Chapter 1188
Chapter 1187:
Their argument spiraled into something vicious and venomous, the hatred between them so consuming that neither noticed Elliana standing in the shadows, absorbing every word.
Then, Vivien appeared.
Raylan and Paige both turned toward her, their battle temporarily suspended.
Vivien’s memory of Paige remained tinted by the cruise ship incident, where Paige had supposedly been injured while rescuing her. The gratitude she felt toward Paige was overwhelming.
She glanced between Raylan and Paige and then ventured, “Paige, I understand Raylan might not be what you are looking for right now, but people can grow. He can become better—just give him some time to prove it p>
Vivien had anticipated the same warmth Paige had once shown her, but this time, Paige’s gaze swept past her as though she were furniture.
The instant Vivien finished speaking, Paige released a cold, cutting laugh, her voice laced with pure contempt. “And who exactly do you think you are? Stay out of things that don’t concern you p>
Vivien froze, the disdain in those words hitting her like a physical blow. It took several stunned seconds for her to process what she’d just heard. “Paige, what’s happened to you? You were never like this before! On the cruise ship, you were seriously injured trying to save me p>
“Ha-ha…” Paige doubled over with laughter, as though Vivien had delivered the most absurd punchline imaginable. When she finally straightened, she regarded Vivien with the kind of pity reserved for particularly dim children.
Determined to sever every thread connecting her to Raylan and burn every bridge to the Hudson family, Paige held nothing back. “Vivien, you really are dense, aren’t you?” she said, her tone almost casual in its cruelty. “I value my own life above everything else in this world. Did you actually convince yourself I’d risk it for someone like you p>
Then, Paige laid out the truth—every calculated detail of what had really happened on that cruise ship.
When Paige finished, Raylan and Vivien could only stare, their expressions frozen in disbelief.
The entire Hudson family had been grateful toward Paige because of that kidnapping. It had been the sole reason Lenard had agreed to Paige’s engagement with Raylan. Now, the truth was exposed. Paige had orchestrated everything alongside Merritt. Vivien had been drugged and knocked unconscious? Paige had given the order herself. The only reason Vivien had survived wasn’t Paige’s mercy—it was Elliana’s intervention. The same Elliana they’d spent months tearing down.
Vivien stared at Paige, shaking her head in denial. “No… You’re lying, right? This has to be a joke! Tell me you’re joking p>
“I literally just called you dense.” Paige’s voice carried no heat, just matter-of-fact cruelty. “I’ve handed you the truth on a silver platter, and you’re still clinging to some fantasy version of me? Let me be exceedingly clear—I never saw you as anything but a tool. Every second in your presence made me want to scrub my skin raw. The only reason I smiled through it was to use the Hudson family’s influence to get ahead p>