Chapter 20 Mastermind
Across town, Reena Park was celebrating.
She lounged on the velvet sofa in her penthouse, a glass of champagne in one hand and her phone in the other. On the screen, more and more comments appeared under the video she had posted.
"Disgusting behavior for a mother."
"No wonder her husband cheated. Who would want to stay with someone like that?"
"Poor kids. Imagine having a mother who's basically a..."
Reena smiled and took a slow sip of champagne.
Perfect.
She had waited seven years for this. Seven years since that night, when Eva stood by and let Reena take the fall for something she didn't do—something that cost Reena her career and nearly destroyed her reputation.
She never chose to be born outside of marriage. After her mother married Mr. Francis, she believed she should get everything Eva had, too.
But because Eva hated the idea of having a stepsister, her mother kept her hidden. She always lived in the shadows while Eva was treated like a princess. It was unfair, and the feeling of being wronged stayed with her every day.
All that time, she watched Eva pretend to be the victim, the good person, the wife who suffered—while knowing what really happened. For seven years, she pretended to be Eva's friend while secretly planning to ruin her, needing to prove herself right.
And now, finally, the world could see Eva Fransis for what she truly was.
A fraud. A fallen woman. A nobody.
"You look pleased with yourself."
Reena looked up to see Derek entering the penthouse, his expression troubled.
"I am pleased." Reena stretched. "Have you seen the comments? Everyone is turning against her."
Derek didn't respond.
Reena's smile faltered, unease prickling at the edge of her triumph.
"You don't look happy. What's wrong with you? Isn't this what we wanted?"
"Is it?" Derek started pacing, his hands in his pockets. "Because I'm starting to think we've made a serious mistake."
"Mistake?" Reena sat up, her eyes narrowing. "What are you talking about?"
"Someone called me yesterday." Derek's voice was tight. "They threatened me. Said if I didn't give Eva the divorce, he would destroy everything."
"Who?"
"I don't know. He didn't give his name." Derek stopped and faced her. "But he knows everything, Reena. Things only someone with real power could know. That man knows we stole money from the Francis Group."
"We did it because we needed to pay off those debts," Reena said.
"Well, it doesn't matter to them. He also knows about our secret deals with that person, since we thought it would keep us safe in the future."
"And he also knows about us. About our relationship, our motive. Everything"
Derek looked at the window, his jaw tight. "Do you know what happens if any of that comes out? We'll be done for. We won't just lose our jobs; we'll lose everything. We could both go to jail, lose all our money, and have nothing left. Do you understand how serious this is?"
Suddenly, the champagne in her hand tasted sour to Reena.
"That's impossible." Reena denied. "How could anyone find out about all that? We've been careful."
Reena tried to remember where they might have slipped up. But nothing came to her mind.
"Well, apparently, we were not careful enough." Derek's face grew darker. "And now you've uploaded that video without telling me. What if this mystery person strikes back?"
"Let him try." Reena's voice grew firm. "I'm not afraid of some anonymous threat."
"You should be." Derek stepped closer, his eyes full of fear and something else—maybe even hatred. "Because if this comes back on us, I'm not going down alone. Do you understand?"
Reena stared at him, jaw tightening as doubt cut through her confidence.
For years, she thought Derek was her partner—the man who would help her take what Eva never appreciated.
But looking at him now, she saw the truth.
He was weak and pathetic.
A coward who would betray her the moment things got hard.
Fine, she resolved, plans shifting rapidly. If Derek deserts me, I'll prove I never needed him.
But a sudden doubt hit her: Was she really any different from Eva if she hurt everyone who got in her way? The question stayed in her mind, but she pushed it away and focused on what mattered most: winning.
"Relax, Derek." She forced a smile and reached out to pat his cheek. "Everything is under control. By the time I'm finished, Eva will be too broken to fight back. And your mystery caller will have nothing left to use against you."
Derek didn't look convinced.
But Reena didn't care.
She had worked too hard and waited too long to let anyone or anything stand in her way.
Eva Fransis was going to burn.
And Reena would be there to watch every second of it.
Adrian kept his word and acted quickly.
Within two hours, the video was taken down from every big social media platform. Reposts were reported and deleted. News outlets that shared the story got strong warnings from Cavanaugh Corp's lawyers.
By noon, it was almost impossible to find the video.
But the damage had already been done.
People had already taken screenshots and read the comments. The story spread by word of mouth, changing a little more with each retelling.
Eva knew the truth couldn't be erased so easily.
But at least the bleeding had been stopped.
She sat in her father's study, surrounded by the people who supported her: her father, her brother, the lawyer Leonard Gu, and Adrian.
"My team had removed all the traces of that video, sent a legal notice to news outlets for spreading that news," Adrian reported, his tone businesslike. "Now they are working on tracing the original upload. We should have the source identified within twenty-four hours."
"Good." Richard's voice was cold with barely contained rage. "When we find out who did this, I want them destroyed."
"You'll have to get in line." Adrian's eyes flickered with dark promise. "But I suspect we all know who's responsible."
"Reena," Daniel said her name like a curse. "It has to be her. She was at that party. She's the only one who could have gotten footage from that night."
"But how?" Eva spoke for the first time, her voice hoarse from hours of crying. "The hotel had security cameras, but they wouldn't have recorded inside the rooms. Where did this video come from?"