Chapter 107: She Staged It All

Claire clutched her injured forehead, abruptly looking up at Nathan upon hearing his words.

“Father, you can’t send Claire to a psychiatric hospital. If you do, it will be hard to explain to the Prescott family,” Frederick said, his tone steady but concerned. Nathan’s sudden decision caught Frederick off guard. Claire’s fear spiked, but hearing Frederick speak up for her left her stunned. At that moment, her terror faded slightly, replaced by a single, incredulous thought: “Frederick is actually defending me in front of Nathan.” “Isn’t he the one who despised me the most?”

Then, she heard the end of his sentence, the part about explaining to the Prescott family. Claire smiled, her heart aching. “Claire, are you holding some fake hope again?” Nathan scoffed coldly. “Hard to explain to the Prescott family? Don’t try to use them as an excuse. I’m well aware of everything that happened four years ago. And now, what is she? Nothing but a fraud who got exposed.” “She’s just an imposter. Take her away and send her to…” Nathan was about to have Claire taken to a mental hospital.

“Father, please listen. The only reason Claire was released from prison this time is because of Elizabeth. She’s been diagnosed with terminal stomach cancer and used her remaining time as leverage…” Seeing Nathan’s men approaching, Frederick quickly stepped forward, blocking Claire and telling Nathan everything. Hearing the mention of the Prescott family, Nathan’s anger gradually cooled. Over the years, the Prescott family’s support had been instrumental in elevating the Hawthorne family to where they stood today. Although Kingstown was no longer dominated by the Prescott family alone, and they had lost their title as the wealthiest family, their influence remained significant. The Prescott and Titan families now shared power equally, but the Hawthorne family still depended on the Prescott family’s backing.

“Father, rest assured. I know what should and shouldn’t be done. This time, someone with ill intent exploited the situation. And Claire actually handled it well. She turned a potential negative into something positive. With the presidential campaign at a critical stage, it’s better to let things settle than stir up trouble.” Seeing Nathan’s expression soften, Frederick continued to persuade.

“Fine,” Nathan relented, his tone still cold. “But let me make myself clear. No matter what you do with this woman or whether Elizabeth supports her, she will never step foot into our house.” Nathan understood the consequences of acting against Claire right now. “Yes, Father. I understand,” Frederick replied respectfully, bowing as he exhaled in relief.

Claire, on the other hand, remained silent throughout. Once Nathan had backed down, she followed Frederick out of the room. She had cleared this hurdle for now; Nathan wouldn’t be a problem temporarily. With that out of the way, she could finally focus on executing her plan.

It was already ten o’clock in the morning when they left the Hawthorne Manor. As soon as they got into the car, Frederick was about to head to the Kingstown Security Department when his phone buzzed. It was a message from Harrison: [Madam Prescott is aware of the trending topic.]

Frederick frowned at the message, and just then, Claire’s phone rang. It was Elizabeth calling. Claire stared at the screen, gripping her phone tightly, frozen in place. She didn’t know how to explain things to Elizabeth or whether her actions would upset her. After all, she had always told Elizabeth she was staying in Queenstown. Claire had done everything to protect her grandmother, but now, she had no other choice.

“Why aren’t you answering?” Frederick asked, glancing at her. Thinking of Harrison’s message, he guessed it must be Elizabeth. Snapping out of it, Claire answered the call. “Hello, Grandma, I…” “Where are you right now?!” As soon as she uttered the word, before she could finish her sentence, Elizabeth interrupted her directly and started questioning her with a bad tone.

It was the first time Elizabeth had spoken so harshly to her since her release from prison. “I… I’m in Kingstown. I’m with Frederick.” Claire confessed, realizing there was no point in hiding now that the trending topic was out. “Come to the Prescott family immediately,” Elizabeth ordered curtly and hung up before Claire could respond.

“She wants us to go back to the Prescott family,” Claire said after a deep breath, looking at Frederick. “Drive to the Prescott Manor,” Frederick instructed without hesitation.

Fifty minutes later, the car pulled up outside the Prescott family’s grand estate. As soon as Claire and Frederick stepped out of the car and entered the estate, a sharp slap landed on Claire’s face. The sound echoed loudly, leaving her cheek burning.

“Claire, is this the brilliant plan you came up with? Staging everything yourself? You exploited the slum incident to stir up public sympathy, making everyone see you as a hero. Then, you used Grandma’s last bit of affection for you to silence the Hawthorne family. How clever of you!” The one who struck her was none other than Harrison.

“What are you talking about? Staged it?” Claire touched her stinging cheek, only to be hit by the bombshell Harrison had just dropped. She thought, “What does he mean by saying she staged the slum incident?”