Chapter 80

Since Christophe knew the message was a photocopy, how could he not realize an original existed? And calling it a prank… Who was brazen enough to prank him?

Melody was beyond frustrated. She'd been married to him for two years, and the thought now embarrassed her.

"Mel, what's going on?" Heidi asked, noticing her expression.

"Nothing. I just got annoyed by some idiot trying to sell something," Melody mumbled.

She knew she was being foolish. She should have ignored Christopher's messages instead of reading them all.

"I told you I'd chew him out, but you just couldn't bring yourself to refuse," Heidi said, settling down.

"I did refuse and delete him, but reading those messages still pissed me off," Melody replied.

They clinked glasses, and she tossed her phone aside, abandoning it.

Meanwhile, Christopher was unraveling, his frustration escalating to the point of explosion.

"Alright, Melody! Do you think I'm just making empty threats? Who do you think I am?" he ranted, fuming as he paced, receiving no reply.

He immediately called Sheldon and demanded he track Melody down. Sheldon listened to Christopher's tirade, then hung up, muttering, "You asked for this. Now Mrs. Fuller's gone, and you're panicking."

He opened his chat with Melody and sent a message, but a red exclamation mark appeared instantly.

He was speechless.

Her phone number was unreachable, and all her social media contacts were blocked. He suddenly felt a gut-wrenching certainty that Melody was serious this time.

Sheldon spent hours searching for information about her departure, piecing together the timeline. By the time he finished, it was past 11:00 pm, and still…

Christopher hadn't changed his clothes or eaten dinner. His hair was disheveled, and he looked utterly defeated.

Cynthia came home from work. Having lied to Christopher about a late rehearsal, she needed to maintain the charade.

As soon as she entered, she saw him sitting on the couch. She approached eagerly.

"Christopher!"

He didn't respond.

She sat beside him, trying to put her arm around him, but he recoiled.

"Christopher, what's wrong?" she asked, freezing, then seeing his face and starting. His eyes were vacant, distant, like a soulless marionette.

"Christopher, what's happening? Don't scare me. Is something wrong?" Cynthia asked quickly, concerned.

Christopher snapped back to reality. Seeing Cynthia seemed to be his breaking point.

He grabbed her arm fiercely and demanded, "You're friends with Melody. You must know where she went, right? Where's her rented apartment? What's her new phone number? Have you been in touch with her? Do you know Mr. Zeller? What's his full name? I'll make sure he spends his life in prison!"

His anger flared even further with those words.

His barrage of questions surprised Cynthia. Realizing he knew Melody had left, she wondered if he'd seen the divorce papers. "Christopher, you're terrifying me," she gasped, her voice shaky.

He was squeezing her arm so hard it felt like he might break her bones.