Chapter 9
807words
Chloe, in a pristine white gown that hugged her slender frame, clung to Daniel's arm like a fragile blossom. Her smile—perfect, gentle, appropriate—never wavered as she exchanged pleasantries with passing guests.
Her "fragility" act had reached perfection. She instinctively leaned into Daniel as if seeking shelter; gazed at him with adoring eyes during conversations; flashed shy, grateful smiles when he brought her drinks.
Daniel basked in her performance, thoroughly convinced. His little bird had tried freedom, found it wanting, and returned willingly to her gilded cage.
Tonight, his mood soared even higher. His brother-in-law Leo—one of the law school's star students—would soon take the stage. The honor reflected well on the entire Carter family and, by extension, on Daniel himself as the "perfect brother-in-law."
Midway through dinner, the host began extolling Leo's "remarkable achievements" with practiced enthusiasm. Under the spotlight, Leo stood in his tailored suit, flashing that confident, boyish smile.
Just as he was about to be called to the podium, an unexpected figure cut through the crowd.
The law school's dean of academic affairs—an old-school scholar known for his uncompromising principles.
With a grim expression, he approached Leo, ignoring the host's startled look, and murmured something in Leo's ear.
Under hundreds of curious eyes, Chloe watched Leo's confident smile freeze, then crumble. The color drained from his face until he looked like death itself.
"No… impossible…" he muttered, his body beginning to tremble.
The Dean offered no chance for explanation. With a simple gesture, two waiting security guards materialized, flanking Leo like prison escorts, and led him swiftly from the ballroom.
The scene exploded like a bomb in still water. Shocked whispers rippled through the crowd.
"What on earth happened? Isn't that the Carter boy?"
"I heard something about academic fraud… problems with his scholarship application…"
"My God, what a scandal!"
Daniel's face turned to ash. He grabbed Chloe's wrist with bruising force.
"Did you do this?" he hissed through clenched teeth, his eyes wild with rage and disbelief.
Chloe's face, however, showed only confusion and distress. Her eyes instantly welled with tears. "Daniel? What are you saying? Leo… what's happening? I'm so worried…"
Her performance was flawless.
Those tear-filled eyes, wide with concern, could have fooled God himself.
Looking at her, Daniel's suspicion faltered. Perhaps… it truly was coincidence?
But beneath her distressed exterior, Chloe's heart remained ice-cold. Her mind flashed back to two nights earlier.
Julian's Maybach, parked in a shadowy alley. Outside, neon signs painted the night; inside, only the dashboard's blue glow illuminated their faces.
Julian had handed her a thin manila envelope. "Leo's entire application was fraudulent. The recommendation letter was forged by Daniel's assistant. The 'anonymous donation' that secured his scholarship? Traced back to Daniel's personal lawyer."
Chloe had taken the documents without opening them, her gaze fixed on the rain-streaked window. "To truly hurt Daniel," she'd said softly, "we must destroy what he loves most."
A heavy silence had filled the car.
She'd felt Julian's hesitation.
Finally, his voice thick with conflicting emotions: "Chloe, when he was ten, he followed me everywhere. Wanted to learn how to build model planes. Called me 'Brother Julian' for years."
He wasn't pleading for Leo—he was mourning the ghost of what they'd once called family.
Chloe had felt a sharp pang, but hadn't turned to face him.
"That 'brother,'" she'd cut him off, her voice turning to ice, "laughed behind my back after you rejected me. Then flaunted his place in the family while you were pushed aside. Don't be sentimental, Julian. That home died years ago."
Her words had shattered his last illusions about their past.
Julian had turned to her, the warmth in his eyes hardening to cold resolve. His soft sigh sounded like a funeral bell for his own memories.
"Alright," he'd finally said. "We'll destroy him."
After making his decision, he'd reached out—not for the documents, but to brush his fingertips across her cold cheek, tense from speaking such merciless words. The gesture conveyed understanding, acceptance, even admiration of her ruthlessness.
Back at the gala, reality crashed in.
Daniel frantically dialed university officials, only to hit walls of secretaries and voicemails. For the first time, he felt the invisible net closing around him—a caged predator, raging but impotent.
Chloe continued her performance as the concerned, helpless wife. She offered him water, her voice gentle. "Don't worry so much, darling. It's probably just a misunderstanding. Let's go home and sort this out."
Daniel took the water absently, never noticing as she turned away and slipped a black, untraceable burner phone from her clutch.
Without looking at the screen, she tapped out a single word:
"Noted."
Seconds later, the phone vibrated once, almost imperceptibly.
