Echoes of Vengeance: The Sweet Wife's Perfect Revenge
Chapter 117: Diamonds in the Dark

Chapter 117: Diamonds in the Dark

Truth to be told, Alaric did visit the orphanage in the morning and got a glimpse of her. But it was too far. Now, looking at her, meeting her eyes that didn’t avert, he knew he had done the right thing by walking away.

He offered her the slightest nod.

A gesture of acknowledgment that carried more weight than any grand gesture could.

And for the first time in a week, Aveline felt her carefully constructed walls shift, not crumbling, but opening just enough to let in a possibility she hadn’t dared to consider.

She subtly dipped her head in response. Their meeting was organic. Alaric was invited to the event. He and NexGuard were about to receive unbeatable fame tonight.

’He deserves it,’ she thought and focused back.

Her cheeks almost turned pink when they met Charles’s teasing gaze. She had walked more than half the hall without looking away from Alaric. She could only hope her brother wouldn’t interrogate her when she was yet to understand what she felt for Alaric.

She sat at the table reserved for her, refusing to get on the dais. It wasn’t her time to shine, it wasn’t her stage, and she preferred it that way.

She had just sat down when Alaric sat down, right beside her, but at the next table.

The evening was about to become far more interesting than she had anticipated.

When her parents arrived, the faint gasps of the guests were hard to miss when they saw Margaret’s necklace, which looked like something straight out of a royal treasure.

A massive, deep crimson diamond, cut in a flawless teardrop shape that captures and refracts light with striking intensity. Just above it, there’s another smaller red diamond, almost like a crown on top.

The whole piece was built around those two stones, with rose gold vines curling around them, detailed with tiny diamonds that looked like leaves and flower petals.

It was a breathtaking symphony of elegance and power.

Margaret sat beside her while Henry joined Charles on the stage. The event began. The appetizers and drinks were served while Charles and Henry personally introduced every piece of jewelry.

After pleasantries, Henry pointed at the screen, which displayed a sapphire vintage brooch as it changed to a vintage picture of a queen.

"This brooch once belonged to Queen Seraphina of Elaris, the monarch known for silencing wars with her presence alone. That sapphire you see? It’s not just any stone, it shifts shades from indigo to violet under candlelight, said to mirror the Queen’s own moods. Legend has it, she wore it the night she ended a century-old feud with a single smile."

And the introduction continued with other pieces of jewelry.

Aveline already knew about every piece, so she began feeling bored, but suddenly the lights went out, darkness covering like an ominous blanket. The speakers shut down, and the screen went black.

Billions worth of items were in the event. Irrespective of whether they could afford to lose it, their nerves acted up.

Despite knowing there was security, and everyone there was from reputed families, "Mom..." Aveline rose to her feet, standing behind her mother and holding Margaret’s shoulders in a protective stance.

Whereas Margaret remained calm and seated, gently patting Aveline’s hand.

Aveline looked outside the hall and realized it was just the hall that had lost power; the whole floor and the rest of the hotel were lit up brightly.

She suddenly froze when she felt somebody move close beside her. Before she could react, Alaric’s voice floated, "Look into the power cut."

By the end of his words, there was a loud alarm followed by a cry of pain.

Aveline instinctively uttered, "Vantex."

The guests couldn’t stay calm after that. The chaos began in the dark.

Alaric wanted to take a look, but he refused to move from there, leaving her in the dark.

The security used their mobile torches and rushed inside while two blocked anybody from entering the exhibit.

The event manager loudly announced, "Ladies and gentlemen, we sincerely apologize for the technical difficulty. For your safety, please remain seated at your tables. I request that everyone turn on their phone flashlights to help our female guests feel more comfortable. We are working to restore power immediately. Thank you for your patience and understanding." 𝐟𝐫𝕖𝗲𝘄𝚎𝗯𝕟𝐨𝕧𝐞𝚕.𝕔𝕠𝐦

Everyone quickly turned on the torches on their phones. Many were already standing, while others had scattered. The females held on to their expensive jewelry, and Aveline stared at the man beside her, under the dim lights that softened his sharp features.

Henry had reached beside Margaret, and Charles had rushed into the exhibit.

Alaric watched her eyes sparkling like a dark sky studded with stars. He had to resist his urge to touch her and waited for the update.

He ended the call once he got the response, "Intentional damage to the electric connection of the hall." He updated both Aveline and Henry.

