Chapter 603
Chapter 603:
A high-definition photograph filled the screen—Grayson and Belle at a recent charity gala, holding champagne flutes, standing dangerously close together. The accompanying text was sickening. It praised Belle Escobar as a visionary genius, a woman whose brilliant mind was the only thing saving SkyLine Technologies from a major developmental crisis. It painted her as Grayson’s intellectual equal and soulmate. It erased Isolde’s existence entirely—erased the fact that Isolde had designed the very technology Belle was taking credit for.
“They are using PR to wash away the subway scandal!” Harper screamed. “They are trying to make her look like a saint. It is disgusting p>
Isolde stared at the photograph.
Her pulse did not accelerate. Her stomach did not twist. She felt no anger—only a deep, hollow sense of revulsion. She looked at Grayson’s face in the picture and felt nothing else at all.
𝗡𝗼𝘃𝘦𝗹𝘴 𝘪𝘯 t𝗿𝗲𝗇𝗱 𝗼n.со𝘮
The kettle whistled. She poured the boiling water into a mug.
“Calm down, Harper,” she said, taking a slow sip. “This is not a disaster. This is excellent news p>
Harper paused, breathing hard. “How is this good news p>
“Because,” Isolde said, her eyes turning as cold as the rain outside, “it proves that Grayson is losing control. He is panicking p>
Isolde set her mug down on the marble island and swiped away the photograph of Grayson and Belle. She opened her financial terminal application and typed in the ticker symbol for SkyLine Technologies.
The numbers flashed green. In the pre-market trading session, immediately following the release of the Wall Street Journal article, the stock had risen by exactly two percent.
“It is a PR stunt,” Harper grumbled through the phone speaker. “A cheap, transparent trick to pacify the Wall Street investors who were spooked by the photos of you and Effie in the subway p>
Isolde zoomed in on the body of the article, reading the paragraphs detailing Belle’s supposed academic achievements. “It is a stunt,” she agreed, her voice clinical. “But Grayson did not authorize this p>
“What do you mean?” Harper asked. “Who else has the power to buy a full-page spread in the Journal p>
“The wording is too sloppy,” Isolde explained, scrolling toward the bottom of the page. “Grayson’s corporate communications team is ruthless, but they are precise. They would never exaggerate Belle’s academic background this aggressively—it leaves too much room for a fact-checking disaster p>
Her eyes locked onto the small, italicized text at the very bottom of the webpage. It listed the media sponsor for the featured content. It was the name of a shell corporation.
Isolde closed her eyes. Her photographic memory instantly pulled up a vast database of Lancaster family financial records she had reviewed during her marriage. She recognized the corporate registration code at once.
“It is Victoria,” she said, opening her eyes.
“His mother?” Harper gasped.
“Yes. That shell company is a front for Victoria Lancaster’s private trust fund. She bought this article. She is trying to force Belle into the core family narrative before the next board meeting—she wants to create a reality that Grayson cannot back out of p>
Harper made a sound of pure disgust. “That entire bloodline is toxic. Izzy, are you worried this will affect your custody battle for Effie? If they paint Belle as this perfect, stable maternal figure p>