her voice shaking.
I laughed—cold, merciless. "A lie? Should I describe how your voice echoed through the walls? Or how you moaned his name while I stood outside the door?"
The room fell deathly silent. No one dared move. The truth hung heavy, undeniable.
Zed's face was red now, sweat dripping down his forehead. He stepped forward, desperate. "Cela, please—don't make a scene. This isn't the place—"
"Not the place?" I snapped, my eyes burning into him. "You made this the place when you dirtied your office with betrayal."
I turned to Isabel, who was now visibly trembling. Her hands fisted at her sides, but her voice was weak. "He… He came to me. He wanted me. Don't blame me for what Zed chose!"
Her words were a knife aimed at Zed, and the employees murmured louder, scandal boiling in the air. Zed's eyes widened in horror, his pride unraveling in front of everyone.
"Isabel!" he barked, his voice loud enough to echo. "Enough!"
She flinched, staring at him in disbelief. "Zed…?"
"You think I'll let you ruin me like this?" His voice cracked with fury. "You dare accuse me in front of everyone? You think I'll let my name, my company, my reputation fall because of you?"
The tables had turned. Zed's desperation for power outweighed his lust. In an instant, Isabel was no longer his secret lover but a liability.
"Zed!" Isabel's voice trembled, panic flashing in her eyes. "You promised—"
"I promised nothing!" he shouted. "You were a distraction. Nothing more. Do you think you could replace Cela? You're a fool."
The employees gasped again, stunned at the venom in his words. Isabel's face contorted, disbelief and betrayal washing over her features.
My lips curved into a bitter smile. "How quickly loyalty dies when pride is at stake."
Zed tried to step closer to me, his voice dropping into a plea. "Cela… please. Don't listen to her. She means nothing. You're the one I—"
"Stop." My hand shot up, silencing him. "You've already chosen. You chose to betray me. To humiliate me. Nothing you say now can erase that."
His lips trembled, his words caught in his throat. For the first time, he looked small. Weak.
I faced Isabel once more. Her body shook as she looked between me and Zed, her pride shattered. "Cela, please—I… I didn't mean—"
"You didn't mean?" I laughed bitterly. "You meant every second of it. But here's the truth, Isabel: you may have had his body for one night, but you will never, ever have what I have."
Her eyes filled with tears, but I had no sympathy left to give.
"From this day forward," I declared, my voice echoing across the office floor, "you are no longer part of this company. Consider yourself dismissed."
Two security guards stepped forward at my signal. Isabel's legs buckled, her cries breaking the silence as they led her away. "Zed! Say something! Don't let her do this!"
But Zed said nothing. He stood frozen, his pride clawing desperately at what little he had left.
I turned to him one last time, my voice low and sharp as glass. "You can beg, you can deny, you can destroy yourself trying to fix this. But Zed, know this—once trust is broken, there is no going back."
And with that, I walked past him, the sea of employees parting for me like I was untouchable.
I didn't look back. Not at Isabel's sobbing figure. Not at Zed's broken face.
For the first time, I felt power return to me—not borrowed from love, not tied to anyone else—but mine. Pure. Absolute.
And though my heart still carried scars, I knew this was just the beginning.