Aveline softly nodded and tried to judge the situation. Who could enter the Emerald hotel, bypassing the exhibit security, to cause the damage?

"It has to be preplanned," Aveline whispered.

The alarm stopped soon, but the cry of agony from the exhibit hall continued.

Shortly, the hotel manager rushed inside the hall with a medical team behind him. While the team rushed inside the exhibit hall, the manager began apologizing to Henry.

Now it was the reputation of two families, two companies. Laurents and Lancasters. One was hosting the event while trusting the security and safety of a world-class hotel that belonged to another family.

Edward Lancaster and Isabella De’conti approached them. Giving no chance for Henry to get angry or react negatively in the presence of the guests who were their customers.

"Chairman Laurent, we will give you a satisfactory response and compensation for our negligence. Let’s focus on resuming the event." Edward’s calm, authoritative voice iced the tense situation.

Aveline agreed with Edward’s point. It wasn’t time to find the culprit but to resume the event with minimal delay.

However, she felt her hair raise when she met Isabella’s gaze unthinkingly. Why was the supposed gentle woman staring at her?

Anyway, she concentrated, addressing the manager, "Please take a look to see if the situation could be salvaged in minutes. If not, we will have to arrange a hall for the auction, and dinner could be managed in The Velvet Atrium. And we will need a few suites for the guests who are agitated, and several hotel staff to guide them through smoothly."

Henry was proud of how calm and detailed she was. Anyway, he shook his head in resignation, "Sweetheart, you aren’t managing this event." Then he pointed at the event manager.

Aveline: "..."

She had forgotten it.

His light voice eased both Edward and the manager of the hotel. Edward nodded at the manager, who quickly got to work.

Then everyone watched a man crying, holding his right hand that was wrapped in cloth. Yet they could see the blood soaking the thick layers of the cloth.

"Chairman Lancaster, I’ll have to trouble you for the PR management." Her voice was neither a request nor a command. Yet her unyieldingness was clear.

If Alaric has to shine, then the news of the power cut and commotion at the event has to die.

Then she softly nodded at them, "Excuse me." Aveline excused herself and went towards the entrance of the exhibit.

Alaric followed Aveline closely because there was no light yet, and he trusted no security of the Hotel when there was darkness.

She entered the exhibit hall to find the guards standing next to each piece of jewelry with a mobile torchlight on it. And Charles was standing in the middle with blood spilled around him.

Holding the hem of her gown, she reached closer to find blood drops inside the Vantex and six diamonds safe inside. She slapped the button, and the transparent lid covered it from all sides.

She looked at the technician and instructed, "Jacob, I want the footage." Yes, the Vantex had a camera, and only a few knew about it.

Charles turned to Alaric, "We weren’t aware Vantex had its power source too." He was surprised and impressed.

Vantex could have several features, but it depends on the client and their needs. "It was built to shut down on a power drop," Alaric responded when Charles’s gaze stayed on him.

Aveline spoke, "No need to wipe the blood. The color highlights the diamonds." Her intention was completely different, to be precise.

Charles and Alaric: "..."

Charles didn’t argue with her. He left to take care of the event.

Suddenly, the two became hyper-aware of each other. Ten days of distance had only sharpened the tension between them. Being this close again felt like standing too near a dangerous flame, impossible to ignore. Every breath seemed intensified in the dim space.

Alaric broke the silence, "Why Vantex when you could have used bulletproof glass?" His low voice calmed her erratic heart.

Aveline glanced at him and explained, "Look at the diamonds now." She meant through the glasses, then she scanned her fingers to authenticate, and removed the glasses. "And now." She turned to him.

Through the reflective glass, the red diamonds shimmered cold and distant, their hues distorted by the curvature of the glass, beautiful, but unreachable. 𝒇𝒓𝙚𝒆𝔀𝓮𝓫𝒏𝓸𝙫𝓮𝓵.𝓬𝙤𝙢

Without the barrier, they gleamed with raw fire, like drops of crystallized blood pulsing under a heartbeat of light, intimate, exposed, and unforgettable.

"They need light to sparkle," he murmured, eyes never leaving her face. "You did it in the dark."

She didn’t move. Just stood there, caught in his gaze like a moth in soft flame.

His eyes were forest after rain, green, clear, and quietly dangerous. And it made her forget the diamonds.