Chapter 709
Chapter 709
In a flash, the spotlight was on Matthew, and all eyes were on him.
Cowering in Avery’s embrace, Mr. Camille Chambers fixed her gaze on Chris, her eyes a chaotic swirl
of red veins, her body convulsing at the brink of collapse.
Despite her often being lost in a fog of illness, the sight of the man who had brought her such shame all
those years ago ignited a deep–seated rage within her.
Evadne’s heart ached for Mrs. Camille Chambers. Regardless of Avery’s sins, Mrs. Camille Chambers
was an innocent bystander. Yet their differing loyalties prevented Evadne from offering even the
smallest comfort to this pitiable woman. She wouldn’t give Avery the satisfaction – not even the chance
to misinterpret her actions.
Jeff, still oblivious to the unfolding drama, looked at Avery in astonishment, “Avery, why have you
dragged this guy here?” “Matthew, do you want to confess to dad what happened fifteen years ago, or
shall I do the honors?” Avery’s cold eyes were like dark storms as they fixed on Matthew.
“Avery, you’re really laying it on thick now with your theatrics.” Matthew’s heart pounded but his face
was a mask of disdain, refusing to admit, “I don’t even know this person. And it’s been fifteen years –
dad himself has forgotten about this guy, and here you are, finding some third–rate actor form who
knows where, claiming he was dad’s bodyguard. Come on, if you’re going to fabricate evidence, at
least make it believable.”
“Fifteen years, you say?” Avery’s lips twisted into a sardonic smile, “I haven’t even mentioned what the Copyright by Nôv/elDrama.Org.
incident was, and yet you know it’s been that long. Seems you remember quite well.”
Matthew felt a vice grip his chest, but he was done arguing. Grinding his teeth in fury, he shouted,
“Someone throw this unknown man out!”
Just as the Chambers Group’s security detail was about to step forward, Chris lunged at Matthew, his
voice a raw, desperate shout, “Matthew! I’m in this hellish state because of you! You were the one who
ordered me to seduce Mrs. Camille Chambers, and when she wouldn’t play along, you hired thugs to
drug her and take her to a motel. You forced me into staging a scene to make it look like we had slept
together, then you sent those indecent photos to Mr. Jeff Chambers!”
The explosive revelation sent shockwaves through the room.
Jeff’s mind reeled, darkness creeping at the edges of his vision – this sordid scandal he thought buried
in the past had resurfaced like a stormy sea.
“Stop talking!” Mrs. Camille Chambers clutched her head, a wail of anguish tearing from her throat.
“You’re spouting nonsense!” Matthew’s genteel composure shattered, his eyes blazing with fury, “How
much did Avery pay you to slander me like this?!”
Then, sweat beading on his forehead, he turned to Jeff with a desperate plea, “Dad! Avery’s just
slinging mud! It’s possible he’s behind the downfall of Bertha and Byron, and now he’s gunning for me!
You can’t believe these lies!”
The sight of Mr. Chambers appealing to his father amidst the scrutiny of the crowd was almost comical.
“If it weren’t for Mr. Avery Chambers saving my life, I would have been dead overseas!”
Chris would have lunged at Matthew’s throat if not for the security holding him back, “You were afraid
I’d turn on you and confess how you framed Mrs. Camille Chambers, so you dumped me abroad. You
had people watch me, force drugs on me, to keep me hooked and forever under your control!”
Matthew, preoccupied with his own troubles over these six months, had neglected Chris, giving him the
chance to escape.
After a perilous journey, Chris found his way into Helgen territory, caught the attention of Avery’s men
at a casino, and became a key witness. It seemed like divine justice.
The room erupted in chaos!
And there, in the grand Chambers family mansion, Avery streamed the whole spectacle on a giant
screen. Every reporter witnessed the dramatic showdown, their cameras flashing as they uploaded the
story to the web.
In moments, Twitter went wild! Shares of the video hit the hundred thousand mark, then half a million,
and then a million!
Twitter servers struggled under the traffic surge as the masses swarmed to follow the unfolding scandal
of the Chambers Group! (Oh my God! If this is true, Mrs. Camille Chambers‘ plight is just
heartbreaking! I want to go in there and give her a hug!]
[Mr. Avery Chambers had to leave home at such a young age, caring for a sick mother – it’s beyond
tragic! It’s like a soap opera plotline!]
[Mr. Thaddeus Abernathy and Mr. Avery Chambers both so devastatingly handsome, both equally
stricken by tragedy]
(Matthew was just a kid fifteen years ago, right? To conceive such a malevolent scheme, he’s a
natural–born devil! A bad seed! I’m all for Mr. Avery Chambers’s counterattack. He must reclaim what
he’s lost!]
Public opinion shifted overwhelmingly in Avery’s favor. He had pushed his ailing mother into the
spotlight tonight, all to gain sympathy and build a reputation that would make him the most influential
figure in the Chambers Group.
Evadne’s eyes flicked across her phone screen, scanning the flood of comments.
This was Avery – ruthless and unforgiving, using every means to his ends. Even his own mother was
just a pawn in his game, regardless of the mental toll it would take on her.
“You’re making this up! Did Avery put you up to this?!” Matthew glared with bloodshot eyes, gasping
anxiously for air, shaking as he pulled out his phone, “You dare to slander me in public – I’m calling the
police! You’ll rot in jail for this!”
“Go ahead, call them! I’ve had enough of living like a rat these years!”
Chris had been nursing a tormented soul for years, and now, in the throes of an emotional breakdown,
he unleashed his pent–up rage without restraint, “Those two thugs you bribed back then, they’re still
alive, aren’t they? If Mr. Avery Chambers could find me, finding them is just a matter of time! They
could testify that Mrs. Camille Chambers was framed by you!”
