Chapter 182 All Blood Rushes to the Brain
Donna's assistant was constantly scrolling through Facebook, ready to report any new developments immediately.
"The company's arranged press releases have all been distributed."
"The marketing team's keyboard warrior has also taken action, compiling all the gossip about Jessica Jenner over the past few months."
"The actress's fans have also started to mobilize."
Donna stood by the window, listening to her assistant's updates while looking down at her phone, scrolling through the thousands of comments on Jessica's Facebook every second, and smiled.
Carl looked at Donna's exquisite face, not quite understanding what his newly acquired stepdaughter was so fixated on.
"Donna, how far do you plan to take this matter?"
Donna quickly walked over to Carl with a sweet smile, hugged his arm, and coquettishly said, "I haven't thought about causing a big scene, but Jessica really acts like she's above everyone else. Look, even Pamela heard about it and can testify! She snatched the role of the female lead in the last play 'Charles II' from me, and now she's set to enter the cast of 'Honey Ferris Wheel.' I must be part of that group no matter what!"
"The casting for that play has already been finalized and cannot be changed."
"It has two female leads, right? Just tell the production team to replace the other female lead. I must be in this play, even if it's as a co-lead. I must overshadow Jessica in this role. I want the lead. She can only be the second lead! Besides, your company is the main investor in this play, stepfather. Please help me..."
Carl sighed as he felt the warmth and softness in his arms, raised his hand to pinch Donna's cheek, and whispered, "It depends on how well-behaved you are tonight."
Donna's assistant dared not look in their direction, instead focusing on the updates on her phone. Suddenly, she said, "The tracker on Mackenzie's car has stopped near Blue Bay Apartments. Does Jessica live there?"
Blue Bay Apartments?
Unable to make a move directly against Jessica, Donna had a private conversation with the actress Trinity, learning some details and where the difficulties lay. She had discreetly placed a tracker under Mackenzie's car in advance.
Mackenzie's residence wasn't a secret, nor was it their target for investigation. However, if her car was parked near there at this time of day, Jessica likely lived there.
Could she afford to live in such an expensive area?
In the afternoon, Mackenzie went to Blue Bay Apartments to meet Jessica, reassured to see her in good spirits.
After discussing some strategies at Jessica's home, they both agreed that they needed to obtain the surveillance footage from the banquet hall that evening. Jessica and Donna had been near the dessert table, a somewhat secluded spot, and it was uncertain if it was within the surveillance blind spot.
"You handled the misunderstanding from the 'liking' incident very well, with the subsequent post deletions, blocking, and timely release of the IP address evidence." Mackenzie hinted bluntly.
Jessica immediately responded, "I won't seek help from Gabriel. He's not someone who constantly follows the entertainment industry gossip, and I'm not someone who seeks help at the first sign of trouble. Being in this circle, one must have the ability to handle all pressures alone. I'll deal with this myself."
After chatting for two hours, Jessica needed to go downstairs to pick up Danielle from kindergarten. Mackenzie hadn't seen Danielle in a while, so she accompanied Jessica downstairs to the kindergarten.
"Hasn't Caroline already returned? Why are you picking up the child yourself?"
"Caroline returned very late yesterday, so I gave her the day off today."
As they picked up Danielle from the kindergarten, Mackenzie magically produced lollipops, chocolates, and a small doll from her bag, making Danielle giggle uncontrollably.
Suddenly, a low voice from a distance faintly reached their ears.
"Boss, I got it. I've been following Mackenzie's car, and it's definitely her!"
"They picked up a child from the kindergarten. I managed to take a frontal photo of the child, who looks somewhat like Jessica!"
"I even heard the child calling Jessica 'mommy.'"
"I didn't expect to stumble upon such a big story. Jessica has an illegitimate child. Just this one photo of her could fetch us a lot of money!"
"Jessica and her daughter look so alike. If this bastard is exposed, who knows how many celebrity studios will want us to follow them in the future? Fortune is on the horizon; a true tidal wave of abundance approaches."
The voice came intermittently, dissipating like the autumn wind.
Jessica turned to see the direction of the voice and saw a man holding a camera furtively talking on the phone next to a second-hand car.
Illegitimate child.
Bastard At that moment, all of Jessica's blood rushed to her head.
Five years ago, Eugene learned that she had narrowly escaped being violated by Stanley, a situation that left Eugene feeling deeply embarrassed. Upon learning that she had spent the night outside and was found disheveled the next day, he used the excuse of not wanting to see her bring an illegitimate child home to reject her and kick her out of the Jenner family, severing their father-daughter relationship.
When she was very young, Linda would whisper to her, "Jessica, you're just a little wild seed. If it weren't for half of your blood being from the Jenner family, do you think this family would want you?"
Trinity would arrogantly say, "Your mother gave birth to you out of wedlock. You were forcibly pushed into the Jenner family with her thick skin! What's there to sympathize with an illegitimate child? You deserved to die early!"
Five years before the fire, a servant of the Jenner family whispered that Jessica and her mother were both doomed. If she really had an illegitimate child, her legs would probably be broken by the Jenner family.
Later, Jessica broke free from the shackles of the Jenner family. On her escape, a fire broke out overnight in a small motel.
The echoes of everyone calling her a little wild seed kept ringing in her ears, along with the curses and insults on Facebook. As a public figure, she couldn't avoid these things, but what would happen if Danielle's photo was made public?
It felt like a heavy blow to her head.
Danielle was her everything, her only weakness!
She was the treasure she held in her heart.
She was her bottom line!
"Mackenzie, please take Danielle home for me and watch over her." Jessica saw the man finish his call and drive away with his camera. She quickly handed Danielle's small hand to Mackenzie while gritting her teeth and saying, "Where's your car parked? Give me the keys."
Mackenzie, who had been focused on talking to Danielle, didn't notice the commotion nearby. She looked at Jessica and asked, "What are you going to do?"
Without explaining, Jessica reached into Mackenzie's coat pocket, took out the car keys, and walked away without looking back.
"Where are you going, Jessica?" Mackenzie's eyes widened. "Please don't stir up trouble!"
But Jessica seemed oblivious, walking decisively towards the parking lot.
An anxious Mackenzie led Danielle back to Blue Bay Apartments. While waiting for the elevator, she saw its first stop at the underground parking on the negative second floor before slowly ascending to the first floor and opening its doors.
Suddenly, she saw Gabriel inside the elevator and exclaimed as if she had seen a savior. "Mr. Harriman."
