Chapter 154 Betrayed
'My daughter?!' Nicole was shaking, feeling like her head was about to explode. Her mind went blank, like she'd been struck by lightning.
This was terrifying. The more she looked at the girl, the more the girl looked like her.
"Impossible, no way!" Nicole muttered, almost in a trance.
"How ridiculous," Virgil sneered at her pale face. "You can't even recognize your own daughter. Some 'mother' you are."
The crowd went wild, like a bomb had gone off.
Half the people stared at the panicked Nicole on stage.
The rest looked at Edward in the audience, his face cold and teeth clenched.
"Nicole! What the hell is going on?!" Tiffany's elegant demeanor was cracking. She grabbed Nicole, whispering angrily, "Who is he? How did he get in? What's your connection to him?!"
Karen, worried about the scandal, rushed at Virgil with fury.
"Who are you?! How dare you smear Nicole's name! I won't let you get away with this!"
Virgil, a seasoned boxer, dodged easily. Karen stumbled and fell hard, causing laughter all around.
Bray's face turned red with embarrassment, wishing he didn't know this crazy woman.
"Security! Get over here!" Nicole screamed, ignoring Karen and wanting Virgil gone. "Get this guy out of here! Now!"
Seeing Nicole deny everything, Virgil's anger grew, ready to strike again.
Then a cold, magnetic voice spoke up.
"No one is to take him away."
Edward's eyes were bloodshot with rage, his whole body like ice.
He walked grimly towards Nicole.
He looked at the trembling Nicole, who used to be his angel and sunshine, swearing she only loved him.
His breath caught painfully, her once familiar face now terrifyingly strange.
"Edward, someone's framing me! They found this guy to slander me!"
Nicole ran clumsily towards Edward, nearly tripping over her dress.
The short distance felt endless.
Finally reaching Edward, her legs were weak. She grabbed his arm tightly, fingers digging into his suit.
"Edward! I've loved you since we were kids! Even when we were apart, I never wavered! This guy's here to cause trouble! Don't believe him! You have to trust me, Edward!"
"Just him? How many times have we slept together? Can you even count?" Virgil laughed, finding her lies thrilling.
"I'll sue you for defamation! I'll call the police!" Nicole's eyes flashed with anger, pointing at Virgil.
"Sue me? I'll sue you for abandoning your child!" Virgil, tired of arguing, pulled out a report and threw it at Nicole. "This is the paternity test for you and our daughter! It's all here in black and white. What more can you deny?!"
'I can't turn back now. If I'm going down, I'm taking Nicole with me!'
A thunderous crash, like lightning, shattered the scene!
"Oh my God! This guy is Nicole's lover?! What was she thinking?!"
"Nicole had a kid with him, abandoned the child, and then tried to marry Edward. How could she be so heartless? That child is her own daughter!"
In the chaos, Eric walked over, left hand in his pocket, and picked up the paternity test.
He double-checked it before showing it to Edward, raising his voice so everyone could hear, "Edward, this testing agency is very reputable. This report looks legit."
Edward's lips pressed into a thin line, his eyes slowly closing.
To Nicole, it felt like her last hope was gone, fear crashing over her like a tsunami.
"Edward, when I left you, I had severe depression! You know that! When I was in Mythorica, it got worse, and I was in agony! I didn't know what I was doing!" Nicole tried to use her "depression" as a last resort, hoping for Edward's sympathy.
On stage, Tiffany was both furious and despairing.
Furious because Nicole had finally tripped herself up, a fall she wouldn't recover from.
Despairing because Nicole had indirectly admitted her affair and the child she bore.
"Depression? Nicole, are you kidding?! How could a heartless woman like you have depression?" Virgil laughed so hard he had tears in his eyes.
At that moment, the big screen changed again!
A bilingual diagnosis report appeared, shocking everyone!
"You didn't expect this, did you? The psychologist who 'treated' you kept a backup! You took the fake report, but he kept the original, fearing you'd drag him down!" Virgil spat at her, "Depression? You should check if you have an STD!"
"Shut up!" Nicole's face turned red with rage, but she still put on a pitiful act, crying to Edward, "Edward, don't believe him!"
Edward's eyes were as cold as ice. He yanked his arm away, nearly causing Nicole to fall. The anger and humiliation of being deceived, mixed with regret, pierced his chest like knives.
He curled his pale lips, his eyes reddening, and laughed bitterly.
Laughing at his blindness, his foolishness.
Laughing at himself for being so stupid, for hurting Evelyn repeatedly for a lying, ruthless Nicole.
'No wonder Evelyn hated me so much. At this moment, I hated myself too.'
"Nicole, we're done."
"Edward, what did you say?"
Nicole's vision blurred, Edward's handsome yet cold face becoming hazy, as if she'd been struck on the back of the head, leaving her dazed.
Suddenly, the banquet hall doors swung open.
Four stern-faced police officers approached Nicole, scaring her out of her wits!
But the police didn't stop in front of her; they headed straight for Karen.
"What are you doing?" Karen's lips trembled, her fragile composure barely holding.
"Karen, right?"
One officer stepped forward, snapping handcuffs onto Karen's wrists, "You're under arrest for conspiracy to commit murder! You have the right to remain silent, but anything you say can be used against you in court!"