The crowd’s gaze turned to Matthew, heavy with doubt and disbelief.
“Matthew is Jeff’s eldest son, the golden boy who could do no wrong. Why on earth would he need to
harm a defenseless woman?”
Jareth jabbed a finger at the stone–faced Thaddeus beside him, his eyes wide with confusion, “Thad, I
just don’t get it. Isn’t this just asking for trouble, setting up his own downfall?”
“And who do you think, besides Matthew himself, has the chops in the Chambers family? Who’s most
likely to make something of themselves?” Thaddeus asked instead.
Jareth stroked his chin thoughtfully, “Well, that would be Snakey Avery. The rest? One’s got a peanut
for a brain, and the other’s all twisted up inside. No real competition there.”
“Don’t you think Matthew sees that too?”
Thaddeus glanced at him coolly, “By taking down Avery’s mom, he’s hitting Avery where it hurts. It’s a
risky move, but the odds are in his favor. If he pulls it off, Jeff will be done with Mrs. Camille Chambers
for good, and her son will become a thorn in his side, never to be favored again by the patriarch. That
way, Matthew secures his place at the top of the Chambers Group, and can sleep easy.”
Jareth’s eyes lit up in realization, and then he furrowed, “Ouch, Thad, did you just diss me?”
Thaddeus was too busy to banter, his lips a straight, cold line as he shot off a message to Gordon.
Just then, Avery pulled out a pristine handkerchief from his suit pocket, gently dabbing at his mother’s
tears as he spoke in a low, haunting voice, “Actually, it’s not that complicated. I have another witness
right here.”
With that, Harvey stepped forward with a smirk, playing a recording on his phone.
“The one who set up Camille Chambers was Matthew!”
It was Bertha’s voice!
Jeff’s eyes widened, bloodshot with a storm of complex emotions, his gaze nailed to Matthew’s ghost–
white face!
Bertha’s confession continued, as if speaking directly to Avery, “We all despised you and your mother
to the bone, believing your existence threatened our father’s affection. Your mother could carve up his
wealth and legacy. Hence, we’ve always bullied and oppressed you both. But Byron and I were just
kids then, brave enough to pester you. Not like Matthew, bold and devious, daring enough to harm your
mother.”
Then came Avery’s frosty voice, “It’s been over a decade. What proof do you have that my mother’s
affair with that supposed lover was Matthew’s scheme?”
“Because the one who called your mother out that day was me!”
Bertha’s voice trembled with either more hatred for her brother or fear of Avery, “I made the call with
Byron by my side. A pity he died first, leaving you one witness short. But it doesn’t matter, I kept a
backup. I filmed your mother being taken away by Matthew’s men, delirious, being helped into the room
by the bodyguard. It’s all on my old phone, hidden in the bottom drawer of my room. Just need a
charger to turn it on.
Avery, there’s a debtor for every debt…I was so young then; I was just seduced by Matthew’s tricks! If
you want revenge, go after him! Everything I’ve said is true. If there’s one lie, may I be damned! Drag
me out and shoot me a thousand times!”
The recording stopped abruptly. The once lively banquet hall fell deathly silent, the air seemingly frozen
solid?
Even as a bystander like Evadne, her heart sank, her gaze fixed on Avery’s impassive face. She knew
that beneath this calm was a tsunami powerful enough to destroy everything.
Bertha had spilled the beans on the past conspiracy, most likely a bargaining chip Avery had gotten
after visiting her in custody
But Evadne knew well that Avery wouldn’t make good on any promise. This ruthless man would rather
nail them all to the same doomed ship and set it ablaze, to serve as a funeral pyre for his mother’s
fifteen–year–long grievance.
“This woman’s lost it! She’s insane!”
Matthew was drenched in sweat, trembling all over, his words tumbling out incoherently, “I didn’t do it!
Bertha’s just trying to get leniency from Avery by smearing me!”
Dad. I’ve got the phone from Bertha.” Avery said calmly to Jeff, “Do you want to see it now or after the
party?”
As soon as he finished speaking, there was a sharp slap. Jeff, his face flushed with anger, had swung
his arm with all his might and struck Matthew across the face!
Matthew was stunned, his ears ringing as if they were about to explode.
“Get out. Get the hell out of the Chambers family mansion and never let me see you again, just get
out!” Jeff’s temples pulsed with rage as he screamed hysterically.
But all through the ordeal, he never glanced at his wronged wife again.
He was indeed furious, but not because Matthew had wronged an innocent woman who had been with
him for years. He was furious because Matthew had deceived him, used him, and he was only finding
out now, in front of all of Elmsworth’s elite! Matthew’s reputation was in ruins, and by extension, so was
Jeffs; he was regarded hence as someone heartless.
What a way to throw one’s father under the bus!
Matthew knew this was his father’s last act of mercy. His face had hit the floor and there was no time to
pick it up; he turned and fled, clutching his swollen cheek.
“Wait!” Avery’s eyes were full of vengeance!
Matthew hadn’t yet knelt to apologize to his mother; how could he possibly let him leave? But Matthew
dared not slow down, charging through the crowd towards the exit.
Suddenly, he skidded to a halt.
A man in a black leather jacket, with sharp, handsome features, stood in his way, an insurmountable
barrier.
“Mr. Matthew Chambers, where do you think you’re going?”
Aaron’s icy gaze locked with his, stepping forward with a menacing advance, “It’s high time to settle the
scores for the sins you’ve committed