Chapter 89
89
Mom really wished I had died when I fell off that cliff. If I had, she wouldn’t have to wrestle with how to handle her “vicious” biological daughter anymore.
Their expressions told me something terrifying they weren’t just hurling random accusations to protect Julianne. They truly believed that I had drugged her.
I had forgotten a lot of things due to my memory loss, but I knew one thing for certain–I would never do something like that.
“I don’t know why you think I’d do such a thing,” I said
“I didn’t. I’ve never done anything like that.”
Llooked straight at them and added, “In fact, I didn’t even know Julianne had been involved with Irvin’s father until recently. I only found out after I hired someone to investigate her.”
My explanation didn’t calm them down. If anything, it made them angrier.
Irvin lost what little composure he had left. He grabbed my shoulders roughly, his fingers digging into my skin.
“You didn’t do it?” he demanded, his voice shaking with rage. “Emilia, how can you stand there and act so innocent after doing something so vile? How can you be this shameless?”
I winced at the pain from his grip, anger bubbling up inside me. “Let go of me!” I snapped. “I’m telling you, I didn’t do it. If you’re so sure I did, then show me proof!”
Irvin’s eyes darkened with fury. “Proof? Fine. You want proof? I’ll show you!”
He pulled out his phone, scrolled for a moment, and shoved it in my face.
“Watch this,” he said coldly, tossing the phone onto the table in front of me.
I grabbed the phone and hit play.
It was a video–a compilation of two surveillance clips spliced together. The footage showed me slipping something into Julianne’s drink. Shortly after, Julianne looked visibly disoriented, and Irvin’s father entered the frame, leading her away.
When the video ended, my hands were trembling. My face felt like it had drained of all color.
The evidence was damning.
Irvin grabbed my chin roughly, forcing me to look at him. His eyes were filled with disappointment and disgust. “Well? Are you ready to admit what you did?”
I didn’t respond.
The video was as clear as day. It painted a straightforward story, one that was impossible to refute. But deep down, I knew myself -I would never do something like that.
Yet, there I was on the screen, doing exactly what they accused me of.
The memory was a blank. It was as if that part of my life had been wiped clean.
Irvin took my silence as guilt. He let go of my chin and stepped back, glaring at me.
“You’re going to hold a press conference,” he said, his voice low and firm. “You’re going to announce to the world that you were jealous of Julianne’s relationship with me, and that’s why you set her up with my father. You’re going to admit that you destroyed her life out of spite and apologize to her publicly.”
He paused, his tone softening just slightly. “This is your chance to make things right.”
I barely had time to process what he was saying before he continued.
“This could have stayed private,” he said, his voice laced with anger. “But you made it public when you told everyone about
1/2
89
+25 BONUS
Julianne and my father. You didn’t stop there you even showed people their marriage certificates. By the time Julianne or t could do anything, it was too late. The damage was done.”
He clenched his fists. “Someone even dug up the original copy of ile marriage certificate. Do you realize what it did to Julianne’s reputation?”
He took a deep breath, his anger barely restrained. “You need to take responsibility for your actions. You need to clear Julianne’s name. If you do, we won’t press charges.”
His eyes locked onto mine, and his next words felt like a slap in the face.
“ If you refuse, I’ll take this video to the police. Drugging someone and causing them to be assaulted is equivalent to committing the assault yourself. That’s a felony, Emilia. It carries a sentence of three to ten years in prison.”
Irvin’s voice dropped even lower. “So, what’s it going to be? Admit your guilt, or go to prison?”
Today’s Bonus Offer