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Semua Bab Dethroning the Queen I Crowned: Bab 1 - Bab 10

10 Bab

Chapter 1

There was an obvious pause on the other end of the line."Mr. Wright, are you…"I didn't answer. Instead, I coldly added, "One more thing. Suspend the flight routes for my private plane."The moment I hung up, a commotion broke out in the VIP lounge. The captain walked over to Ashley Freeman and apologetically lowered his head."Ms. Freeman, I'm terribly sorry, but the flight routes have been temporarily suspended. We won't be able to take off today. How would you like us to proceed?"Ashley finally looked away from Eddie and Luke Collins. When she saw me, a noticeable flicker of delight flashed across her eyes, and she quickly walked over.For a brief, ridiculous moment, I wondered if everything I had just witnessed had been nothing more than a misunderstanding. But the scene behind her reminded me that my eyes hadn't lied."Victor? What are you doing here?"She rushed over and reached out for a hug like she always did, while I quietly took a step back."Why did that boy just

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Chapter 2

The captain followed Eddie and Luke out. "Ms. Freeman, we just received updated instructions from air traffic control," he said. "They've changed the flight route. We're cleared to fly to Nataria."Ashley took a second to process that, and then her whole face lit up. "Victor, did you close the merger deal?" she asked.Before I could answer, she'd already turned to Eddie, her voice going soft and patient. "Eddie, an important deal just came up, so we need to make a quick stop in Nataria. Once the papers are signed, we'll fly straight from there so Luke can see the snow, okay?"With that, she adjusted her hold on Luke and headed for the shuttle bus. It wasn't until she was at the door that she looked back and called out to us with a bright smile."Victor, Eddie, come on! Hurry up!"Her tone was so casual, as if it were only natural that I'd be the one cleaning up after her.Eddie smiled at her before lowering his voice as he turned to me. "You see it too, don't you, Victor? Ashley

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Chapter 3

When I returned to the cabin, Ashley, Eddie, and Luke were sitting together. They looked perfectly happy and cozy, as if the tense confrontation from moments ago had never even happened.Eddie gestured toward the couch and said, "Have a seat, Victor. Make yourself at home."His tone was so natural, as if he were the one hosting me on his plane.Ashley held Luke in her arms, smiling so widely her eyes crinkled. Then she looked up at me, as if she had suddenly remembered something."Oh, by the way, Victor… I want Eddie to be the lead counsel for the upcoming merger signing conference."He was a top international corporate lawyer back in the day before something came up, and he had to step away from the field. This merger is a chance for him to start over."Lead counsel? I had just pulled every legal and asset authorization, including this merger.Still, I calmly nodded and said, "Sure."But she immediately frowned. "What's with that attitude, Victor?"I looked at her and said, "

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Chapter 4

Nancy instantly panicked."Mr. Wright! Are you okay?"She looked up at Ashley and anxiously said, "Ms. Freeman, Mr. Wright doesn't look so good. Should we contact the nearest airport and request an emergency landing?"But Ashley just looked down at me with eyes full of disappointment. "I can't believe you're resorting to such a cheap, pathetic stunt just to stop Eddie from becoming the lead counsel, Victor."At this point, the pain was so intense I couldn't even say a word. All I could do was curl into a tight, defensive ball.She walked over and let out a cold laugh. "You've had gastric bleeding before. The blood wasn't this bright red back then. How convenient that you have a sudden flare-up the moment I put Eddie in charge of the merger. You've truly let me down, Victor."Eddie stood up, and his voice carried the perfect amount of concern as he said, "Mr. Wright is throwing up blood, Ashley. Don't push him any further."Luke buried his face in Ashley's chest and softly cried,

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Chapter 5

Ashley tightened her grip on her phone, her face drained of color.It rang again. This time, it was a call from her assistant.Panicked, she answered, only to hear the assistant crying on the other end of the line. "Ms. Freeman… every one of Freeman Law's top clients just sent official termination notices."As for the Tedlar Street merger, the target firm just informed us that they're switching their legal representation to another firm. They said… they'll only work with Mr. Wright."Ashley's grip on the phone tightened further. "That's impossible! The merger goes under Freeman Law!""But the authorization records show that all our foreign clients were transferred from under Mr. Wright's name," the assistant whimpered in a shaking voice. "Now that he's revoked his authorization, we no longer have the right to represent them."Ashley's expression darkened. Beside her, Eddie stood holding Luke, his eyes red-rimmed."Is this because of me? I can walk away if Mr. Wright resents me t

