Mr. Villain's Lovely Wife

Lovely wife 223

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"Do you think it's true? That they've been married for months?" one of the reporters asked, adjusting her earpiece as she stood near the cordoned off area.

"Depends who you ask," said Kelron Baines, a senior field anchor from Vista Signal News. He flipped through his notes." Just last year, Isabella Rossi was with Calen Weiss of Weiss Inc. I heard that Mr. Weiss had some affairs that were exposed during a company event and that prompted Miss Rossi to leave the company. If she's really married to Mr. Horvath then... wouldn't that make her relationship with Mr. Weiss a joke?"

Across the lot, several media vans were lined up outside the glass-fronted conference building. A long red backdrop had been placed behind a single podium. It was sleek, minimal, Horvath-brand neutral. There was no official signage beyond a generic statement: Media Briefing - 9:00 A.M.

Reporters checked their mics and light gear while muttering among themselves.

"I heard this press con is just a PR stunt to clean up after the Sarano mess," said Leena Ardell from Daily Praxis. "Why else go public with a marriage now?"

"Come on, Liam Horvath doesn't need to marry anyone for PR, someone behind her chimed in. "He's already the heir. He doesn't answer to anyone."

Leena turned to face him. "Then why now? Why make it public right after Cassandra's claims started falling apart?

A younger reporter, Benzo Vale from Channel Tenfold, was typing something into his tablet. There's a file floating around showing Cass had contact with Olivier Horvath's office days before the incident," he said. "If that's true, this whole thing could blow up from both ends."

Kelron raised a brow. "You saying Olivier Horvath set this up?"

Benzo shrugged. "Wouldn't be the first time Horvath Holdings cleaned up its mess by making a bigger one?

Another voice joined in from the group. "What about the rumors from two years ago? The ones about Liam and that model from Ardesh? The one who

disappeared from the industry overnight?"

"You mean Saphira Kess?" Leena asked. "That was never confirmed."

"It never needed to be confirmed," someone muttered. "Billionaires bury problems. Everyone knows that."

Most of them turned as a sleek black car rolled into the drop-off zone. Security shifted formation immediately. Cameras were immediately lifted. Lights adjusted.

Benzo double-checked his setup. "We're live in seven minutes."

Kelron kept his eyes on the doors. "Let's see what they say. Either this is damage control... or something much bigger." Behind them, whispers grew louder as other journalists joined the crowd, waiting. A few independent bloggers had set up tripods near the back, desperate to get clean audio. The press assistant walked past with a clipboard, checking names against a list.

A few minutes before the clock struck nine, the murmur of voices grew quieter.

A man wearing a dark grey suit stepped up to the podium. He adjusted the microphone and tapped a few buttons on the small control panel attached to the side. The background music faded out immediately. The reporters turned their full attention toward the stage.

The man cleared his throat, then lifted a clipboard in front of him.

"For those attending," he said, "thank you for your patience. We ask that you hold all questions until after the formal statement. There will be an opportunity for a short Q&A session afterward."

As he spoke, several individuals entered from the side door. They took their places behind the podium in a line, Most of them wore tailored suits stamped with the subtle Horvath Industries logo on the breast pocket.

reporters quickly murmured among themselves, recognizing

out among the line-Maria Alcaraz, sharp in a deep navy suit, her badge clearly reading Rossi

Nolan Reeve, lead counsel representing Horvath

neatly organized papers on

Successfully unlocked!

a tall man with sandy hair and a

glanced once across

here to present facts. Not

reporters shifted,

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first page in his

a family emergency. His grandfather, Mr. Victor Horvath, suffered a medical complication that required

another document from the stack and held

signed by attending physicians, security footage from the emergency department, and

surprise passed through

few days ago, Mr. Horvath's wife, Mrs. Isabella Rossi-Horvath,

more reporters gasped. A few others immediately jotted frantic notes. They noticed how

Nolan ignored the stir.

and care of his wife. He has been by her side throughout her recovery. There was no meeting with Miss Sarano. There was no contact of

stepped back up quickly, tapping the microphone

is complete." Nolan turned the page in his file and

verified images showing Mr. Horvath and Mrs. Horvath together in New

black folder and set it down on the

following this briefing. Each file is time- stamped,

few reporters began whispering among themselves, clearly

in fan events in Los Angeles. Social media posts, official event schedules, and live streams

motioning for the

both hands on either side of

However, since Miss Sarano chose to escalate the matter in the public sphere, Horvath Holdings and Rossi Group

He flipped another page.

filing multiple counterclaims against Miss Sarano. These

room like a punch.

Nolan continued, "we are pursuing punitive damages. We

and all parties who distributed the false

typed even faster, eyes darting between Nolan and the documents being waved toward the press table by the moderator's assistant. "This is not simply a matter of reputational harm,” Nolan added. "This is a deliberate, coordinated attempt to damage not only Mr. and Mrs. Horvath but two multinational corporations tied to thousands of employees and stakeholders." Leena Ardell whispered something under her

a few questions after Ms. Maria Alcaraz, representing Miss Rossi, delivers her

seated."

back from the podium, allowing Maria to step forward, a slim folder in her hands, her expression unreadable. The moderator moved to adjust the microphone height slightly for her as the press braced for what came next. Maria Alcaraz stepped up to the podium, setting her folder

a moment to flip to the correct page, then looked up at the room

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