My Husband Caught Me Having an Affair - Chapter 120

“…What did you just say? The Duchess of Dumont?”

Marlon narrowed his eyes and asked again.

“Yes. He clearly said that the only one who knows the identity of the informant is the Duchess of Dumont.”

The subordinate sent by Julien answered.

“Jacques Alide said he could find out the informant’s name if given just one day. What shall we do?”

“……”

Marlon stroked his chin, lost in thought.

‘Was that just something he blurted out to buy time?’

That would be the most natural assumption. But it felt somehow off to dismiss it that easily.

Jacques Alide wasn’t that old, but he had grown up on the backstreets and had years of experience in this field. In the intense intelligence wars of recent years, he had always led Dumont’s side from the front lines.

You could say Jacques was the person on Dumont’s side who knew Girard best. So he would also know that Marlon wouldn’t be fooled by a baseless lie.

The reason Julien had gone so far as to confirm it with Marlon was likely because he had made the same assessment.

‘…Or perhaps, precisely because of that, it could be a trap set in reverse.’

Considering everything, the safest choice was to ignore Jacques’s words and kill him.

That way, they wouldn’t learn the informant’s identity, but at least Ethan Dumont’s right-hand man would be eliminated.

That had been the original plan anyway: use Jacques’s wife as leverage to extract information about the informant, then kill them both, regardless of success or failure. Even in the worst-case scenario, it would surely weaken Dumont’s forces.

Yes, even now, that still seemed like the right decision. Especially when it wasn’t clear why Jacques had pointed to the Duchess of Dumont.

In the past, Marlon would have carried it out without hesitation.

But now, he hesitated.

In truth, this operation itself was a risky move that the old Marlon would never have allowed. That he had gone this far meant the situation was more dire than ever.

The Liam Bernard case, followed by the Vincent Frenet case. Even if neither had succeeded, Marlon had at least assumed their involvement wouldn’t be discovered. That had always been Girard Intelligence’s top priority.

Yet in both cases, they had failed completely. Liam and Vincent, who were supposed to be silenced, were still missing, and even Mathieu, one of the pillars of the intelligence unit, had vanished.

Until Jacques mentioned it today, Marlon hadn’t even been sure Dumont was behind it.

To be frank, it was maddening. This wasn’t just being a step or two behind. It was total defeat.

Worse still, this wasn’t a loss that ended here. Ethan Dumont was surely already using these victories to prepare for Marlon’s downfall.

Given that, retreating now would be unwise.

Killing the Alide couple without leaving evidence might be doable. But that didn’t mean they could avoid Ethan’s suspicions. It was far more likely that he would strengthen his defenses and accelerate his plans.

So settling for Jacques’s head alone wasn’t enough. They needed to uncover the cards Dumont was holding—no matter what.

‘In short, the question is whether it’s worth the risk or not.’

Jacques had reportedly said that if he were planning to abandon his wife, he wouldn’t have shown up in the first place. There was truth to that.

Partly because Jacques was rumored to be surprisingly devoted to his wife despite appearances, but more importantly, it was simply unthinkable for Dumont to sacrifice an innocent woman.

In that sense, the possibility that this was a trap laid to catch Marlon seemed low.

Dumont had always clung to outdated values like justice and morality. That was the very reason Philip Dumont had failed to defeat Marlon.

‘…Camille Dumont, huh.’

At first glance, it sounded absurd. But that made it all the more convincing.

According to popular opinion, Camille was Dumont’s weak link—his Achilles’ heel. Liam Bernard and Nicolas had said exactly the same thing about her.

But what if that weren’t the case? What if the true nature of Camille Dumont was completely different from what the world believed? What if the longstanding marital discord since the wedding was all just a ruse to lull Marlon into complacency?

Countless thoughts tangled in Marlon’s mind. He recalled the time he had met the Duke and Duchess of Dumont at the imperial banquet.

At that time, Ethan had shown more hostility toward Marlon than usual. As if trying to protect his wife from him. The way Ethan looked at Camille… it had been sincere. He was sure of it.

After long deliberation, Marlon finally lifted his head.

He looked at Julien’s subordinate and ordered, “Go to Leboeuf and tell him to accept Jacques Alide’s request. But on one condition.”

***

I was anxiously waiting in my room for news from Jacques.

Earlier this morning, I had sent someone to his office with instructions to come see me as soon as he arrived at work. That way, Jacques could report to me directly without having to worry about other eyes.

‘…He’ll be safe, won’t he?’

Since Mathieu had disappeared, Marlon must have been feeling an indescribable anxiety. Like facing an enemy lurking in dense fog, ready to strike from anywhere.

That’s why he wouldn’t rashly kill Jacques to tie up loose ends. From Girard’s standpoint, this was both an unprecedented gamble and a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.

Still, rational analysis aside, it wasn’t easy to shake off the sense of unease. Nothing in the world was ever 100%, and you never knew what kind of variables might arise.

I had been pacing restlessly in the room for hours.

After a knock, Marie finally delivered the news I had been waiting for.

“Mr. Alide wishes to see you, Madam.”

“Let him in quickly.”

Marie gave a polite nod and disappeared. Soon after, the door opened and Jacques appeared.

“Jacques, you’re safe. Nothing happened, right?”

“……”

Jacques didn’t respond right away. His face, in just one night, had grown shockingly gaunt.

I took his hand and personally guided him to a chair.

“So, how did it go? What did the perpetrator say? Is Ines safe?”

“……”

Jacques kept his gaze lowered and remained silent.

“I’m sorry. I pressed you too hard. Just take it slowly and start from the beginning. If possible, just like I asked yesterday, tell me everything—every word exchanged between you and the culprit.”

“……”

Jacques swallowed and finally opened his mouth.

“Does the Duke know…?”

“No, he doesn’t. So don’t worry and speak freely.”

To be honest, even after returning to the ducal estate last night and going to bed, I had been torn. Should I tell Ethan about this or not?

Though it was Jacques’s wife who had been kidnapped, if this was truly an operation Girard was launching against House Dumont, then Ethan was a core party. His help would be essential in dealing with it going forward, so telling him would make perfect sense.

Even so, I had decided to keep quiet for a reason.

Because Ethan could not tolerate even the slightest danger to me.

“What did I say yesterday? I told you not to do anything that could put you in danger. What if he tries to stop you by force when you’re leaving? In a place where there’s no one to help you if you scream, what do you think he might do to you?”

Even just to meet Nicolas and say “We can’t see each other anymore,” that had been his reaction.

He would undoubtedly try to stop me from taking the lead this time as well.

‘But that can’t happen.’

The situation was extremely volatile. One wrong move and Ines could be killed instantly.

Depending on the circumstances, I might have to step in myself.

‘No… I probably will have to, nine times out of ten.’

The reason things had reached this point was no one’s fault but mine. Because I had used knowledge from the original story to thwart Girard’s operations again and again.

Only I knew the truth behind how I had been able to stay one step ahead of Girard.

In other words, I was the only one who could respond to and resolve this.