Chapter 4
Rowena sat in Audrey's living room, a thin blanket draped over her knees, the tablet screen in front of her glaringly bright.
The comments were still blowing up.
Mona's fans, curious onlookers, and marketing accounts looking to stir up drama all swarmed in like sharks smelling blood.
They called her "the ex-wife," "the abandoned heiress," and "the failed schemer."
Every word was harsh and cruel.
Audrey came over with a cup of milk, her face still dark with anger.
"Here, have some," she said.
Rowena took the cup but didn't drink.
Audrey sat down next to her, fuming. "I just checked. The first leaked video was posted by a new account called 'Late Breeze.'
"It was only created three days ago, and the profile picture is that paparazzi shot of Mona at the airport. If you say it's not someone from her side, nobody would buy it."
Rowena just hummed in response. She wasn't surprised at all.
Someone like Mona would never be satisfied with just coming back.
She wanted to stand next to Leopold, looking spotless and untouchable.
So Rowena had to be the one who got dirty.
So dirty that everyone would think Leopold divorcing her was just setting things right.
"You're really not going to fight back right now?" Audrey asked, watching her closely.
"I know someone in the media. We can trace where that leaked video came from. If that doesn't work, we can just drop your hospital records and see who still dares to accuse you of just holding the spot and not having a kid," she added.
Rowena finally looked up.
"No," she said.
"Why not?" Audrey pressed.
"No one can know about the baby before anyone else," Rowena replied.
She said it quietly, but her tone left no room for discussion.
Audrey opened her mouth to argue, but in the end, she held back.
She knew Rowena too well.
Rowena might seem soft most of the time, but once she made up her mind, not even ten wild horses could drag her back.
"You can't just sit here and do nothing," Audrey said.
Rowena set the milk aside and swiped across the tablet screen.
In the hottest trending video, for just a second, the camera caught a mirror inside the private room.
She could just make out half a hand at the edge of the mirror.
A woman's hand.
Slender and pale, with glittering rhinestone nail art.
The same nail design Mona was wearing tonight.
Rowena stared at that frame, then suddenly smiled.
"What's the hurry?" she said.
"Her true colors are starting to show."
Audrey leaned in for a closer look, her eyes lighting up.
"Holy crap, is that really her?" she blurted out.
"Almost definitely," Rowena replied.
Rowena closed the video and pulled up Mona's social media account.
The latest post was from two hours ago.
In the photo, Mona was sitting in a car, her eyes red like she'd been crying, and the caption was both pitiful and a little mysterious.
[Some misunderstandings just can't be cleared up. I just hope nobody else gets hurt.]
The comments were all pouring out sympathy.
[Mona is so kind.]
[She still speaks up for others even when she's the one getting bullied.]
[Mr. Hopkins, just marry her already.]
Audrey gritted her teeth in anger. "She's not trying to break up the fight—she's just hammering the last nail in your coffin."
Rowena just nodded.
She finished reading and shut off the tablet.
She leaned back into the couch, her eyes eerily calm.
"Tomorrow morning, can you help me schedule a meeting with someone?"
"Who with?"
"Summit Law Firm. Heath Stephenson."
Audrey was taken aback.
"You're really going to see that devil?" she blurted out.
Heath was famous in their circle.
He'd almost never lost a defamation case.
He was vicious with his words and ruthless with his hands—he'd rip you apart, skin and bones, without mercy.
But his rates were savage too.
Ordinary folks couldn't dream of hiring him.
Rowena gave a faint smile. "Didn't he give me 3 million dollars for the divorce?"
"It hasn't hit your account yet," Audrey said.
"It will," Rowena replied.
Her voice was soft. "Leopold is the kind of guy who cares about keeping up appearances. Especially at times like this, he won't play games with the money."
Audrey glanced at her, and suddenly her nose prickled—she was close to tears.
Seriously, at a time like this, Rowena was still so calm.
It was like she'd been stabbed, but instead of freaking out, she'd pull the knife out herself and only then wonder if it hurt.
"Alright, I'll set it up," Audrey said.
"And one more thing," Rowena said.
She paused. "Can you find out exactly what Mona was doing during those three years abroad?"
Audrey raised an eyebrow. "You think she's hiding something?"
"No, it's not just a suspicion," Rowena said flatly.
She pulled the blanket up a bit, her face pale but her eyes shining with determination. "I just know—someone like her doesn't come back squeaky clean."
*****
At ten o'clock the next morning, in the CEO's office at Hopkins Group.
Egbert set the documents on the desk, his back drenched in sweat.
"Mr. Hopkins, we've managed to push down about half of the trending topics, but the other half are still hanging on," he reported.
Leopold didn't even look up. "Who's buying them?"
"We traced it through a couple of marketing companies, but after peeling back a couple of layers, it all leads to a brand-new studio that just got registered," Egbert replied.
"Who's the owner?" Leopold asked.
Egbert hesitated. "It's Mona's assistant's cousin."
The office was so quiet you could hear the air conditioning humming.
Leopold's pen froze mid-signature.