Chapter 351
Chapter 351:
Elyse shot Kristine a venomous look, rage smoldering in her eyes. A moment later, she tried to plead her case, her voice strained with desperation. “Don’t listen to her! Everything online is staged. I’m not really Colton’s girlfriend p>
The kidnappers’ excitement dimmed as they glanced back and forth between the two women, suddenly uncertain.
Kristine remained unfazed. “Just watch the latest episode of Antique Matchup. To make sure Elyse took first place, the editing was so badly manipulated that both Colton and Elyse faced a wave of backlash after it aired. If that isn’t love, why would he go to such lengths p>
Silence fell as the kidnappers scrolled through their phones again. It was true — the internet was full of harsh commentary about Colton, all connected to Elyse’s name.
Realizing Kristine’s story was gaining traction, Elyse frantically cut in. “Wait — that’s not the whole story! Colton didn’t help me win because of love, but because p>
One of the kidnappers, losing patience, cut her off. “Because what? Can’t come up with an answer? Sounds to me like you’re exactly Colton’s girlfriend p>
𝘕𝗲𝘄 𝘄е𝖾𝗸𝗅𝗒 𝘤h𝖺p𝘵e𝗋𝗌 o𝗇
“No, please listen!” Elyse blurted out, forcing herself to continue. “Colton only intervened because I told him that if I didn’t win first place, I’d go public — I’d tell everyone what really happened six years ago, when he drank too much and ended up sleeping with me.” Her voice dwindled into a shaky whisper, shame and fear etched into every syllable.
For Kristine, the confession landed like a thunderclap.
Six years earlier — she had still been chasing after Colton then. She remembered how, without warning, he had come to find her and led her to a quiet, secluded spot among the trees. She had let herself believe she had finally broken through his defenses. But instead, he had pulled off his shirt, exposing deep scratch marks across his chest. His words had been ice-cold. “I have a girlfriend now. Stop showing up in my life p>
A sense of utter ruin had washed over her. It had taken a long time before she could pick up the pieces — and even then, she had never managed to let Colton go, watching him from a distance instead.
Strangely, no other woman had ever appeared by his side. She had pressed his friends for answers, but no one ever mentioned him seeing anyone. Looking back now, she understood how naive she had been. She had convinced herself that those scratch marks were fabricated — just a ploy to push her away.
Only now did the truth hit her. They were real. And Elyse had left them.
The kidnappers stared in bewilderment, struggling to make sense of the tangled story unraveling before them. One of them shook off the confusion, his eyes settling on Kristine. “Forget all that. Those antiques alone are enough to set us up for life p>
The remark snapped Kristine back to the present. She fixed them with a frosty, contemptuous stare. “Even if I hand everything over, you won’t see a single cent p>
They exchanged glances, uncertainty flickering across their faces.