The Bigshot's Superstar Wife - Chapter 161

Chapter 161: Serving Justice
The aftermath of Athena’s digital strike sent ripples far beyond what she had anticipated.

The families of those involved in the corruption scandal faced swift and merciless consequences, but what disturbed her most was how each incident unfolded, almost as if guided by unseen hands.

The first incident involved Senator Harold Finnegan’s eldest son, Raymond. Unlike his father, Raymond was known for keeping a low profile and avoiding scandal.

Yet weeks after Harold’s arrest, Raymond was driving home one night when his car suddenly veered off the highway.

Witnesses reported seeing the vehicle’s headlights flickering erratically moments before it swerved into a ravine.

Authorities suspected foul play, but no evidence surfaced. Raymond survived but was left comatose, and rumors spread that something unnatural had caused the crash.

The second case was even more chilling. One of the expelled students, Melissa Greaves, belonged to a wealthy family that owned several high-end boutiques across the city.

One evening, while Melissa’s mother, Victoria Greaves, was closing her flagship store, the security alarms blared.

When Victoria investigated, she found every mannequin in the showroom turned to face the entrance, their glassy eyes fixated on her.

A few wore dresses that had belonged to Melissa, dresses no one had touched in months. Terrified, Victoria bolted from the store, but her panic was only beginning.

Over the next week, anonymous letters arrived at her home, each containing drawings of faceless mannequins with twisted smiles.

The stress consumed her, and after three weeks of sleepless nights, Victoria was found unconscious in her bedroom, clutching one of the drawings.

The third incident unfolded in a quiet suburban home. Charles Edgerston, a corporate executive who had funneled stolen funds through fake charities, was the victim this time.

His family had kept a low profile since his crimes were exposed, yet that didn’t protect them.

One evening, his wife, Lydia, woke to find muddy footprints trailing from their front door to the kitchen, but no one had entered the house.

The next day, Charles returned from a brief errand to find their family dog, Rex, barking furiously at the empty hallway.

What unnerved him most was that Rex refused to enter his daughter’s room.

Days later, Lydia claimed to have seen a shadowy figure sitting at the foot of their daughter’s bed, a figure with hollow, gleaming eyes.

Charles, refusing to believe his wife’s claims, dismissed her fears until one night when their daughter awoke screaming.

The shadow was standing over her, whispering words in a language no one recognized. By morning, the family had fled the house, leaving behind everything they owned.

The fourth case struck closer to the heart of the corruption network.

Aaron Velmont, a powerful businessman and one of the key figures funding the private school that had tormented the orphanage children, faced something far stranger.

His wife, Clarissa, was hosting a charity dinner when a sudden blackout occurred.

The guests scrambled for their phones, but as they flicked on their screens, messages flashed across their devices, grainy footage of Aaron berating children in a schoolyard, mocking orphans and laughing about how their futures didn’t matter.

The footage was distorted and warped, with chilling whispers echoing in the background.

Clarissa tried to calm the guests, but the video looped over and over, projected onto the walls by some unknown source.

The next day, several of Aaron’s business partners withdrew from their contracts, fearing they’d be targeted next. His reputation crumbled, and within weeks, his empire collapsed.

Perhaps the most disturbing incident involved the family of Andrea Gin, the arrogant teacher who had ridiculed Athena.

Andrea’s husband, Lucas, managed a chain of hotels across the country. He was found wandering aimlessly through one of his own buildings, barefoot and muttering nonsense.

When employees finally stopped him, Lucas claimed he had been hearing children’s voices, distant, whispering cries, ever since Athena’s confrontation at the school.

His mind unraveled quickly.

Within a week, Lucas had disappeared altogether, and the last footage of him showed him walking into the woods outside the city, barefoot and mumbling those same eerie whispers.

Andrea herself faced her own torment. Each morning, her classroom would be covered in scrawled messages written in red chalk: “You let them suffer.”

The words seemed to appear overnight, despite the room being locked.

Students whispered that they saw shadowy figures lingering near the windows, and some claimed they heard faint cries echoing in the empty halls.

Andrea broke down after discovering her desk drawers filled with shredded paper, pages from her teaching records, ruined and unreadable.

The string of misfortune struck the city like a curse. Families who once held power found themselves crushed beneath the weight of fear and paranoia.

Some believed it was karma, others claimed a supernatural force was punishing them.

Rumors spread that the orphanage children were protected by a powerful guardian, an unseen force that punished those who dared to harm them.

Athena kept quiet through it all. She knew she had initiated the first strike by exposing the corruption, but the strange events that followed felt beyond her control.

Each morning, when she stared at her reflection in the mirror, she wondered if the figure looking back was still her.

The crown tattoo on her wrist glowed faintly, a reminder that her actions had awakened something, something powerful and unpredictable.

One night, unable to sleep, Athena ventured into her soul space for answers.

The endless expanse of swirling mist greeted her, but as she walked deeper into the void, she felt the presence of something, or someone, watching her.

“Who’s there?” she called out.

A shadow emerged from the mist, its form vague yet familiar. The figure’s voice was low and cold, yet undeniably her own.

“You did what had to be done,” the shadow murmured.

“But… those families…” Athena stammered.

“They deserve what came to them,” the shadow replied. “And this is just the beginning.”

The shadow’s figure sharpened, and Athena realized with dread that she was staring at herself, the same manic smile, the same cold eyes that had stared back at her in the villa window.

“I won’t let you control me,” Athena whispered.

The shadow chuckled. “You already have.”

Athena jolted awake in her villa, drenched in sweat. The crown tattoo on her wrist throbbed faintly, as if pulsing with dark energy. She clutched her arm tightly, heart racing.

“I’ll protect them,” she whispered to herself. “But I won’t become a monster.”

Yet deep down, she knew that line was already blurring.