Even though Sylvester has seen she knows every one of his secrets, he can't just sit there and admit it without trying to save himself. He had to say something, at least deny it and ask for evidence. Maybe there was never any evidence.
"Anabel, I wonder who is feeding you with all these lies." He began, forcing a pain and pity expression as if he was innocent. "It's obvious that the person wants us to break up. All these are all just… accusations. Maybe you’re suspecting me, maybe things look that way, but I swear, it’s not true."
Anabel remained seated, her eyes narrowing slightly. She didn’t want to respond yet. She was used to his lies already. She wasn't surprised that he was still denying that.
"You know me very well. I can never do anything that will hurt you. My priority is only for the growth of this company. I didn’t know Max stole that money to give to me." Sylvester went on with his lies. "If I had known, I would have never accepted it. I thought it was from you. That’s what Max said! And for Vanessa, she's never my fiancée."
He looked at her, trying to find a crack in her expression. But her face was still straight and unreadable. It was as if she was still waiting for him to get done with his story.
"Max told me you wanted to send me the money. I thought you sent that money to me directly. That's why I was happy. Why would I even question it if I thought it came from you?"
Anabel sat forward and clasped her hands, then rested them on her desk. Her voice was cool but firm. "Sylvester, I’m sorry to disappoint you, but Max has already confessed." Anabel said, leaving Sylvester stunned.
She continued, "He told us everything. That you gave him your account number and instructed him on what to do. And for Vanessa, I still wonder why you are still denying."
"Vanessa?" he said quickly, almost scoffing. "Vanessa is not my fiancée—she’s my cousin’s sister. I've told you several times. Who told you that she's my fiancée?"
"Someone told me, and I didn't believe it. I doubted it until I found out myself." She said, and Sylvester’s throat tightened. Inwardly, he felt his foundation crumbling. Every excuse he had prepared was slipping through his fingers. How did she know everything? He could see it in her eyes. This wasn’t suspicion.
Meanwhile, Anabel sat there, letting silence pressure him further. She wasn’t angry in the way he expected. She was quiet as if what she was saying didn't hurt her. That made it worse.
She thought about all the moments she defended him when Desmond warned her. The times she silenced her intuition. The way she had justified the inconsistencies in his stories. She had fought for a man who had only ever planned to bleed her dry.
And yet here he was, still lying. Still acting.
"Anabel, believe me. I love you. I would never…"
"Stop," she cut him off and stood up in anger. "You don’t get to talk about love. Not when everything you did was built on a lie. You took my trust and my generosity, and you spit on it. I visited you yesterday evening and caught you fucking your so-called cousin sister. Or will you deny that too? Will you deny that you didn't have sex with her yesterday evening? Even if she's truly your cousin, I won't marry someone that fucks his cousin sister. You will be capable of fucking your own daughter. And for your information, I have the video on my phone. That's if you're thinking of denying it." Anabel finished, and at this point, Desmond couldn't do anything.
He opened his mouth again, desperate to find a word, but he couldn't.
Anabel picked up her phone without saying anything further. With a calmness that made Sylvester’s skin crawl, she dialed a number and pressed the phone to her ear.
"He's here," she said coldly. "Come to my office and pick him up."
She ended the call with a quiet click and set the phone down on the desk.
Sylvester panicked. "Wait… Anabel, please. Let’s just talk, alright? We can fix this. It’s not a big deal. I’ll send the money back. I haven’t even touched it. We can sort it out, just you and me."
"There’s nothing left to fix, Sylvester. You think I'm going to spare you?"
"But you are not like this. You have a good heart. You don’t have to do this. Please." He begged, but Anabel’s eyes didn’t soften. If anything, they grew colder.
"Exactly," she said. "I used to care. I used to believe that people could change. But not anymore. You stole from me, Sylvester. You lied to me. Manipulated me. And now? You’re going to prison." Her voice was like ice. "And I’ll make sure you stay there for a very long time.”
"You… you can’t do that! You can have the money back, I swear. I haven’t even touched it. I didn’t spend a dime!” He said, Anabel’s lips curled into a tight smile. “It doesn't change anything. In case you are not aware, the money is already back in my account. But justice? Justice is still waiting. And you, Sylvester… is going to pay.”
Suddenly, there was a knock at the door. Sylvester turned to see two police officers stepping inside.