Chapter 137 The Mastermind, Clearly Exposed!
The documents had detailed info about the guy named Virgil and a plastic surgery report. Virgil had a full facial surgery, and Evelyn remember his old look well. He was Nicole's fitness coach in Mythorica, whom Simon found on Instagram.
"It's him! The guy who grabbed Nicole's hand!" Evelyn blurted out excitedly in front of Landon. She vividly remembered the photo of Nicole's hand being touched.
Landon cleared his throat, frowning slightly, "Evelyn, pay heed to your diction."
"I knew it," Evelyn sneered. "Isn't this exactly what Nicole did?"
Landon's eyes turned cold with anger. "I thought Nicole was just being petty. I didn't expect her to be so ruthless. I underestimated her."
"But why did Virgil suddenly get such major plastic surgery?"
Evelyn smirked, "How did he end up losing his face after being with Nicole?"
"Keep flipping through," Landon said with a smile.
Evelyn turned the page and found a debt contract from a casino.
"Didn't expect him to be a gambler, owing five million dollars."
Landon said calmly, "He's deep in debt, with the casino, the bank, and loan sharks all after him. He got plastic surgery to escape them."
Evelyn connected the dots and everything became clear.
"Desperate for money, Virgil went to Nicole. As the fiancée of the head of the Wellington family, Nicole is like a ATM."
"Nicole probably offered him money in exchange for something."
Landon's breath became heavy, and he pulled Evelyn into his arms protectively, his eyes dark red. "The condition was to harm you."
"Maybe Nicole and Virgil hadn't finalized their plan. If she knew Virgil would attack me tonight, she would have 'died' another day." Evelyn looked at Landon with admiration. "But Landon, you figured everything out in just a few hours, even Virgil's debt contract. You're amazing!"
"It was a coincidence," Landon said, gently stroking Evelyn's hair. "The casino in Mythorica he frequents used to be mine. Even now, it's run by my people. Finding out about someone is easy."
Evelyn was shocked, gasping in surprise.
Patrick kept Nicole's suicide attempt a secret to protect the Wellington family's reputation.
In the study, Patrick and Edward were in a tense standoff.
"Edward, things have escalated. The only way to fix this is for you and Nicole to get married ASAP!" Patrick demanded sternly. "Wasn't this your plan? If there's no time for a wedding, have an engagement party. The sooner, the better. Don't make more trouble!"
"I'll help her out of her depression," Edward said firmly. "But I can't marry her."
"What did you say?!" Patrick stood up angrily. "You insisted on her, divorced Ms. Taylor, and now you've driven Nicole to the brink of death. What are you thinking? How can you be so fickle and heartless?!"
Edward's cold smile stung Patrick's eyes.
"What are you laughing at? Do you find this funny?!"
"Yes."
"Edward! How dare you!" Patrick's eyes flared with anger as he slammed the table.
"If you had just said you wanted me to marry her to save the company's image, I could respect that. But you had to bring up character, so I can only say—like father, like son." Edward's sharp eyebrows lowered as he bluntly tore away the facade.
His thin lips twisted in bitter mockery, aimed at both Patrick and himself.
"What did you say?" Patrick was stunned.
"Nicole was once the person I wanted to marry. But now, I can't convince myself to marry her," Edward said, his long lashes casting a shadow. "But she saved my life when I was a kid. I won't ignore her situation. I'll wait for her to get better, then I'll formally break up with her."
"You want to break up with Nicole?!" Patrick thought he had misheard.
"Yes," Edward answered without hesitation.
"Nicole has severe depression and almost committed suicide over the postponed wedding! If you break up with her, won't that push her over the edge?! She's a patient. How can she handle such a shock?!" Patrick was so anxious he was almost tongue-tied.
"That's why I won't bring it up now. I'll wait until she overcomes her illness before I formally discuss breaking up." Edward's eyes were as cold as ice, his mind made up.
Patrick's pupils contracted in shock as he slowly sat back in his chair, scrutinizing Edward. "Are you breaking up with Nicole because you've fallen in love with Evelyn?"
Edward's heart clenched, but he blurted out, "I don't like her."
"You are my son. Even though you didn't grow up by my side, you still have my blood. No one knows a son better than his father!" Patrick's sharp eyes narrowed, and he smiled coldly. "After Byron's birthday party, when Charlie took Evelyn away, your eyes were full of reluctance. And I heard you even brought her home one day, making Nicole embarrassed in front of Evelyn. Edward, you've never been indecisive. Once you don't want something, you won't even look at it! Why do you keep making exceptions for Evelyn? Yet you say you don't like her?!"
"I'll say it one last time, my breakup with Nicole has nothing to do with Evelyn." Edward stood up abruptly, his eyes tinged with red, the veins on his neck exposed above his crisp shirt collar. "Even if it wasn't Evelyn, but someone else, Nicole shouldn't be spreading rumors and hurting others."
"That's because she loves you! If she didn't care about you and only wanted your status and power, why would she bother with Evelyn? Women are naturally jealous. The more they care, the more emotional they get. Especially since Evelyn was your wife for three years, isn't it normal for Nicole to feel this way?!"
As Patrick said this, he suddenly thought of Tiffany.
Back then, Tiffany was just like Nicole, crying and making a fuss, acting coquettish and snuggling into his arms, yet tender and affectionate when they were intimate. He became deeply entangled in her tenderness, gradually becoming infatuated and unable to extricate himself. In his eyes, this was a sign of love. He believed Nicole must love Edward deeply to risk her life just to keep his heart. Just like Tiffany did for him.
"Evelyn once loved me too." As he spoke, Edward felt as if a nail had pierced his throat. "During the three years we were married, she never hurt anyone. When did love become an excuse to slander and harm others without restraint?"
He no longer argued with Patrick, walking towards the door with a straight back.
"Edward! Are you going to let the Wellington family..."
Edward interrupted, "Don't worry, the Wellington family doesn't belong to you alone. Even if I don't marry Nicole, I won't let the Wellington family fall into a difficult situation."
