Chapter 382
Benjamin: [Don't worry about me. She's perfectly fine, really.]
Victoria: [Good. I sent you those premium Bluetooth earphones—make sure you get them. Perfect for gaming sessions or listening to music.]
Benjamin: [Thanks, Vic.]
The earphones arrived that afternoon. They were the newest model from a top tech brand, sleek matte black with crystal-clear sound that made every track feel like a live performance.
Benjamin loved them. He didn’t even take them off during dinner.
Meanwhile, Victoria was reviewing a series of images sent directly to her encrypted email. Tiny, undetectable pinhole cameras hidden in the earphones had done their job perfectly. The photos were sharp, intimate, and automatically uploaded to her private server.
She opened the files. There was Isabella curled on the sofa reading, little Oliver tucked beside her. In another, Nathaniel was at his desk, documents spread before him, but his gaze was fixed on Isabella. There was even one where they were leaning close, speaking softly, a moment of quiet understanding.
Each image radiated domestic warmth. A burning jealousy twisted inside Victoria.
Why did Isabella get everything? A man like Nathaniel, devotion, a family… while she was cast aside by Alexander?
Isabella was damaged goods. A victim, a mother to a dead child. She didn’t deserve this happiness.
Nathaniel was a king. A man every woman dreamed of. What dark magic had Isabella used to ensnare him?
Her face a mask of bitter envy, Victoria forwarded the entire set of photos to Vivienne.
Let Vivienne see this. Let her simmer. Isabella’s perfect little world was about to crack.
After leaving the Blackwood patriarch's birthday, Vivienne had returned to her lab. Her assistant, Cassandra, entered quietly. “Ma’am, Mr. Blackwood went directly back to Rosewood Manor. He’s with her.”
Vivienne’s hands stilled. He left his own father’s party early just to run back to Isabella?
Isabella Montgomery. That cunning, low-class witch. This was a direct challenge.
Then her phone chimed. An anonymous message with attachments. She tapped the screen.
The images loaded. Nathaniel’s cold demeanor, softened entirely as he looked at Isabella. The three of them looked like a perfect, happy family.
The sight was a physical blow. The man who treated her with icy indifference was pouring all his warmth onto that woman.
Rage erupted. She swept her arm across the lab bench, sending glass beakers and reagents crashing to the floor. Chemicals mixed and sizzled, eating into the wood.
Cassandra rushed to contain the mess. “Should I send these to Mr. and Mrs. Blackwood?” she asked cautiously. “A woman of her… reputation… could never meet their standards.”
Vivienne’s voice was dangerously calm. “Not yet. First, I want her name trending everywhere. Draft press releases. Highlight her eighteen-year ‘epic romance’ with Alexander Whitmore.”
“But… if Mr. Blackwood is with her, he must already know. He clearly doesn’t care,” Cassandra pointed out.
A cold smile touched Vivienne’s lips. “I don’t need him to care. I need the public to believe Isabella’s heart belongs to Alexander. When these photos eventually leak… what will everyone see then?”
She picked up a scalpel, holding its tip in the blue flame of an alcohol burner. The flickering light carved shadows on her face, making her look utterly ruthless. A devil with a plan.