Chapter 137 The Luminous Moon and A Shattered Trust

Chapter 137 The Luminous Moon and A Shattered Trust
The grand ballroom of the Zurich auction house sparkled brightly under the light of massive crystal chandeliers. The room was filled with Europe's wealthiest elites dressed in their finest evening gowns and tailored suits. Soft classical music played in the background masking the quiet murmurs of the distinguished guests.

Damon Lexton walked into the venue with Estela right beside him. The business ruler looked absolutely dashing in his dark suit. He had to attend this event without his loyal assistant because he had ordered Leo to handle their urgent flight documents for tomorrow morning.

As they walked past the luxurious display cases a group of elegantly dressed women suddenly approached them. They were Estela's close acquaintances from the local medical community.

"Oh my goodness Estela," a blonde woman greeted with a very wide and excited smile. Her eyes immediately darted toward the tall and handsome man standing next to her friend. "You look absolutely stunning tonight. And you brought a very handsome partner with you. You never told us you were dating someone this incredible."

Estela's cheeks instantly turned a deep shade of red hearing the blatant assumption. She tucked a strand of hair behind her ear feeling a sudden rush of butterflies in her stomach.

"Oh no Clara you misunderstood," Estela stammered trying to explain the situation while stealing a quick glance at Damon. "He is my patient. We are just attending this event together because..."

"Come on Estela there is no need to be shy," another woman interrupted quickly completely ignoring Estela's weak denial. The woman pulled out her smartphone and opened the camera application. "Let us take a group picture to celebrate this rare occasion. Stand closer to your partner Estela."

Estela nervously shifted her feet bringing her body slightly closer to Damon. She secretly hoped the man would play along just for a brief moment.

However Damon's face remained completely flat and devoid of any warmth. The Lexton ruler absolutely despised having his picture taken especially by strangers he did not even know.

"Excuse me," Damon said with a very polite but freezing tone. He took a deliberate step back creating a clear physical distance between himself and Estela. "I need to check the auction catalog over there. Enjoy your conversation ladies."

Without waiting for their response Damon turned around and walked away toward the VIP seating area.

Estela felt a sharp sting of disappointment in her chest seeing him walk away so coldly. Her friends lowered the phone camera with awkward expressions on their faces.

"Why did he leave so suddenly," Clara asked raising an eyebrow in confusion. "Did we offend him."

Estela forced a bright smile to cover her bruised ego.

"Please do not mind him," Estela defended the man quickly. "He is just very camera shy and dislikes taking pictures. He is actually a very caring person once you get to know him."

Deep down inside her heart Estela actually felt a thrilling sense of joy. Even though Damon walked away she thoroughly enjoyed the fact that her friends assumed they were a romantic couple. The delusion slowly took root in her mind.

Meanwhile in the dark corner of the ballroom a man wearing a plain black suit lowered his camera. He had successfully captured multiple pictures of Damon and Estela standing close together earlier. The hired spy quickly transferred the digital files and sent them directly to his employer.

Hundreds of miles away in a high end restaurant.

Xavier King sat comfortably in a private dining booth. He took a sip of his expensive red wine while checking the incoming messages on his phone. A very satisfied and wicked smile slowly appeared on his handsome face.

Valeria who was sitting across the table noticed the sudden change in his mood. The woman had removed her thick maid glasses and fake mole to enjoy a proper meal in secret.

"Why are you smiling like a lunatic," Valeria asked cutting her steak with a sharp knife. "Did something good happen."

Xavier did not answer with words. He simply turned his phone around and pushed it across the table.

Valeria caught the device and looked at the bright screen. Her eyes scanned the high quality photos showing Damon standing very close to a beautiful female doctor at a fancy party.

"Who is this woman," Valeria asked with a frown. "I know her face. She looks very familiar."

"That is Estela," Xavier explained leaning back against his chair. "She is Damon's old friend from their school days."

Valeria gasped softly as the realization hit her memory. "I remember her now. Eleanor told me about this woman. But how did they end up attending a party together."

"Doctor Albert introduced her to Damon," Xavier answered swirling the wine in his glass. "Estela is the herbal doctor who formulated the medicine for Damon's current recovery. Damon owes his life to her right now."

Valeria let out a loud mocking laugh. She placed the phone back on the table with eyes gleaming with pure malice.

"God is truly on our side Xavier," Valeria said looking highly triumphant. "We do not even need to try hard to create a fake scenario. Damon is digging his own grave by giving us the perfect weapon to destroy his wife's sanity."

