Chapter 360

What on earth is happening?

Honestly, how can someone act so disgracefully? Has she no sense of decorum?

Isabelle Montgomery truly embodied the spoiled, entitled heiress stereotype. Nathan's cutting remarks only fueled her growing rage. She cared little for the occasion - all she wanted was to unleash her fury.

Yet surrounded by Crestview's elite, the Montgomery name demanded restraint.

Gritting her teeth, Isabelle forced composure. A delicate cough, then her fingers flew across the piano keys - Beethoven's Symphony No. 5 in C minor flowing effortlessly.

As a Valmont Royal Academy of Music prodigy, the piece became an extension of her turbulent emotions. The crowd gradually forgot her earlier outburst, swept away by the passionate performance.

Meanwhile, Cassandra Blackwood stormed back into the ballroom, her gown trailing behind her. "Mother!" she hissed, gripping Penelope Whitmore's arm. "Eleanor is here!"

Penelope's eyes widened. "Where?"

"I just saw her with Mr. Montgomery! He even gave her his jacket and patted her head!" Cassandra's eyes welled with angry tears. "Mother, we've been fooled! Eleanor's sharper than she pretends. She's been targeting Julian from the beginning! How vile!"

"Enough!" Penelope pinched her daughter's arm discreetly. "That's your sister! Both my daughters will maintain appearances. Never speak of her like that again!"

Cassandra trembled with suppressed rage, biting her lip bloody. She recognized her mother's words weren't in defense of Eleanor - just another denial of her "imperfect" child.

"What should I do?" Cassandra clutched Penelope desperately. "I finally made Evelyn break things off with Julian, and now my own sister interferes! He barely tolerated me before - now any chance at marrying into the Montgomery family is ruined!"

"Stop this nonsense. Eleanor isn't your rival." Penelope waved dismissively. "Find Oliver later. Have him locate Eleanor and bring her home immediately."

To Penelope, this was merely a minor disruption. She'd controlled her daughters tightly for years. Eleanor's condition made her an unlikely candidate for advantageous marriage - but Penelope remained determined to profit from her "defective" child somehow.

"Ms. Montgomery seems rather temperamental," Penelope remarked casually as Isabelle's piano piece crescendoed.

"Temperamental? She's insufferable!" Cassandra abandoned pretense with her mother. "Compared to Victoria, she's utterly lacking in refinement - a walking time bomb!"

"Good," Penelope's eyes glinted coldly.

"Good? How?"

"Hot-tempered people are transparent. Easier to manipulate." Penelope analyzed coolly. "Isabelle only wants to be Nathan's wife. Spoiled since birth, she lacks nothing - simple-minded but possessive." Her lips curled. "Someone like Victoria, all honeyed words and hidden daggers? Far more dangerous."

As they spoke, the grand ballroom doors swung open.

Isabelle, lost in her performance, remained oblivious as all attention shifted toward the entrance. There, flanked by Julian's bodyguards, a petite figure entered hesitantly - head bowed.

"My word! Who's that delicate beauty with Mr. Montgomery?" Society women immediately began whispering. "I've never seen her before!"

"Another fleeting romance, no doubt. Mr. Montgomery changes women like gloves. Rumor says none last beyond a month."

"Pretty, but not his usual type. He favors bold, voluptuous women typically."

"Personally, she outshines Isabelle on that stage and certainly eclipses Cassandra Blackwood. Say what you will about Julian Montgomery, but the man has impeccable taste. That girl beside him? A genuine treasure, not some polished fake!"

"Indeed, Mr. Montgomery's preferences far surpass Mr. Blackwood's. She seems refreshingly sincere - unlikely to betray him like certain others..."

Cassandra's face burned crimson with humiliation, her gums aching from clenched teeth. Penelope's expression twisted with disdain as the whispers continued.