Chapter 197

"..."

Vivian froze, completely speechless.

Knowing Cassandra Delacroix's true nature, that scheming witch would never drop the charges out of the goodness of her heart.

Which meant Nathaniel must have ordered this. But the cold-hearted bastard was supposed to use Evelyn as leverage against Vivian. Why would he retreat first?

Had he discovered Julian's hack into the hospital's cloud storage last night?

Vivian immediately dialed Julian's number.

He answered groggily, clearly still half-asleep. "Miss me already, Scarlet?"

"Enough jokes. Tell me straight - did anyone discover your hack last night?"

"Why so tense? What's wrong?"

"Just answer the damn question!"

"Relax, nobody knows." Julian's voice dripped with confidence. "My encryption is flawless. Unless I talk, it stays buried."

Vivian fell silent, chewing her lip in thought before responding. "Alright. Got it."

"Wait, what's going on? You-"

She hung up before he could finish.

"So ruthless?" Julian smirked, stretching his sculpted arms above his head. The morning light highlighted every defined muscle. "That wildcat's got claws."

Meanwhile, Vivian paced nervously, analyzing the situation.

If the security footage theft remained undetected, Nathaniel had no reason to release Evelyn. What game was he playing?

"Miss Viv, I told you not to worry. I knew everything would work out..." Evelyn's comforting words suddenly triggered Vivian's memory of last night's mysterious message:

"Perhaps tomorrow your problems will solve themselves."

The timing was too perfect. Could that stranger predict the future? Or... was Nathaniel himself behind that anonymous account?

The moon photo did resemble the view from Nathaniel's office French windows!

Vivian sprinted upstairs and booted her computer, fingers flying across the keyboard to trace the account's IP.

After executing a complex code string, the location locked onto a twenty-something office worker in a neighboring city - completely unrelated to Nathaniel.

Predictable. Logical.

Vivian exhaled in relief, though a strange disappointment lingered.

"Get a grip, Vivian. Who do you think you are? Why would he waste time chatting with you on a burner account?" She laughed bitterly.

Regardless, Nathaniel's sudden "truce" signaled something bigger brewing.

"Evelyn, stay home the next few days. I don't trust Nathaniel's sudden kindness. He's planning something."

"But Miss Viv, Mr. Blackwood isn't as cruel as you think. Maybe he genuinely doesn't want to hurt you. He sees how much I mean to you. A lawsuit would burn all bridges between you two..."

Evelyn pleaded, "Please reconsider dropping charges against Miss Delacroix too. Don't make your relationship irreparable!"

Vivian scoffed. "So this is his psychological play - make me withdraw charges willingly. Too bad he doesn't know who he's dealing with!"

With that, she stormed out, evidence in hand, heading straight for Blackwood Group headquarters.