The Ex-Wife's Redemption: A Love Reborn Chapter 241

The divorce proceedings had been completed, but the humiliation of discovering he had been merely a replacement for six years left Henry burning with rage.

The mere mention of Sophia's name was enough to trigger his fury.

Even his closest friend Benjamin wasn't spared from his wrath.

"I'm just saying, you might want to reconsider before making a decision—" Benjamin began over the phone.

"Get lost!" Henry roared, abruptly ending the call.

Even through the phone line, Benjamin could feel Henry's anger. When he tried calling back, Henry rejected the call.

Benjamin stared at his phone and shook his head. "How pointless. I was hoping to needle him a bit more."

He tossed his phone onto the couch and sighed. "I can't say I didn't try to warn you about Alexander's return, old friend."

Alexander was Henry's equal in every way—young, devastatingly handsome, with a perfect physique and abs that could make any woman swoon.

A man of such quality pursuing a woman would leave few able to resist.

"Henry, my friend," Benjamin muttered to himself, "don't blame me for not giving you intelligence. You're the one who wouldn't answer the damn phone!"

The atmosphere on the 68th floor of Harding Investment was extremely tense.

James kept his eyes down when entering the CEO's office, carefully avoiding anything that might provoke his boss.

All colleagues unanimously agreed: only Mrs. Harding's return could improve their boss's volatile mood, but this seemed increasingly unlikely.

After leaving Henry's office, James secretly messaged Sophia, attempting to win back his boss's wife.

He sent more than a dozen messages, but received no response whatsoever. He gave up, knowing continued persistence would be futile.

What a shame, James thought. Mrs. Harding clearly loved the CEO so much. How could that love suddenly disappear?

News of Henry and Sophia's divorce spread like wildfire through New York's high society circles.

Suddenly, wealthy heiresses who had previously been close to Grace flocked back, eager for any information about her now-single brother.

Grace found herself receiving countless expensive gifts from women hoping she might help introduce them to Henry.

At a high-end lunch at the Plaza Hotel, Grace addressed her fawning audience with unexpected frankness:

"Listen, I'd love to help you all meet my brother," she explained, toying with her champagne flute, "but he's carrying an enormous burden. He works more than eleven hours daily, sometimes all night. Unless you have extraordinary patience and understanding, you won't last a week with him."

She leaned forward, lowering her voice: "My brother doesn't have time to guess what you're thinking or whether you're upset. You need to manage your own emotions and comfort yourself."

As Grace continued, the socialites exchanged uncertain glances.

"I'll be honest—I used to look down on Sophia. But now I can say with absolute certainty: if you don't have her level of patience and tolerance, don't even think about being with my brother." She leaned back in her chair, surveying the somewhat deflated group.

"That's just how the world works. You want a man who makes millions? Then he won't have time for you. You want constant attention from a partner? Then don't expect him to be wealthy. Everything comes with a price."

Grace's bluntness silenced many of the eager socialites. Several exchanged nervous glances, their enthusiasm visibly cooling.

One banker's daughter tilted her head skeptically and asked, "If Sophia was so perfect, why did they divorce?"

Grace gave her a sidelong glance and smiled thinly. "Because she wanted the divorce, not my brother." Seeing the surprise on their faces, she stood up. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I have somewhere to be."

She instructed the server to return those "friends'" gifts, then left without another word.

Once home, Grace's composed façade immediately crumbled. She moved silently through the mansion toward the basement where her mother was being held.

A security guard blocked her path. "Miss Harding, I'm sorry, but no one is allowed to visit Mrs. Harding."

Grace attempted to persuade him: "I only need five minutes. I just want to check on her and ask a few questions."

The guard remained unmoved. "Mr. Harding gave explicit orders: no visitors allowed."

After fifteen minutes of pleading and insistence, Grace finally wore down the guard's resolve.

"Five minutes, not a second more," he reluctantly conceded.

Catherine had no idea what was happening outside. Confined in the damp, dark basement for days with minimal food, she was weak and disoriented.

When she heard Grace's voice, it took considerable effort just to lift her eyelids.

Seeing her daughter, Catherine immediately perked up, dragging herself to the door with what little strength remained. Tears streamed down her gaunt face.

"Grace, my darling girl, you've finally come to see me!" she cried, clutching the bars. "You don't know how cruel your father has been. He's kept me in this hellhole, barely feeding me, forcing me to live like a rat!"

She pressed closer to the door. "You're my daughter. Please help me. If you find a way to get me out, I'll love you twice as much, I promise!"

Grace observed her mother coldly. During her own periods of confinement, Catherine had often brought her food. Now she expected the same favor in return.

But Grace's response was unexpected. "Yes, you did help me," she said with a sudden bitter laugh. "But was it really for my benefit? Or were you trying to ruin me?"

Catherine stared at her blankly.

"You thought I wouldn't figure it out?" Grace continued, her voice hardening. "You never liked me. You deliberately encouraged my worst behaviors, making everyone see me as unreasonable and spoiled. You wanted me to become useless so Isabella could waltz in and become the daughter you truly wanted, didn't you?"

Reflecting on her mother's influence over the years, Grace suddenly felt like a pawn in someone else's game, manipulated and controlled, all to serve Catherine's purposes.

Catherine remained silent, her expression cycling through shock, denial, and finally—for just an instant—relief at being discovered.

"So Isabella is your daughter, and I'm... what?" Grace pressed, her voice slightly trembling. "We're both your daughters, but you'd sacrifice the Harding family fortune for her, yet refuse to apologize to Father for my sake?"

During Richard's imprisonment of Catherine, Grace had been anxious, frantically seeking ways to rescue her mother.

She had approached her father, asking if this punishment was simply because Isabella was Catherine's secret daughter.

Richard had left without answering, which planted a terrible suspicion in Grace's mind.

"Am I not Father's child either?" Now she voiced her deepest fear.

Catherine's eyes widened with alarm. "No! You are your father's child, without question! If you don't believe me, get a DNA test!"

She reached through the bars, trying to touch Grace's hand. "Using you against Sophia was deliberate, yes, but not because you aren't Richard's daughter. I just didn't like her, and you were young, easily influenced. I did spoil you, but I never intended to ruin you. I just wanted you to be treated like a princess."

After confirming she was indeed Richard's daughter, Grace's tension eased slightly. She looked at her imprisoned mother with tearful eyes and sighed deeply.

"If what you say is true, if I am still your daughter, I won't abandon you. But I need to ask Father exactly what you did that made him so angry."

She looked down at her hands. "Without a mistress, this home is falling apart. The staff are slacking off, the gardens need pruning, and there's dust all over the cars in the garage. Though it's still the same house, everything has changed."

Grace met her mother's eyes one last time. "I hate to admit it, but I finally understand how important Sophia was to this family. With her, this was a home. Without her, it's just a building."

Without waiting for Catherine's response, Grace turned and walked away, leaving Catherine's gradually dimming gaze behind.