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Chapter 6

I was loaded into the ambulance.Ashley tried to climb in after me, but once again, she was firmly blocked.George coldly looked at her and announced, "Mr. Wright has changed his medical power of attorney. From now on, you no longer have the right to sign anything on his behalf."Ashley stood frozen, her body turning cold all over.She was the one who signed the papers and stayed by my bed whenever I fell ill. She had even yelled at me in a fit of frustration, "Could you please start taking care of yourself, Victor? If you keep this up, I'm changing all your medical proxies to my name."And I had. I'd placed every life-or-death decision completely into her hands, but now, I had taken it all back, just like everything else I had once given her.Outside the ER, Ashley waited for what felt like forever. When the doctor finally stepped out and the Wrights gathered around him, she tried to follow, but George kept her at the edge of the group.All she could do was hear the doctor say,

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Chapter 7

Ashley's blood ran cold.The footage kept playing, showing Eddie deliberately forcing me into an upside-down position before he walked out and locked the door behind him.That was the moment she snapped. She charged at Eddie and screamed, "How could you!"His face was deathly pale as he stumbled backward. "Let me explain, Ashley. I was just trying to scare him. I never meant to kill him."Jonathan coldly chimed in, "Save it for the police."Soon, the police arrived.As the officers moved to restrain Eddie, he finally dropped the act and glared at Ashley with eyes burning with hatred."Don't play innocent with me, Ashley. You were the one who said Victor was faking it and had him dragged into that storage cabin. If it weren't for you, could I have been able to hurt him?"Ashley's face turned a ghastly white. She wanted to argue, but not a single word came out. Eddie was right. She was the one who had thrown me into the storage cabin first.After Eddie was escorted away, Ashle

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Chapter 8

As Eddie looked through the files, the pitiful, victimized expression on his face slowly disappeared."Are you blaming me now, Ashley? You enjoyed it when Luke called you 'Mommy,' didn't you? Did you ever once stop people at the law firm when they called him 'Mr. Luke'? And when Victor confronted you, you defended me, didn't you?"Ashley's face turned deathly pale as Eddie continued, "Yes, I lied to you, but you were the one who picked favorites. So Victor never lost to me; he lost to you."The words cut through Ashley like a sharp knife, stabbing right into her heart. She stood rooted to the spot, unable to say a single word.…I woke up on the evening of the third day at the hospital. The Wrights waited outside my room, and Ashley was there, too. She hadn't slept a wink in three days, so her eyes were bloodshot.The moment the doctor announced that I was awake, she shot to her feet, but George blocked her way just as she took a step forward."Ms. Freeman, Mr. Wright doesn't wi

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Chapter 9

Eddie's case quickly entered formal judicial proceedings. There was no coming back for him once the security footage was released.Several times, he tried to weaponize Luke into playing the victim, but the police shut him down at every turn with concrete evidence. To make matters worse, Luke's biological mother returned from abroad to testify against him.On the day Luke was taken away, he was looking around for Ashley. "Where's Mommy?"In the past, hearing Luke call her "Mommy" would have softened Ashley's heart, filled her with validation and a sense of being needed. But now, it only filled her with a deep, sickening shame.As Eddie was led away in handcuffs, he noticed Ashley and screamed, "Ashley, save me! You're a lawyer! There must be something you can do about this!"When Ashley didn't move an inch, Eddie finally dropped his act. "Stop acting so innocent, Ashley! Do you think I'd ever have been allowed on the plane if you hadn't protected me? You did this to Victor. You're

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Chapter 10

A few months later, the cross-border merger was officially finalized and signed. It was executed under Wright Group's International Legal Affairs Division.At the signing, I wore a black suit. My face was still pale, but I remained as calm and composed as ever.The lead executive from Tedlar Street personally shook my hand. "A pleasure working with you, Mr. Wright."As the cameras panned across the room, the Internet exploded in a frenzy of discussion. Some commented that I had always been the real force behind Freeman Law, and others noted that Ashley had climbed so high these years that she had forgotten who built the stairs beneath her feet.Ashley watched the livestream, too. Sitting in her emptied office, she stared at me on the screen as tears rolled silently down her cheeks.Freeman Law had been restructured. She was no longer the managing director. All her so-called connections, clients, and international network disappeared once Wright Group pulled its resources.In the

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