Back at the Zurich auction house the main event had finally reached its peak.

The auctioneer stood on the grand stage with a bright spotlight illuminating a velvet display box next to him.

"Ladies and gentlemen we have arrived at the masterpiece of tonight's auction," the auctioneer announced enthusiastically. "Behold the Luminous Moon. A necklace crafted from pure platinum featuring a flawless teardrop diamond that glows beautifully in the dark. The bidding starts at twenty million dollars."

Damon sat in his front row chair staring at the magnificent necklace. The sparkling diamond immediately reminded him of Shireen. He remembered how much his wife loved unique jewelry designs. He wanted to buy the Luminous Moon to bring home as a peace offering for leaving her alone for so many days.

The man was just about to raise his bidding paddle when his peripheral vision caught Estela's reaction.

Estela was sitting two chairs away from him. The female doctor was staring at the Luminous Moon necklace on the stage with absolute awe. Her eyes sparkled brightly and her hands were clasped tightly together reflecting a very deep admiration for the jewelry.

Damon lowered his paddle slightly. He looked at Estela and remembered everything she had done for him over the past few days. Estela had stayed awake all night brewing bitter herbal medicines to stop his internal bleeding. She had monitored his blood pressure tirelessly and helped him survive the agonizing pain of his disease.

Damon was a businessman who never liked owing debts to anyone. He always paid for services rendered with equal or greater value. Buying this necklace for the doctor seemed like the most logical and practical way to pay his medical fee and express his professional gratitude.

Damon raised his paddle high into the air.

"Fifty million dollars," Damon stated with a loud and firm voice ending the ongoing bidding war instantly.

The entire ballroom fell into a dead silence. People turned their heads to look at the generous billionaire who just offered an insane amount of money for a single piece of jewelry.

"Fifty million dollars going once," the auctioneer shouted excitedly. "Going twice. Sold to Mr. Damon Lexton."

The crowd erupted into thunderous applause.

Damon stood up from his chair. The event staff carefully brought the velvet box containing the Luminous Moon necklace directly to him. Damon took the luxurious box and turned around to face Estela.

"This is for you Estela," Damon said casually handing the box over to the stunned doctor. "Consider it a token of my gratitude for helping me recover these past few days."

Estela covered her mouth with both hands. Tears of joy pooled in her eyes. She felt like the luckiest woman on earth tonight.

"Thank you Damon," Estela whispered emotionally accepting the box with trembling fingers.

The guests around them gasped in sheer amazement. Whispers of admiration and gossip immediately spread like wildfire. Many socialites pulled out their phones to record the incredibly romantic moment where a billionaire gifted a fifty million dollar necklace to a beautiful doctor.

Hidden in the back row the hired spy smiled widely while recording the entire interaction perfectly. He immediately tapped the send button delivering the fatal video right to his target.

Inside the quiet master bedroom of the Von Gherman estate Shireen was lying on her side hugging a thick pillow.

Her stomach felt completely empty and nauseous but she could not force herself to eat anything. The pregnancy hormones were wreaking havoc on her emotional stability. She kept staring at her silent phone waiting for a single text or call from her husband.

Suddenly the phone screen lit up brightly accompanied by a loud notification chime.

Shireen quickly grabbed the device hoping it was Damon. However the message came from an unknown number. It was a video file.

Shireen tapped the play button with a frowning forehead.

The video started playing showing a very bright and luxurious ballroom. Shireen's heart stopped beating when she saw Damon standing there looking incredibly handsome in his black suit.

Her breath hitched as she watched her husband hand a velvet box containing a massive diamond necklace to the woman in the white coat. She clearly heard Damon say that the expensive gift was for Estela. She watched how the woman looked at Damon with eyes full of love and admiration.

The video ended leaving a deafening silence in the bedroom.

Shireen's hands trembled violently. The phone slipped from her grasp and fell onto the soft mattress.

Her husband had ignored her calls and messages all day long. Damon claimed he was busy with intensive medical observations and strict treatments. Yet the reality captured in that video showed him attending a glamorous party and buying a fifty million dollar necklace for his childhood savior.

A burning sensation erupted in Shireen's chest. The heat spread rapidly through her veins boiling her blood into pure uncontrollable rage. The sadness she felt earlier evaporated instantly completely replaced by a devastating anger.

"You arrogant liar," Shireen yelled her voice cracking with fury.

She grabbed the glass of water on her nightstand and threw it forcefully against the wall. The glass shattered into pieces just like the remaining trust she had for Damon Lexton tonight.