Chapter 277 Living Transparently
The shout brought the three people from the living room. Seeing the girl being helped up, Dashiell's first reaction was to look at Ryan, who looked completely confused and asked in disbelief, "How did you get in here? Why are you in my room?"
Dashiell understood immediately, another stalker fan breaking into a celebrity's room.
He said angrily, "You sasaeng fans have gone too far, haven't you? You came in without permission; we can call the police."
Eve smiled awkwardly, "Don't call the police. I'm a fan of Ryan. I like him very much. I just want to meet him."
"Stop using the fan excuse. This isn't the first time this has happened." Dashiell looked at her suspiciously. "Where's your phone? Take it out. What did you photograph?"
Eve tried to stay calm, "I'm not a stalker fan, I'm Ryan's fan."
"Cut the crap. Take out your phone and open your photo album. We'll know right away if you are or not." Dashiell held out his hand.
Dashiell knew all about these stalker fans' tactics. For their own selfish reasons, they'd do anything to spy on celebrities' private lives, following them, taking secret photos, even going through Ryan's trash bins downstairs and selling what he threw away to other fans.
Dashiell's tone was harsh, "Hand it over."
Eve clearly resisted, putting her hand in her pocket and turning her face away.
Her reaction already showed she wasn't a normal fan. Dashiell asked again, "When did you get in here?"
Eve stammered, "Not that long ago."
"How long is 'not that long'?" Dashiell had zero tolerance for stalker fan behavior.
Eve replied, "About an hour, I guess."
"Who are you kidding?" Dashiell frowned. "I've been here for almost two hours. When exactly did you get in, and how?"
Ryan wanted to know too. He asked Eve, "Were you here when I was showering?"
Eve's pupils contracted, "I wasn't."
Ryan closed his eyes briefly. "Call the police."
Eve panicked, "I really didn't see anything, didn't see anything at all."
To cover up the truth, Eve lied, "I really just got here. I pretended to be room service and snuck in."
This girl was too dishonest, and her reason was too absurd. Lily didn't allow anyone to damage the hotel's reputation. She still maintained a polite attitude on the surface and said, "There are security guards on duty 24 hours a day on this floor. Not to mention someone as big as you, even a fly flying in would be found. You mean pretending to be room service? Do you have a work ID badge?"
Eve looked at Lily in confusion. Lily showed her the badge. "The security guards at the elevator and emergency exits won't let anyone in without seeing this card."
Eve hadn't expected the hotel management to be so strict. She was thinking about how to get away with it when Leopold blocked all her escape routes with one sentence.
Leopold said, "Ms. Lorne,"
"How do you know my name?"
Leopold said, "I'm the hotel manager. The front desk has registration information for all guests. Also, the hotel's public areas all have surveillance cameras. If you really don't want to tell us, we can check the footage."
Eve had to admit it, saying with her head down, "I'm staying on the eleventh floor. I climbed down from the balcony. You were showering when I came in, but I didn't see anything."
Leopold asked, "What did you do after you got in?"
Eve's eyes darted around. "Just looked around. I was curious about what my favorite celebrity is like in real life."
Leopold asked again, "Did you take photos?"
Eve swallowed. "No."
"Think carefully before you answer." Leopold was certain she had taken photos. "Take out your phone."
Only then did Eve admit it, but she still didn't plan to hand over her phone. "I took a few."
Leopold pressed, "How many is 'a few'?"
"I don't remember exactly. Ten or so, maybe."
Leopold asked, "Did you send the photos to anyone else?"
Eve paused. "No."
Anyone could tell she was lying. Leopold had a feeling that if they didn't handle this girl properly, it could cause big trouble later.
He gave Ryan the choice. "How do you want to handle her?"
The reason Ryan had chosen a private floor was to avoid being disturbed by anyone, but a stalker fan had still broken into his room. He was fed up with this harassment. He said to Dashiell, "Call the police."
Seeing they were serious, Eve said with a crying voice, "I'm your fan, I'm really your fan. Don't call the police."
Ryan's attitude was firm. "We have to call the police. No discussion. You have to face the consequences of what you did today."
Dashiell took out his phone and dialed the police right in front of Eve.
"Don't call the police, don't call the police. I know I was wrong," Eve cried, grabbing Dashiell's arm and begging. "I came out without telling my family. If they find out, my parents won't let me off."
After a few rings, Dashiell briefly explained the situation to the dispatcher, then hung up to wait for the police to arrive.
Eve sobbed. Ryan said, "You're crying? What do you have to feel wronged about? If I remember correctly, those posts on social media that trashed me were all posted by you, right? I should really thank you for letting me experience being cyberbullied before I even got famous."
Eve froze. "I, I didn't."
Dashiell asked Ryan, "Which account is she?"
Ryan said, "'SocialMediaQueen', that's her. She probably forgot to switch accounts and posted a photo from her own life, then deleted it right away. But my fans took a screenshot and sent it to me in a private message."
Dashiell glared. "You're 'SocialMediaQueen'? We've been looking all over for you, and you just delivered yourself to our door."
Eve denied it strongly. "No, it's not me. I didn't post anything."
Dashiell said, "No? You know in your heart whether there is or not. Don't worry, in a couple of days, you will receive a lawyer's letter sent by Vanguard Legal Services entrusted by our brokerage company."
Now she really had nowhere to turn. Eve cried very sadly, begging Ryan to give her another chance, but the person involved had no intention of forgiving her.
Dashiell didn't think it was enough. His tone became even harsher. "Now you know how to cry? What were you thinking when you were being a keyboard warrior online, trashing Ryan? If it weren't for you, would Ryan have missed out on several big movie productions? Do you know what a three years break does to an actor's career? You ruined them, and you still have the nerve to cry."
Eve's crying echoed through the room. Soon after, Lily had the security guide the police car to the back entrance and brought two officers up.
After briefly asking about what happened, the officers took Eve away.
Ryan asked Leopold, "You knew she was in my room early on, didn't you?"
Leopold's face was expressionless. "Not that early. As soon as we found the problem, we came down."
Ryan nodded, saying meaningfully, "You gave her a chance to make peace with us, but she didn't take it. I gave her a chance too, and she didn't take it either."
Leopold had indeed given Eve time, but Eve's behavior showed no sincerity several times. She even tried to get away with it through deception and gaining sympathy.
Leopold said, "Mr. Ashford still understands things clearly."
Ryan looked at Leopold with admiration. "When it comes to understanding things, I'm not as good as you."