Chapter 217

The morning sunlight streamed through the sheer curtains of Evelyn Sinclair's penthouse, casting golden patterns across her marble floors. As she sipped her lavender-infused tea, her phone buzzed incessantly with notifications from her exclusive celebrity gossip group chat. A wicked smile curled her lips as she scrolled through the latest scandal involving Seraphina Delacroix and Sebastian Hart.

"Tsk, tsk," Evelyn murmured to herself, her manicured nails tapping against the porcelain cup. "Seraphina really thought she could keep her affair with Adrian Cross under wraps?" The irony was delicious—Seraphina had publicly denounced cheating just last month during her interview with Glamour Elite.

Her assistant, Lillian Graves, entered with a tablet balanced precariously on a stack of contracts. "You’re going to love this," Lillian said, her eyes twinkling with mischief. "Vanessa Sterling was spotted leaving Harrison Montgomery’s penthouse at 3 AM last night. Natalie Whitaker’s PR team is already scrambling."

Evelyn’s laughter rang out like wind chimes. "Oh, this is gold." She leaned forward, her silk robe slipping off one shoulder. "Tell Preston Whitmore to leak those photos to Star Stalker—anonymously, of course. Let’s see how Harrison spins this one."

Lillian hesitated. "But what if—"

"Darling," Evelyn interrupted, swirling her tea, "in this industry, the only currency better than money is leverage. And right now?" She smirked. "We’re rich."

As Lillian hurried off, Evelyn’s gaze drifted to the framed photo on her desk—her and Nathan Blackwood at last year’s Met Gala, his arm possessively around her waist. A flicker of something unreadable passed through her eyes before she schooled her features into cool detachment.

"Speaking of secrets," she muttered, opening a hidden folder on her phone. The screen illuminated with a candid shot of Nathan and Victoria Hayes at a secluded café. The timestamp? Two days after he’d canceled their anniversary dinner, claiming a "business emergency."

Evelyn’s grip tightened on her phone. Oh, she’d let him dig his grave a little deeper. And when the time was right? She’d bury him in it.

Her phone pinged again—a breaking alert from Celeb Insider: "Mirabelle’s Ex Drops Bombshell: Sebastian Hart Claims She Faked Pregnancy for Role."

Evelyn’s grin turned feline. "Popcorn, anyone?"

The video recording had been entirely accidental. When Nathan pulled out his phone, he'd been operating it one-handed. Just as he raised it, Evelyn's teasing remark about his "paparazzi skills" made his fingers slip, pressing directly against the screen. Only when he tucked the phone away did he realize the footage had automatically saved.

Perhaps influenced by his family's casual attitude toward such things, he didn’t delete it immediately. If his relatives wanted to see it, he could always send it to the group chat later.

Initially, he’d hoped to capture something useful—anything that might serve as leverage. Instead, he’d caught this.

Now, with the situation spiraling beyond control, Nathan forwarded the video to Julian, instructing him to handle it discreetly. Given their public ties and shared interests, direct intervention wasn’t an option. But behind the scenes? That was a different story.

On the large screen, the clandestine recording played—a confrontation outside the door, voices laced with tension, words heavy with implication.

The shock in the room was palpable. No one moved to stop the footage.

When Claire laid bare the truth—why Mason had pretended to be poor—his entire body stiffened.

Even if he was stubborn, he wasn’t stupid. If Violet ever discovered he’d been testing her, manipulating her, all because of his ex-girlfriend? It would be catastrophic.

A cold dread slithered down Mason’s spine. Only now did he truly grasp that Violet’s talk of breaking up wasn’t just an empty threat.

Certain details in the exchange made Ethan snap his head toward Claire, his eyes widening in horrified realization.

The moment the video mentioned the necklace, Claire’s exaggerated reaction was impossible to miss. She hadn’t admitted anything outright, but her expressions and body language told the whole story.

"Oh my god—is this what I think it is?"

"Pretty sure we’re all thinking the same thing."

"This is insane."

"So Claire and Mason were classmates?"

"Wait—the ex-girlfriend they’re talking about is actually Ethan’s wife?"

"Claire left Mason for Ethan because he was the better prospect."

"Seriously? The Hampton family is okay with this? Two brothers sharing the same woman? That’s disgusting."

The evidence was undeniable. Claire had been subtly sabotaging Mason and Violet’s relationship from the start.

And now, everyone knew.

The whispers in the room grew louder, sharp enough to cut through the tension.

"Maybe they never really got over each other. Sneaking around behind Ethan’s back all this time."

"So Claire was cheating on Ethan?"

"What about the stolen necklace then?"

"This was just petty jealousy. She went out of her way to ruin someone else’s life."

"Talk about wanting it all. The Hampton family praised Claire like she was perfect, and look how she turned out."

Ethan’s expression darkened, his icy glare sweeping over Mason and Claire.

Mason stood frozen, staring at Violet, his face drained of color.

Meanwhile, Violet watched the screen in stunned silence. She had no idea who had recorded the footage, but it felt like divine intervention.

Claire seemed to snap out of her daze, her voice shrill as she shouted, "Who played this? Turn it off! Someone turn it off now!"

Everyone assumed her panic was guilt over her affair with Mason.

Then, gasps erupted through the crowd.

"It really was a setup."

Claire felt like lightning had struck her.

The video showed the moment clearly—after their conversation ended, Violet turned away, and Claire smoothly slipped her own necklace into Violet’s bag.

Every second of the crime was captured. The malice was undeniable.

Claire’s mouth opened, but no words came out. She had no defense.

Her world was crumbling around her.

She knew—it was over.

Her eyes burned as she stared at the screen, unable to comprehend how everything had unraveled.

"Claire?" Grace’s voice trembled with disbelief. She grabbed Claire’s arm, shaking her slightly.

Liam looked ready to explode with fury.

Both the scandalous affair and the public exposure of her scheme would make the Hamptons the laughingstock of high society.

Arthur and Violet Morris, Claire’s parents, stood among the crowd. They knew about Claire’s past with Mason but had dismissed him as a spoiled, worthless heir. They had pushed her to marry Ethan instead.

They never expected their usually cunning daughter to be exposed like this.

The room buzzed with judgment, whispers slicing through the air like knives.

Claire’s perfect façade had shattered.

And there was no coming back from this.