Chapter 401: The Fuse and the Fire

Taylor shot to her feet, her face pale with shock. “You mean to say… my father was deliberately infected?”

Her eyes locked onto Paul, brimming with rage.

Paul scoffed, exasperated. “Why are you looking at me like you believe it? Where’s his proof? When have I even heard of it?”

Then, as if trying to steer attention away, he shifted between Taylor and Wyatt. “By the way, since you two are so close… what happened? Done playing house with your bodyguard and now onto Wyatt?” His tone was smug.

He clicked his tongue. “Does Yunice know?”

He glanced around dramatically, like the idea had just occurred to him. “Speaking of… where is Yunice?”

No one answered.

Taylor’s jaw tightened as she stared Paul down with frozen contempt.

Wyatt, meanwhile, sat still, his fingers tapping rhythmically on the arm of his chair. Not once did he bite the bait Paul dangled, not once did his focus falter.

The room fell into eerie silence.

Only the tap, tap, tap of Wyatt’s fingers filled the air—slow, measured, like a countdown.

Paul’s smirk began to falter, then fade.

He was starting to realize that mouthing off in front of Wyatt was absolutely useless.

If Wyatt believed he was guilty, then no defense would matter. He didn’t need proof. He didn’t need to confront. He would simply destroy him—clean, quiet, and without a trace.

Paul’s mind flashed to how his father once ended up at Wyatt’s mercy.

His skin crawled. What had tipped Wyatt off?

Paul had staged the whole thing with perfection. Mr. Gerardo’s infection had seemed completely random. No holes. No witnesses.

But he didn’t know that his downfall had started long ago.

When he’d whipped Taylor so brutally in public, it had already put both Yunice and Wyatt on high alert.

And now, with Mr. Gerardo falling mysteriously ill, Wyatt had only needed to push once—and Paul’s guilty conscience had done the rest.

But none of that mattered anymore.

Even if Paul were torn limb from limb right now, it wouldn’t save Yunice or Mr. Gerardo.

Just as Wyatt’s fingers tapped one final time on the armrest, the Powell family patriarch finally spoke.

“You two—uncle and niece-in-law—have grown far too close. Rumors are spreading. Starting today, Taylor, you will remain at the Powell estate. No more meetings with Wyatt.”

They weren’t just enforcing “decorum”—they were trying to isolate her, silence her, keep her under control.

But Taylor had had enough.

Especially after hearing the infection might’ve been deliberate—possibly Paul’s doing.

She rose. “No need to keep up the act. I’ll be cutting ties with the Powell family very soon.”

Paul’s expression darkened. “You planning to get divorced? Don’t forget the agreement you signed when we got married. Unless one of us commits a major offense, whoever files for divorce forfeits half their assets.”

And no, flirting, ambiguity, or even abuse didn’t count.

In other words, even if Paul’s sins were stacked high, as long as there was no love child, Taylor had no grounds to walk away.

Especially not now—while the Kendall family was in shambles.

Taylor glanced at Paul’s smug, mocking face.

She said nothing.

She simply turned and walked out.

She couldn’t divorce him, but she could make him a widower.

Outside the Powell estate, Alan rushed up to meet her.

Taylor stood there, stunned and glassy-eyed, her tears silently falling.

Alan immediately approached. “Ms. Taylor…”

Her voice was raw. “Alan… I got my father into this. If I hadn’t been so sure I could handle the Powell family—if I hadn’t leaned on them instead of building things myself—they wouldn’t have gone after him. He wouldn’t be infected.”

“Why did I have to be so greedy?” she choked. “Why couldn’t I just… fight my own battles?”

Alan answered firmly, “It’s not your fault. The Powell family ruins everyone. Anyone who walks through their doors gets stripped to the bone.”

Taylor shook her head, eyes hardening. “No… I can’t let this go.”

“I want Paul to pay.”

She turned to Alan, voice trembling with fury. “Help me kill him. I want Paul dead.”

Back inside the Powell estate, Wyatt hadn’t left yet.

Paul glanced over, nervous and stiff. What was Wyatt still doing here?

Even if he had infected Mr. Gerardo, what did that have to do with Wyatt?

Why defend Taylor?

What Paul didn’t realize was that this wasn’t just about Mr. Gerardo anymore.

Because Gerardo’s infection had also trapped Yunice in the hospital. She was now in danger because of him.

And Wyatt… was looking for someone to blame.

Paul had just made himself the perfect target.

Finally, after that long and suffocating silence, Wyatt stood up and left.

But no one in the room mistook that as a retreat.