Chapter 266
No.1
Allena leaned forward, her red dress dipping dangerously low. She stopped right in front of Harrison Browning's wheelchair.
"Mr. Browning, I wish you the happiest of eightieth birthdays," Allena cooed. Her voice was artificially sweet,dripping with forced charm.
Harrison gave a slow, minimal nod. He looked past her entirely and locked eyes with August. "August.Who is this woman?"
August opened his mouth to speak, but Allena eagerly cut him off. She was desperate to claim her territory.
"I am Allena Mills," she announced loudly, ensuring the surrounding tables could hear. "I am the future Mrs.Chambers."
No.2
August's jaw clamped shut. A muscle ticked violently in his cheek. He hated being spoken for,but he kept his mouth shut, silently validating her massive lie.
In the dark corner of the room, Elisa squeezed her glass. A cold, mocking smile touched the corner of her mouth.
Harrison's expression did not change. "Miss Mills. A pleasure."
Allena's eyes gleamed with greed. She decided to
play her ultimate card.
No.3
"Actually, we have met before, sir," Allena lied smoothly. "Last month, when you collapsed from heart failure in the Manhattan General emergency room. I was the doctor who performed your emergency CPR."
A collective gasp of admiration rippled through the nearby guests. They looked at Allena with newfound respect.
August blinked in surprise. He looked down at Allena. He had no idea she had saved the patriarch's life. He felt a sudden surge of pride in his investment.
Harrison did not smile. His cloudy eyes narrowed into sharp, dangerous slits. He stared at Allena's face for five agonizing seconds.
"You saved my life?" Harrison's voice dropped an octave. The ambient temperature around the table seemed to plummet.
No.4
"Yes," Allena nodded eagerly. "Your condition was critical. I used my extensive clinical experience to diagnose your ventricular fibrillation and-"
Allena began reciting the medical jargon she had stolen directly from Elisa's nursing charts.
Harrison raised a single, liver-spotted hand. The gesture instantly killed Allena's voice.
"My vision was blurred that day," Harrison said slowly. "But I remember the exact rhythm of the compressions on my chest."
Harrison shifted his gaze downward. He stared directly at Allena's hands. He looked at her long,manicured acrylic nails.
No.5
"Your hands lack the physical strength required to compress a human sternum two inches deep,"Harrison stated brutally. "Furthermore, the woman who saved my life smelled strongly of clinical sanitizer and lavender soap."
Harrison leaned forward in his wheelchair. "You smell like cheap Tom Ford perfume."
Allena's fake smile shattered. The blood drained from her face so fast her skin turned a sickly gray.The silence around the table became suffocating.The admiring looks from the guests instantly morphed into disgust and morbid curiosity.
"L.. I must have changed my perfume that day..."Allena stammered. Her voice shook violently.
Harrison let out a harsh, barking scoff. The sound was filled with absolute aristocratic contempt.
No.6
He turned his head slowly and glared at August.
"Your taste in women has severely degraded,August," Harrison reprimanded him loudly.
August's face burned with a dark, humiliating flush.The embarrassment hit him like a physical blow to the stomach. He stood frozen, utterly humiliated in front of his peers, yet he still refused to publicly denounce Allena.
Harrison grabbed the joystick of his wheelchair. He spun the chair around, presenting his back to the
couple. He refused to speak another word to them.Allena stood trembling in her red dress. She felt the burning stares of a hundred billionaires piercing her skin. She wanted to sink into the floor.
No.7
From the shadows, Elisa lifted her glass of soda water to her lips. She took a slow, satisfying drink,savoring the taste of Allena's public execution.①