Chapter 296
The mob quickly shook off their stunned silence.
The man holding the live-stream camera glared viciously at the guards.
“Why are you all acting like loyal dogs? Why defend a traitor? Move! Get out of our way!”
“Isabella protected that homewrecker, and you’re still shielding her? Has GoldenPhoenix lost all its dignity?”
“A rotten leader breeds rotten followers! Isabella, you bully ordinary people and use your wealth to crush us even more! This is pure oppression!”
“Let’s charge them! Attack!”
A rallying cry went up. The crowd surged forward like a frenzied beast. The live-streamer joined the rush.
A woman tangled in the net snatched a rock from the ground, aiming it straight at Isabella.
Though trapped, the mob's collective force dragged the heavy net and the writhing caterpillars along with them.
The scene descended into utter chaos.
Isabella’s brow furrowed. If her guards retaliated, it would escalate everything. The backlash would be brutal, especially with women present…
The guards braced, electric batons humming to life. They stood ready, a wall against the oncoming frenzy.
The gap closed. The women took aim. The guards prepared to strike.
“Halt!” Isabella commanded.
She was no saint, but she wasn’t foolish. Escalating this solved nothing. This could be resolved without violence!
Just as her mind raced for a solution…
“Stop! Please, you have it all wrong!”
A clear, strong voice cut through the noise. Everyone turned. A heavily pregnant woman hurried toward them, waddling with effort.
“I’m Isabella’s personal assistant,” she announced, breathless. “You’re mistaken. Isabella saved Arabella not to protect a homewrecker… but because Arabella is not a homewrecker.”
Shock rippled through the crowd. Not a homewrecker? How could that be?
The mob hesitated, wary of harming a pregnant woman, but their anger didn't subside.
“How is she not? The evidence is everywhere! Why lie?”
“You’re about to be a mother. Have some decency for your child!”
“Even Harrison said she was! Arabella herself is hiding. What’s left to lie about? If she’s not, then who is?”
“Is GoldenPhoenix using a pregnant woman to spin lies? How despicable! I hope you go bankrupt!”
The pregnant woman stood her ground. “It’s true Arabella was with Harrison. But she was deceived! Before you judge, listen to this!”
She raised a portable speaker and pressed play.
A recording blasted into the air.
(Harrison, let's get married. It’s been six years. I’ll put my career on hold for you.)
[No. You’re at your peak. Marriage now is impossible.]
(Harrison, this is my thirty-ninth proposal. Your thirty-ninth rejection. Be honest. Do you love someone else? Are you already married?)
[How could you think that? I’m not that kind of man! Listen, Arabella, this is for your own good…]
The voices were unmistakable. Arabella’s gentle tone, Harrison’s dismissive replies. The conversation was crystal clear.
But the content… it was completely different from the story everyone knew.