Chapter 8

By the time Stella reached the rooftop, Ariana was already standing on the edge of the roof without wearing any shoes. The cold wind had already messed up her hair, which was previously styled flawlessly. She could also hear Ariana's heart-wrenching screams. "Jules, please be my witness! Who on earth is the woman in that video? I've always protected my chastity because I intend to save my virginity for you on our wedding night!" Tears flowed down Ariana's cheeks at that moment. Her body began swaying slightly, causing her to almost fall off the roof. Julian was completely overcome by shock and fury. His heart hurt so much to the point that he couldn't breathe. When he saw Stella, he strode over to her instantly before ripping the mask off her face. Then, he grabbed her wrist and lifted it to attract everyone's attention. At the same time, his loud and rich voice traveled into everyone's ears. "The woman in the video is my secretary, Stella Atkinson. She took advantage of my inebriation to seduce me. When she failed to blackmail me with the video, she decided to use this method in order to earn money! "I'd like to ask everyone here to be my witness. It was all Stella's doing! Her termination is effective immediately. Chapman Group will never hire her again!" Stella felt as though her heart had turned to ice. Even her blood was frozen in her veins. She could only stare at Julian in disbelief. For many years, she was nothing but spectacular at work. Not only that, but she also took good care of Julian in terms of his private life. What was worse was that she even let him do whatever he wanted to her in bed… In the end, Julian chose to do this to her! He'd only let her go after dragging her name through the mud! Everyone else might not know the truth, but Julian was the exception! How was it possible for him not to be able to tell that the woman in the video was Ariana, not her? Suddenly, a heavy downpour rained down on everyone on the rooftop. Julian released his grip on Stella's wrist before turning to pull Ariana into a hug. After that, he told everyone to return to the ballroom and continue enjoying themselves at the banquet. Stella was the only one left standing under the rain. Her phone buzzed once again. It was a text from Ariana. The photo she had sent showed the crystal rose, which was shattered into countless pieces. A janitor could be seen sweeping the fragments up before dumping them into a trash can. Ariana even sent Stella a cheeky emoji. "Sorry, I was very frightened just now, so I accidentally broke your crystal rose. But then again, you've earned 9 dollars and 90 cents from everyone in the company, so the sum should be enough to compensate you for your loss." The crystal rose… Stella's account… 9 dollars and 90 cents… That sex tape… It turned out that this was all an elaborate scheme that Ariana had set up for Stella. It was a scheme that was meant to drive her away from Julian. But Stella had been meaning to do this from the start. Why did Ariana feel the need to carry out the scheme? Why… must she destroy the one and only personal belonging that Ethan had left for Stella? Lost in a trance, Stella returned to the ballroom quietly. She intended to leave the hotel via the only exit that was available. Someone stuck out their leg to trip her over. Others dumped beverages and soup onto her when she passed by. Everyone mocked and laughed at her without a care in the world. Shameless. Despicable. Slut. Homewrecker. Stella heard way too many malicious remarks and derogatory insults about her. Before she left, she turned to glance at Julian and Ariana, who were still dressed impeccably. At the moment, they were kissing each other passionately while embracing each other amid the guests' cheers. "Julian Chapman, I didn't want to do this at first. You… and everyone else… are the ones who forced my hand!" Stella thought darkly. She returned to the company swiftly. At that time, the entire building was deserted. There, she sent the evidence of Chapman Group committing tax fraud and tax evasion that she had gathered over the past three years to the police. After that, she went to Ariana's computer and copied all the records of Ariana's fund embezzlement into her USB drive. "Do me a favor and get rid of the censorship in this sex tape. After that, spread the sex tape everywhere." After ending the call with her ex-classmate, who was a hacker, Stella's phone rang again. This time, the caller was Julian. She picked up the call, her face perfectly neutral. Julian's enraged voice drifted through the receiver instantly. "Stella Atkinson, don't think tonight's incident is over! I didn't expect you to do such things just to earn money! You have to compensate us by giving birth to my child! That child will be given to Aria later!" What the hell? That was absolutely preposterous! Suddenly, Stella began laughing manically over the phone. Her laughter drilled uneasiness and panic into Julian's heart. "Stella, are you nuts? According to the contract, you must obey me at all times!" "Julian Chapman, here's an announcement for you—this marks the end of our contract! From now on, we'll go our separate ways! We won't have anything to do with each other ever again!" Before Julian could deliver his furious response, Stella ended the call abruptly. Then, she flagged down a cab and headed toward the airport. Later on, she boarded a flight with one destination in mind—Levall. Deep down, Stella prayed to Ethan not to blame her for doing what she had done over the past few years. Now that she had managed to clear the debt using the money, she could seek Anthony out and atone for her sins.