Chapter 87

Devin couldn't figure out what Rylie was really after, but he still followed her instructions.

The night he got the high-definition video, he put his editing skills to work. He spliced the footage, jumbled the timeline, and slipped in another clip-this one of Paola's self-directed performance.

Thanks to his talent, hardly anyone could tell the final cut was fake when it finally hit the internet.

That same night, a video surfaced of Paola finishing her music score and heading into Rylie's room to share it. Later, the footage showed her going back to retrieve it. The clip spread like wildfire.

By morning, trust fund kids and socialites couldn't stoptalking about Rylie's scandal. They claimed she'd pulled dirty tricks to swipe Paola's original music and tried to pin the plagiarism on her.

Inside the Garretts' villa, Laurel scrolled through the flood of online comments with a look of quiet satisfaction. She absentmindedly ran her fingers through her daughter's hair."Let's see how that spoiled brat plans to claw her way out of this."

Paola kept her eyes glued to the screen, a smug little smile tugging at her lips. "Mom, your plan's genius.Rylie's reputation with the elites? Completely trashed. I honestly can't wait to see how she plans to cling to them now."

Rylie had seen this coming the moment the video dropped. One after another, people in their circle spoke up for Paola, picking apart her reputation like vultures. The oly person who dared defend her was Johnny, a man she'd met just once at the banquet.

"I think Miss Owen's talent speaks for itself. Maybe there's more to this story than people realize."

When Paola caught wind of this, her annoyance was impossible to hide. Didn't that practically scream she'd set Rylie up? She'd even toyed with the idea of keeping Johnny as a backup fiancé-but clearly, the guy was hopeless ifhe couldn't see the truth at his age.

Over at the Morgan estate, Brad was just wrapping up a brutal stretch of work. A robbery and explosion involving an unidentified cargo ship had taken place right at the country's maritime border, leaving behind pieces of some custom-made firearm scattered in the water.

Now, the navy had no choice but to team up with the security department to dig into what really happened.

Brad hadn't caught a wink of sleep in two nights. Even after two strong cups of coffee, he stil looked as pale as paper.

Brock watched him, concern written all over his face. "You've only just gotten better under Dr. Owen's care.You really shouldn't be pushing yourself like this."

"It's just two days. I'll manage," Brad said, leaning back on the couch and closing his eyes. After a pause,he asked out of nowhere, "Any idea what Rylie's up to these days?"

Brock answered, "I'll look into it."

It didn't take long before he came back with the latest gossip from the upper circles. The good news? Rylie still drew plenty of attention - clear proof she hadn't lost her worth. The bad news stung. People were calling her a disgrace to the Owen family, saying she wasn't cut out for high society.

A heavy silence from Brock finally made Brad open his eyes. The hesitation written across the man's face didn't slip past him. His gaze sharpened, and for once, a flicker of something broke through his usual indifference. "Trouble found her again, didn't it?"

Rather than answering right away, Brock passed him the tablet. "People are saying Dr. Owen stole her cousin's music to get ahead-and then framed her to keep things quiet. It's already turned into a mess."

After watching the entire video, Brad spoke with indifference. "Are all these people blind?"

Brock gave a small nod. "Just the usual crowd of rich kids gossiping. Should I start dealing with it?"

Brad gave a slight nod without thinking, and Brock turned to leave right away. "I'll have the tech team recover the originalvideo and help clear Dr. Owen's name."

"Hold up," Brad called after him.

"Don't release it just yet-not right away."

Brock paused, confused."What?"

"Just bide your time."

tis mind wandered to Rylie's usual air of confidence, like she always had the upper hand no matter what ras thrown at her.

She was the type who always said he didn't need to step in-that she could handle things on her own. But this time? Would it be the same?

No amateur could've pulled off a video like that- most people wouldn't even catch that it had been tampered with. Whoever was behind it clearly knew what they were doing.

Could Rylie really handle this on her own? Brad found himself curious, wanting to see how it played out-but he was ready to step in the second she needed him.

···

As rumors about Rylie spiraled out of control, splashed across gossip blogs and trashy news outlets, she quickly became the city's latest punchline. At first, the Owens planned to shut it down fast.

Kendrick was so furious that he nearly grabbed his cane, ready to storm out and confront the people spreading lies face-to-face.

He didn't blame her for failing to fix the mess. Instead, he held her hand, shouldering the blame without hesitation.

"This is on me. You were never truly valued in the Kirk family-how could you stand a chance against people that sly? I'll make sure you get the justice you deserve."

Felix, her eldest brother, sat beside him, his expression unreadable as his fingers moved quickly across his tablet. "I've already lined up a PR team. We'll have this mess under control by tonight at the latest."

Marcus, her second brother, punched in a number with a cold look on his face. "That video's been tampered with. I saw the original one Rylie sent me after her solo concert. I know exactly who's behind this."

Deandre, her third brother, had rushed back the moment he heard the news, and he looked even angrier than the others. "It's got to be the Garretts, right? Paola's sneaky, sure-but she's not that clever. Laurel must be behind all this! That woman is trying to clear a path for her daughter, using Rylie as the stepping stone! Is she seriously asking for trouble? I'm going over there right now!"

Marcus grabbed his shoulder, holding him back before he could act on impulse. "You can't pull your mafia tricks here in Crolens. Everything in this place runs on evidence. If you make a move without proof, you'll just hand them another weapon to use against our sister."

Deandre ground his teeth in frustration. "Then what's the plan?"

Having her family rally behind her stirred something warm in Rylie's chest. She gave her grandfather's trembling hand a light squeeze. "Don't worry about me, Grandpa. I've got it under control."

Concern shadowed Kendrick's face. "Why act tough now, silly girl? Let your brothers and me handle this for you."

"No need for that." A faint, mischievous glint sparked in her eyes. "That so-called 'leaked' video?I gave them permission to post it. Otherwise, none of you would've seen it."

Out of her pocket, Rylie pulled a USB drive and slid it into the TV port. The screen lit up with a side-by-side comparison- one video was the so-called "original" making rounds online, the other showed the full,untouched surveillance footage.

"What am I looking at here?" Felix asked, adjusting his glasses in surprise.

"Professional video analysis," Rylie said, pointing to the highlighted edits on the screen. "Whoever did it knows their stuff-but they're not perfect."

Marcus's gaze sharpened. "So you set this up from the start. You let the rumors spread on purpose. What's your next move?"