Chapter 23
With a smack, Odalys jerked her arm away from Finnian, taking two steps back with a look of disgust. Finnian watched her, his chest heaving as he clenched his teeth and said in a low voice, "I'll come for you tonight. You'd better explain yourself."
Before he finished, Drake stepped forward, positioning himself in front of Odalys. "Finnian, you're part of Group A, and Odalys is in my Group B. There's no conflict between you two. Now, as a man, you're laying hands on a woman in public. What do you think you're doing?" Drake interrogated sternly, emphasizing their different groups and implying that Finnian was bullying Odalys.
Finnian, surprised by Drake's intervention, looked at him in astonishment. After all, everyone in the circle knew Stellan had powerful backing. To succeed in the industry, one had to show Stellan respect, or face a ban.
Before Finnian could respond, Freya rushed over. "Finnian, you've gone too far! Your member took the cave Odalys found first, and we gave it to you. But now you want to start a fight!" Freya shouted, rolling up her sleeves, ready for a confrontation.
Seeing this, Selah stepped forward to support Odalys, whispering, "Odalys, maybe we should leave."
Odalys, seeing Selah's worry, smiled softly and said, "Finnian, I made it clear over the phone when you warned me. Now that you want to cause a misunderstanding, let's address this openly."
Finnian's face changed drastically. He hadn't anticipated Odalys's boldness. A direct confrontation would expose the fact that she'd taken Sophia's place to marry into the Stewart family. Public knowledge of this would thrust Odalys into the spotlight, but also garner her immense respect within and outside the circle due to the Stewart family's power. No one dared to cross them, let alone Finnian.
He'd been pestering Odalys not only because he didn't want to let her go, but because he was afraid. If Odalys secured her position as Mrs. Stewart, the consequences would be unimaginable. He'd planned to manipulate her into believing marrying him was the best choice, hoping that if anything happened to the Stewarts, she could use their influence to advance his career. That was his selfish motive.
"I'm so sorry," Sophia said, her face pale. "Finnian must have just been scared by a snake and was disoriented. He just thought you could kill snakes, so he wanted to…" She rushed forward, bowing deeply, tears welling up in her anxiety. Finnian coercing Odalys with his love had been her idea. She wanted to be the sole Bennett heiress and torment Odalys until she collapsed; the marriage was just the first step. Now that Odalys had married into the Stewart family in her place, Sophia planned to manipulate the Stewarts into discovering Odalys's supposed moral failings and using their influence to eliminate her. Finnian's impatience nearly ruined her plan.
"Finnian, get out of here," Sophia urged, pushing him away.
Finnian was reluctant; his plans were unknown to Odalys, who was already avoiding him, making him uneasy. "Sorry," he mumbled, having no choice but to apologize under the scrutiny.
Odalys let out a cold chuckle, pulling Freya and Selah aside. Then, she strode in front of Finnian and Sophia. "I don't accept your apology! And what's your relationship? He harassed me, and you're apologizing for him? It seems the Bennetts and he are quite close, aren't you?" Odalys said in a low voice.
Finnian involuntarily clenched his hands. Anger flared in his eyes, and he turned to leave.
"You didn't say no, so are you agreeing? How about I share with everyone about you threatening me over the phone?" Odalys's voice was clear, instantly capturing everyone's attention.
Sophia's smile faltered; she bit her lip and glared at Odalys's triumphant expression, resentment welling up. Why is Odalys so beautiful even without makeup? she cursed inwardly.
"Odalys, we've already apologized. What do you want?" Sophia said quietly.
Ignoring her, Odalys approached the photographer and addressed the livestream audience. "You all saw it. I didn't provoke Finnian, but he suddenly tried to assault me." She raised her wrist, showing the scratches on the screen. "I suggest Finnian's fans restrain themselves and stop cursing! Dig up his past; once he gets me riled up… I can't guarantee my revelations won't ruin him," Odalys said, word by word. With nothing to lose, she wasn't afraid of threats. She wanted to settle the score with the Bennetts once and for all on this show; her contract expired when it ended. Atlas had offered her a full-time position, but she just wanted to be rid of the Bennetts. If they didn't make things easy, she'd drag them down with her.
The livestream comments exploded:
[What's going on? Does Odalys know some dark past of Finnian!] [Look at Finnian's back, doesn't it seem familiar? Why does it look so much like that jerk from last night? Could it be he was the one who got hit with ice cream last night?] [Damn, this is so much! Come on, are there any paparazzi online? Dig it up right now. I want the gossip.] [Does Odalys have a problem! She gets all worked up just because he pulled her wrist? So petty.] [Poor Sophia even gets attacked when trying to mediate a fight. Is Odalys crazy?] [Wow! Stellan and Freya are so protective. Look how they stood in front of Odalys. This is what I call camaraderie.] [Where's the paparazzi! Give us some explosive news right now!]
The heated drama between Odalys and Finnian overwhelmed the livestream comments. Odalys's direct address to the camera made it clear she was ready to expose Finnian. Many were surprised she, a mere extra, could know anything about his past. The heavily promoted show had attracted millions of viewers.
"Dig it up! I want to see what dark past Finnian has!" the paparazzi exclaimed excitedly.