Perfect Socialite, Cruelest Lover

The gossip about Shane continued to ripple through the crowd.

"Shut up!" Caitlin roared in fury.

She looked at Shane's ashen face, then suddenly spun around, her gaze piercing straight through me.

When I saw the disappointment in her eyes, I shook my head instinctively.

"It wasn't me—"

"Who says that's Shane? Terry was the one who prepared that video. Isn't he the one who loves being screwed by guys? So, of course those photos are of him."

Several of Shane's old friends came out to defend him.

I immediately remembered the photos I had seen the night before.

Just as I began trembling uncontrollably, Caitlin drew a deep breath and declared with absolute finality, "The person in those photos isn't Shane. It's Terry."

Now, every single pair of eyes turned toward me.

Someone even pulled up the photos of me that had been leaked online.

"Terry's such a snake. He must have caught wind that Shane was back and figured he'd use Mrs. Randall's birthday party to muscle his way into the family."

"This disgusting creep ruined a perfectly good birthday party. He should just get the hell out!"

The guests, unable to contain their fury, grabbed their wine glasses and hurled them at me.

I couldn't dodge in time and was knocked straight into the champagne tower beside me. A cascade of glasses stacked waist-high came crashing down on top of me.

Caitlin quickly stepped in front of Shane to shield him from the flying shards of glass.

My skin was slashed open by the shattered fragments, blood seeping out in steady streams.

When Caitlin turned around and saw this, her expression shifted drastically. She was just about to come over when Shane suddenly grabbed hold of her.

"Caitlin…"

He wouldn't stop trembling. This rare display of vulnerability threw Caitlin into a panic.

Without hesitation, she took him upstairs. "Call a doctor!"

I collapsed to the ground, swallowed up by a flood of vile abuse.

Mrs. Randall swept a glance over me, then said lividly, "Get this shameless, filthy disgrace out of here at once!"

In the dead of winter, I was thrown out of the old estate.

In that moment, whatever faint hope I still had left for Caitlin was utterly crushed.

Today's setup had been aimed squarely at me. In a city as vast as Lunbury, I could freeze to death on some street corner and nobody would even notice.

Just before I lost consciousness, I suddenly remembered the number my father, Anthony Boyer, had made me repeat over and over on his deathbed.

After I dialed that number, I only managed to say two words before I couldn't hold on any longer and passed out.

"Save me."

…

When I woke up again, I found myself lying in a hospital bed.

Caitlin was seated beside me, holding my hand tightly. There were faint dark circles beneath her eyes.

The moment I stirred, she jolted awake.

"Terry, you're awake." Her eyes were bloodshot. "You were way out of line this time. Shane holds no ill will toward you, so why did you have to humiliate him like that in front of everyone? Go apologize to him later, and we'll put this behind us."

Wasn't I the one who had been humiliated all along?

I found it utterly laughable. For the first time, I looked at Caitlin through new eyes. Perhaps even she herself hadn't felt the anxiousness that flickered in her gaze whenever Shane was mentioned.

"Ms. Randall, Shane is emotionally unstable. Please come over immediately."

Caitlin hurried off to Shane's hospital room.

When she returned a while later, she had someone yank me right out of the hospital bed.

"Terry, the doctor says Shane's acute stress disorder is acting up severely. He has to undergo hypnotherapy so he can release everything completely."

Before I could make sense of what was happening, she had already pressed me down onto my knees in front of Shane's bed.

"You were the one who wronged him in the first place, so consider this making it up to him."

Shane seemed to have lost all reason. He rushed up and landed two brutal punches on me. Then, he grabbed me by the hair and slammed my head forcefully against the floor.

"You ruined me! It's all because of you! You did this to me!"

The wounds on my body split open again, blood streaming out uncontrollably.

Caitlin, unable to bear the sight, moved to step forward. "That's enough. Terry hasn't fully recovered yet."

But the doctor stopped her. "Ms. Randall, Shane has mistaken Mr. Boyer for the person who harmed him. If he isn't allowed to vent his resentment, he may never recover."

Caitlin's hand, outstretched in midair, trembled slightly before she finally drew it back.