Chapter 299

"If you had fallen for someone else in Silvercrest and even had a child without telling me..."

Nathan Blackwood's eyes darkened with barely contained fury, his fingers clenching into white-knuckled fists. "I might have forgiven you. But you lied to me about having depression. You weaponized my trauma and manipulated my emotions. You tried to force me into marriage with your deception!"

Victoria Sterling's face drained of color, her lips trembling wordlessly.

The gravity of her mistake crashed over her. When she'd fabricated her mental illness, she'd only thought of it as a way to keep Nathan's attention. She'd forgotten that both Nathan and his mother were survivors of depression's cruel grip. His fear of history repeating itself had made him tolerate her lies and abandon Evelyn—the woman who genuinely loved him.

She hadn't considered that when this deception unraveled, she wouldn't just be exposing her manipulation of Nathan, but also disrespecting his mother's memory.

Forgiveness? Unthinkable.

"You turned my mother's suffering and my past into weapons against me." Nathan's voice was raw with betrayal, his bitter laugh scraping against the tension in the room. "Victoria, you've made me the greatest fool in Crestview."

"It's not— I didn't—" Victoria stammered helplessly.

Julian Montgomery cut in with disgust. "You grew up with Nathan. You knew better than anyone what he endured. If you had one shred of decency, you wouldn't have exploited his pain." His glare intensified. "Using your childhood bond as emotional blackmail? I doubt you ever truly loved him. This is revolting. I'd rather die alone than be with someone like you."

"Enough, Julian." Nathan couldn't bear to hear another word about Victoria's treachery. "Oliver," he commanded his assistant, "get her out of my sight. Permanently."

Oliver Sinclair's expression turned icy as he seized Victoria's arm, dragging her toward the exit like discarded trash.

"Nathan Blackwood!" Victoria finally shed her pitiful act, her shriek echoing through the corridor. "All these excuses just mean you've found someone new! You're in love with that bitch Evelyn! What's so special about her? Did she save your life? She approached you with a fake identity—she's deceiving you too!"

"Silence!" Nathan's roar was thunderous, his eyes blazing. "You will not speak her name. If you insult Evelyn again, I'll ensure the Sterling family disappears from this country's elite. Get. Out."

The violence in his tone shattered Victoria's bravado. Without Oliver's grip, she would have crumpled to the floor.

She'd underestimated Evelyn's hold on Nathan's heart. Using her as leverage had been a fatal miscalculation.

As the elevator doors swallowed Victoria's trembling form, the tension in the hallway dissipated.

"Regardless of everything... congratulations are in order." Julian clapped Nathan's shoulder, relief evident in his voice. "However long the deception lasted, breaking free is what matters. It's never too late."

"Never too late?" Nathan's laugh was hollow, his broad shoulders slumping. Then why did it feel like everything precious had already slipped through his fingers?