Amy blinked rapidly, her fingers tightening around her phone as if it might disappear.

Noticing her assistant's strange reaction, Liam tilted his head. "Mommy, what's wrong?"

With trembling hands, Amy passed her phone to Alexander. "Sir, look at this..."

Alexander's gaze dropped to the screen where the notification glared back - Victoria had exited their family group chat. His jaw clenched visibly.

The sudden ringing of his phone shattered the tense silence.

"Alex!" Victoria's tear-choked voice pierced through the speaker. "What should we do? Ms. Sinclair seems really angry..."

The mention of Amy's name conjured an unexpected memory. Alexander rarely saw Amy cry. Only once - when she'd allegedly pushed Victoria into their garden pond, sending her to the emergency room while stubbornly refusing to apologize.

As punishment, he'd taken Liam to the Blackwood estate and delivered his ultimatum: no apology meant never seeing their son again.

That night, Liam's chronic condition flared dangerously. Through the howling storm, Amy had chased after them, only to find the mansion gates locked against her.

The household had been too preoccupied with Liam's soaring fever to remember the woman left shaking at their gates.

It wasn't until their head butler defied orders that Alexander recalled his abandoned wife. They found her drenched, her silent tears cutting through the storm's fury.

Victoria's sniffles dragged him back to the present.

"I saw Ms. Sinclair left the chat. Alex, just forget it. If she doesn't want to cook those meals—"

An inexplicable irritation surged through him. "Fine." The single word stunned Victoria into momentary silence.

Alexander's voice turned glacial. "Since those dishes are medically necessary, I'll hire a private nutritionist to handle your dietary needs."

Victoria's protest came too quickly. "Alex, that's too much—"

In truth, she'd never touched a single meal Amy prepared. Each carefully crafted dish had gone straight into the trash. The entire menu had been nothing but a calculated torment.

Oblivious, Alexander ended the discussion. "It's settled. I have business to attend to."

The dial tone left Victoria gaping at her phone.

A personal chef? They'd report directly to Alexander, exposing her deception the moment she refused to eat!

Her manicured nails bit into her palms. That wretched Amy must be behind this!

Meanwhile, Eleanor nearly danced with relief when she realized her kitchen duties were ending.

Occasional cooking was charming for a society wife, but daily meal prep reduced her to a glorified maid. No wonder Mrs. Blackwood had finally snapped.

Hanging up, Alexander turned to Liam. "Finish your breakfast. I'm taking you to school today."

Rubbing sleep from his eyes, the boy nodded obediently. His fragile health had suffered from recent late nights.

The breakfast table stretched between them, the silence heavier without Amy's usual chatter. She handled Liam's routines while Alexander was usually buried in work.

Liam poked at Eleanor's cooking, missing his mother's familiar flavors.

Then Alexander's calm question sliced through the quiet:

"Who taught you to speak to your mother like that yesterday?"