Chapter 491

"My dear..." Eleanor turned, her heart skipping a beat as she saw Carlos's bloodshot eyes; he clearly hadn't slept at home. She had explicitly asked the butler, who said Carlos went to visit Patricia at the old estate. A surge of dread washed over her - it seemed Carlos hadn't gone to the estate after all.

Clenching her fingers anxiously, she stammered, "What are you talking about?"

A heavy slap landed across her face!

Carlos panted with rage, pointing at her as he roared, "Nice job, and now you're playing dumb?!"

"You sent Thomas to have Winnie abducted, nearly violated, and you even wanted her dead. You filthy snake, I won't let you get away with this!"

Eleanor was sent crashing to the ground by the force of his slap, knocked out cold.

As she came to, her hand instinctively went to the blood at the corner of her mouth, a mix of shock and fury overwhelming her, "Carlos, how dare you hit me? You made me bleed!"

"I did more than slap you, I'm filing for divorce!"

From his towering stance, Carlos glared down at her, his fury reaching its peak, his usually composed demeanor cast aside, "I thought what you did to Winnie at the Rodriguez family gala was the vilest thing you could do, but you ignored my warnings, over and over!

"You've gone too far!"

"You and your damn family, plotting to kill Winnie!"

"If I hadn't followed Thomas last night, if I hadn't seen firsthand how he met with Joseph from the Serpent Squad, bribing him to silence those thugs..."

"I can't believe how low you've stooped!"

"Eleanor, our marriage of over two decades is over. We are getting a divorce, now!"

"I'm innocent!" Eleanor shuddered, seizing Carlos's hand with a weak grip, tears streaming down her face. "Darling, how do you connect me with these things you saw?"

"I don't know any Joseph. My brother just has a huge debt he was trying to handle, you're misunderstanding everything!"

"Has Winnie been telling you things? Why do you only trust her? Why won't you trust me?"

Winnie watched from her hospital bed, alongside Sidney, a cold gaze upon Eleanor's desperate struggle.

From the snippets Carlos mentioned, Winnie gathered Eleanor had fallen into her trap.

Indeed, Carlos, infuriated, shrugged Eleanor off, "You've attacked Winnie over and over, how can I trust you?"

"You still want to argue your innocence?"

"I checked your call logs, you called Ishara yesterday afternoon and immediately called Thomas right after!"

"The bank transfer receipt to Thomas's wife for three million dollars..."

"Last night, Thomas passed the same amount to Joseph!"

"You knew Thomas was involved with criminals, and you directed him to have someone take out Winnie."

"I didn't... I wired money to Thomas to cover his gambling debts!"

"Are you really destroying our marriage of over twenty years just because of a transfer and Winnie's insinuations?"

"Carlos, I won't give you a divorce!"

Winnie watched Eleanor's erratic behavior and finally spoke up, "Aunt, Dad didn't just act on a hunch with that wire transfer. He saw it with his own eyes last night-your brother trying to bribe the scoundrels."

"You were shaking in your boots, trying desperately to cover up your tracks. So you got impatient, wired the money to your brother, and told him to silence them!"

Eleanor's face went pale. What?

Ishara was right; Winnie was onto her!

She'd been so cautious, yet she hadn't expected Carlos to keep such a close eye on her and personally track down Thomas!

"You're talking nonsense! I didn't want to kill you!" Eleanor roared.

Winnie ignored her and turned to Carlos, "Dad, this isn't the first time Aunt's had it out for someone. Have you forgotten? Last time, at the Blanchet estate, because of her, Sidney nearly drowned..."

At her words, Carlos felt a shiver down to his core.

His eyes, bloodshot, full of unbearable disappointment, looked at Eleanor's unrepentant face. Whatever love he had left for her vanished. He pushed her away, "Enough! Security, take her back to the Blanchet family estate and lock her up! I'm going to draw up the divorce papers right now. Eleanor, you should know that the only reason you're not in cuffs is because of what we had."

"I won't let this be! Carlos, I won't let you win like this, wait and see..."

Eleanor's wails echoed as the guards dragged her out of the hospital.

Winnie watched Carlos standing by the door-a look of nobility still present, yet aged abruptly.

"Dad, don't blame yourself..."

Carlos turned, his eyes rimmed with redness, "If I hadn't seen Thomas's dirty work with my own eyes last night, I would never have believed that Eleanor was capable of such evil. To think I've shared my bed with a viper all these years. Just the thought of you almost losing your life that night agonizes me! I failed to protect you."

Winnie gave a knowing, bitter smile, "The more you want to protect me, the more they see me as a threat, and the more they want to eliminate me. It was inevitable."

"They?" Carlos was, indeed, caught by her words.

Winnie looked up, "Dad, you just said you checked Eleanor's calls. She called my sister first, then Thomas."

"Think about it-could her sister not be involved in this?"

"Why else would they urgently need to contact each other?"

Carlos was struck by a heavy realization.

All along, Carlos had thought of Ishara as fragile and kind-hearted due to her illness, staying out of trouble and conflict.

Would Eleanor really conspire with Ishara to harm Winnie? Just as Winnie suspected, if Ishara was clueless, why would Eleanor contact her during yesterday's critical moment?

Winnie saw her father's doubts and hesitations.

She couldn't help but say, "Dad, maybe my sister isn't as innocent as you think."

"If she was truly non-confrontational, she wouldn't have tried to secure Lawrence's help to ensure her victory in the ST competition."

"She really was desperate to get her hands on that 4% stake!"

"She never interned at Blanchet Enterprises or climbed the corporate ladder because of her childhood illness."

"It wasn't until my return that she felt threatened. Without me, Blanchet Enterprises would definitely have been hers, right?"

Carlos fell silent.

Yes, before he found Winnie, Ishara was his only daughter.

Even though she was ill and not adept at managing the business, she was still the sole heiress.

Winnie's gaze grew cold. "Do you really think that Eleanor repeatedly tried to hurt me and Ishara knew nothing about it?"

"If she were truly kind-hearted, she would have dissuaded Eleanor from causing family discord."

"But if she's only pretending to be kind, she would secretly support her mother in harming me, skillfully distancing herself if things went awry."

For the first time, Carlos began to really consider the possibility with his younger daughter.

The focus was all on the phone call Eleanor made to Ishara yesterday afternoon.

What could they have been plotting during that call?

Carlos's expression darkened, "I understand now."

"I wish Ishara didn't harbor such intentions, that she could get along with you, my Winnie. She could receive her share, while you run the company-she could take care of her health while you make your mark."

Winnie looked at her father. He wasn't playing favorites; he was considerate of both his daughters.

But deep down, Winnie sneered. Ishara's appetite was far greater than Carlos imagined.

"Dad, I'm not encouraging you to divorce or break up your home."

"But if you think you'd be better off after a divorce, I support you!"

"Besides, my sister staying with a mother like Eleanor... the apple doesn't fall far from the tree!" Winnie genuinely advised, with a touch of self-interest.

Ishara and Eleanor, like allies against her, should be taken apart if possible!