Chapter 158: The Showdown
The black Maybach slowed to a stop at the apartment building. Ryan hung up his ringing phone, his brow furrowed. He turned to the mother and son in the back seat.
"I'm sorry," he said, his voice laced with frustration. "The London merger has some loose ends. I have to go to the office for a video conference right now."
He really wanted to go to the designers' gala with Evelyn tonight. It was her first event back in the New York social scene, and he was worried.
"Go," Evelyn said, unbuckling her seatbelt. Her expression was calm. "You’re the boss of Nova, not my bodyguard. Elias and I can take care of ourselves."
Ryan felt a pang of unease at her independence. He leaned over, unbuckled Elias, and rubbed the boy’s head while looking at Evelyn. "Call me when it’s over. I’ll pick you up."
"Don't bother. I have a car." Evelyn avoided his gaze and took the child. "Get some rest."
Once they disappeared into the building, Ryan’s face darkened. "Back to the office," he told the driver. "Tell Vincent to watch the gala. I don't want anything happening to her."
At a private penthouse club in Manhattan, Evelyn handed a note of instructions to the club’s premium nanny. She checked Elias’s smartwatch one last time.
"Mommy has to work for a bit. Stay in the play area and be a good boy, okay?"
Elias, looking like a little gentleman in a small black tuxedo, nodded. "Go Mommy!"
Evelyn took a deep breath and walked into the ballroom. She wore a minimal black satin mermaid dress. No extra decorations—just the deep blue sapphire necklace that shimmered under the lights, making her skin look like snow.
As she entered the heart of the party, a sharp laugh cut through the crowd.
"Oh, if it isn't our 'single mother.' I didn't know you were a designer too."
Valerie Astor stood there, holding a full glass of Bordeaux, surrounded by socialites. She was dressed like a peacock in a gold sequin dress that hurt the eyes.
"You think you belong here?" Valerie looked her up and down. "I thought you only shopped at discount stores."
Evelyn didn't want to deal with a fool in public. "Excuse me."
"Don't be in such a rush. Let's have a drink." Valerie feigned a toast, but her heel "slipped" perfectly.
Splash.
A full glass of dark red wine poured directly onto Evelyn’s stomach and skirt. The liquid soaked into the expensive silk satin instantly, spreading like an ugly scar across the black fabric. Evelyn looked a mess.
"Ah!" Before Evelyn could react, Valerie cried out first, clutching her chest. It was terrible acting. "How could you push me? I know you're jealous that I got the closing show for Fashion Week, but you can't get physical in public!"
The scream worked. Every eye in the room turned toward them. The whispers started immediately.
"Is that Sophia Bell?" "I heard her private life is a mess. No class at all, pushing people." "Look at her dress. What a disgrace for a designer."
Evelyn looked down at her ruined dress. She looked up coldly at Valerie's smug face.
"Valerie, was it? There are no cameras here, but that doesn't mean people are blind." Evelyn pulled a silk handkerchief from her bag and slowly wiped her fingers. "Your acting is even worse than your designs."
"How dare you lie!" Valerie shouted. "Security! Get this crazy woman out! She ruined my dress and tried to attack me!"
The event organizer rushed over. Looking at the mess, his brow furrowed. One was an Astor, the other was a rising star designer. He couldn't afford to offend either.
"Ladies, tonight is a night for design," the organizer said, sensing a PR opportunity. "Since you both have different stories, let's settle this like designers."
He pointed to a workstation in the center of the hall. "The club has a stock of premium fabrics. You have one hour to design and create a dress on the spot. The guests will vote. Whoever wins stays; the loser leaves."
"Fine by me!" Valerie was confident. she had been trained by masters since she was a child. She was certain a "self-taught" nobody like Evelyn couldn't compete.
Evelyn tossed her stained handkerchief aside. Her amber eyes burned with a cold fire. "Fine."
The timer started.
Valerie quickly grabbed the most expensive gold lace and diamond-studded tulle. She wanted to create a dress of pure luxury to shame Evelyn.
Evelyn, however, didn't move. She looked down at the black dress ruined by the wine. The wine had dried, leaving dark red stains on the satin like blood or an ancient totem. People began to whisper.
"Is she frozen with fear?" "She's not even picking fabric. Is she quitting?"
Suddenly, Evelyn moved. She didn't reach for new fabric. Instead, she picked up a pair of sharp scissors and cut right into her own skirt.
Rip.
The sound of tearing fabric silenced the room. She didn't need a new dress. She was going to give this contaminated one a rebirth.
She used the scissors to cut boldly along the edges of the wine stains, turning the regular mermaid hem into an irregular, shredded design. Then, she used silver pins and dark red velvet ribbons to reconnect the tears.
She didn't try to hide the stains. Instead, she used the deep red velvet to create 3D folds over the darkest parts of the wine, making them look like irises blooming in the dark.
The dark red of the wine blended with the velvet, with black satin as the base and silver pins as the skeleton. It felt decadent, broken, yet intensely alive.
At fifty-five minutes, while Valerie was still fumbling with her sequins, Evelyn put down her scissors.
"I'm finished."