Chapter 238
“Emily, let’s go,” Austin whispered in Emily’s car.
They had done what they came to do, and the drama was winding down. There was no reason for them to stick around. Emily pulled her gaze away and nodded. She and Austin slipped out of the hotel unnoticed.
No one noticed them leaving, except for one person: Jeremy.
The moment Yvonne rushed over and confronted Emily, Jeremy immediately knew Emily was behind everything that happened.
He didn’t care about whatever grudge Yvonne and Emily had, but if their drama dragged the Windrose family into it, that was something he absolutely couldn’t tolerate.
Jeremy’s eyes were still glued to Emily’s retreating figure when, in the next instant, the reporters and gossip-hungry onlookers snapped back to reality and swarmed around him and Walter.
“Mr. Zwick, are those videos real? Do you admit to bribing the principal?”
“Mr. Windrose, as Yvonne’s boyfriend, did you know what kind of person she is?”
“Were you aware of Yvonne bullying her classmates?”
Jeremy wore a polite, gentlemanly smile, the curve of his lips so perfect it looked like he was wearing a mask.
No matter how angry he was, his expression remained perfect. “Thank you all for your concern. First of all, Yvonne and I are not dating. We’re just business associates, and I have no knowledge of her personal affairs.”
*****
All that noise and commotion inside the hotel never made it past the doors. Once they stepped outside, Emily let out a sigh, like a huge weight had been lifted from her heart.
Emily could never forget the moment when Quiana leapt from the rooftop. It was a secret she’d buried deep inside, never telling a soul.
Since she’d gotten revenge for Quiana, that look of despair and hatred in Quiana’s eyes before she died didn’t haunt her as much anymore.
But this whole thing wasn’t truly over yet. Even though Yvonne’s bullying had been exposed, she still hadn’t gotten the punishment she deserved. Walter and Jeremy wouldn’t just sit back and do nothing.
Since Emily decided to get revenge for Quiana, she couldn’t let all that end up as empty noise. So that very day, she had people keep a close watch on Walter and Jeremy, just in case they tried to make a move.
As Emily had predicted, everything exploded online. Livestream clips, event breakdowns, and insider exposés came pouring in one after another. With paid posters Emily had secretly set loose, the news took over the trending feeds.
It was harder than ever for the Zwick family to pull any strings to get Yvonne out of trouble. The only card they had left to play was Jeremy.
But what neither Walter nor Emily expected was that a week went by, and Jeremy hadn’t made any move. Forget about trying to pull any strings for Yvonne; he was busy making moves to distance himself from the Zwick family.
With the Zwick family caught up in such a scandal, it was natural for Jeremy to want to cut ties. Still, Emily couldn’t shake
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Chapter 238
the feeling that something about that just wasn’t right.
She remembered overhearing Jeremy and Yvonne’s conversation at the hotel. The Zwick family clearly had some serious dirt on Jeremy, and there’s no way they wouldn’t use it.
Jeremy’s silence could only mean two things: either he had some big, sure-fire plan to pull Yvonne out of the mess, or he never intended to help her at all.
There’s no way he could just shrug off the leverage the Zwick family had on him, but the cost of bailing Yvonne out would be massive for the Windrose family.
+38)
Given Jeremy’s status in the Windrose family, there’s no way Toby would ever let him pull something like that. Emily barely knew Jeremy, so there was no way to guess what he was thinking.
Lately, she’d been so preoccupied with all that, and she kept catching herself spacing out at the easel while painting. Austin could tell her mind was somewhere else.
He knew what Emily had been busy with those days, and he could sense the worries weighing on her heart. He went to the kitchen, made some desserts, and brought them out to the balcony.
Eating something sweet always helps when people are in a bad mood. After Emily had eaten a couple of pieces, Austin asked, “Are you worried because you can’t figure out what Jeremy is planning?”
Emily knew Austin was even smarter than she’d given him credit for, so it didn’t surprise her that he’d figured it out. She asked, “What do you think Jeremy will do?”
Austin picked up a piece of dessert from the plate and took a small bite. “The cost of bailing Yvonne out is way too high. If Jeremy’s smart, he’ll never go down that road.
“He doesn’t want to pay the price, but he also doesn’t want to be blackmailed by the Zwick family. The best way is to shut the Zwick family up for good.” He kept things vague, but Emily picked up on his meaning right away.
If the Zwick family had dirt on Jeremy, then making sure they could never open their mouths again would be the best thing. But if Jeremy went that far, Emily suddenly found herself hesitating, unsure of what choice she should make.
All she ever wanted was to get revenge for Quiana and fulfill Zack’s last wish. As for the Windrose family and Jeremy, Zack had never hated them. In his heart, they were always just strangers. So, he never mentioned them to Emily.
If Jeremy planned to get rid of the Zwick family, it’d be all upside for her. She just had to pretend she didn’t know a thing.
But if he, a relentless person, found out she was the one who set up the Zwick family and almost dragged the Windrose family down with them, he might resent her.
Emily would never forget what Jackson had taught her: no matter what, always consider the worst-case scenario.
Austin noticed her hesitation. He might not know all the details, but he could guess she was worried Jeremy might start targeting her over all that.
Austin shared what he knew. “You probably don’t know this, but Jeremy has been looking into you lately.”
Emily was taken aback. She’d had people monitoring Jeremy closely, but they hadn’t found out a thing, yet somehow, Austin knew all about it. He was way more capable than she’d ever imagined.
Even though Emily had her own suspicions, she didn’t press for details. But thanks to Austin’s reminder, she came to a
decision.
Since the Zwick family had dirt on Jeremy, if she wanted to avoid becoming his next target, she’d have to either keep Walter
safe or get her hands on whatever leverage he was holding over Jeremy.
Seeing Emily snap back to life and get down to business, Austin’s lips curved into a faint smile. The shallow dimples on his cheeks made him look like a kid who’d just snuck a piece of candy.
Behind the scenes, the online hype about Yvonne’s bullying scandal was still burning hot. Every time things started to cool off, Emily would spend money on paid posters and traffic boosts to keep the topic trending.
With all that going on, the results of Yvonne’s first trial were made public faster than anyone had ever seen before.
