Chapter 436: Chapter 436: Estelle Lockwood is Being a Drama Queen Again
"Hold on, I’ll confirm with Laura Jennings one more time. Rest assured, Nathaniel, I definitely won’t let you down!"
Nathaniel toyed with the gun in his hand, a slow, deliberate smirk curling his lips. "You know the consequences of playing me for a fool. This is your last chance.
"Do you understand what I’m saying, Miss York?"
Thea York trembled violently. "I understand... I understand everything, Nathaniel. I really do!"
...
After Nathaniel left, Thea turned on the showerhead and called Laura Jennings. "Ms. Laura..."
Laura was dead on her feet, but upon hearing Thea’s voice and the sound of running water in the background, her interest was piqued. Her eyes lit up. "Is Nathaniel taking a shower?"
"Yes, Ms. Laura. I wanted to ask you..." Thea feigned innocence. "Tomorrow morning, when everyone sees me lying in bed with him, will they accept me? But he already has a wife. He’s married and even has children..."
Laura’s voice pitched up in excitement. "Nathaniel agreed?!
"Thea, are you stupid? In these kinds of situations, as long as the man agrees, who cares what his wife thinks! As long as he insists on marrying you, what can anyone else do about it?
"Besides, if you’re caught sleeping in the same bed by so many people, how could he possibly avoid taking responsibility for you?
"I’ll help you tomorrow too. Don’t worry. Before I come over, I’ll lay the groundwork with everyone. By then, your marriage will be completely legitimate!"
Thea said excitedly, "Thank you, Ms. Laura. You’re so good to me. When I become Mrs. Sloan in the future, I’ll treat you well too."
Failing to notice anything amiss, Laura happily hung up the phone.
A flash of malicious gloom flickered in Thea’s eyes.
She had no way out. In front of her was that bitch Stella York, and behind her was Estelle Lockwood. But if she became Ethan Sloan’s wife—making her Estelle’s mother-in-law and Stella’s elder—what could they possibly do to her?
...
Ethan Sloan felt severely dizzy. He had only been in the elevator for a short moment, but his head was already spinning uncontrollably.
A waiter supported him, speaking gently. "Close your eyes and rest for a bit, sir. We’re almost there. You’re staying in Room 305, correct?"
Ethan grunted impatiently in response.
There were two waiters. One spoke gently to Ethan, deliberately blocking his line of sight, while the other quickly tinkered with the elevator panel before pressing a button.
Intoxicated and suffering from a splitting headache, Ethan couldn’t be bothered to pay attention to the details. The moment he saw the elevator stop on the third floor, he stumbled out.
The two waiters flanked him, supporting his weight as they guided him to a door marked "305" and opened it.
Completely off guard, Ethan walked straight into the trap. Reeking of alcohol, he collapsed onto the bed. Suddenly, he felt something wrap around his arm...
...
Estelle Lockwood slept incredibly peacefully. Waking up at a leisurely pace around seven the next morning, she saw that Nathaniel was already up.
She raised an eyebrow. "You’re up so early?"
The man nodded. "There’s a good show to watch today, after all."
Estelle propped up her chin, deep in thought. "I wonder if my recording from yesterday will come in handy. I’d love to see the look on Ms. Jennings’ face."
Nathaniel chuckled softly. "Don’t worry, the recording will definitely be put to use. Your clever little scheme won’t go to waste, Mrs. Sloan."
Estelle’s eyes sparkled with amusement.
It was high time she settled her score with Laura Jennings.
The fire in the delivery room had been set by Noelle Lockwood, but Laura had approved of it and participated in carrying it out.
Laura wanted her dead. She wanted Nathaniel dead. She had also directly or indirectly caused Miranda Lancaster’s death. There was absolutely no way Estelle would ever show her mercy.
Then there was Ethan Sloan and Thea York...
She would just let these wicked people tear each other apart.
Estelle clicked her tongue. "I wonder what’s going on in that room right now. What if Thea didn’t do as you told her?"
Nathaniel looked at her and suddenly smiled. "Mrs. Sloan, do you know what big news broke last night?"
Estelle looked at him questioningly.
She had gone to bed early and genuinely hadn’t noticed.
Nathaniel spoke with profound meaning, "Stella York sued Chairman York and Mrs. York. She provided evidence proving they conspired to murder her mother. Even if those two don’t get the death penalty, they’ll likely spend the rest of their lives behind bars."
The York Family’s assets were already under Stella’s control, and now Chairman York and Mrs. York were going to prison for intentional homicide.
At a time like this, wouldn’t Thea have to seize her one and only chance?
Thea knew that no matter how stupid she was, she couldn’t afford to offend Nathaniel right now. Or rather, even if she had ulterior motives, she would be forced to act after seeing the news last night.
Stella’s move had been truly ruthless.
No, actually, it wasn’t too ruthless at all. No one knew what Stella had been through, and no one had the right to stand in her shoes and forgive Thea.
"What about Laura Jennings?" Estelle asked curiously.
"She’s probably awake by now," Nathaniel replied casually, "gathering people to storm the room with her."
Estelle’s eyes darted as an idea formed. "Wait here. I need to step out for a bit."
She went into the bathroom. When she came out, her eyes were red and her hair was a disheveled mess. Throwing on a coat, she hurried out the door.
Nathaniel was left speechless.
He thought, "Is Mrs. Sloan channeling her inner actress again?"
...
Next door.
Laura Jennings had slept soundly through the night, her dreams filled with scenes of her deepest desires coming true.
When she woke up and found Ethan missing, she furrowed her brow but didn’t think much of it.
Just then, she suddenly heard the sound of a door opening out in the hallway.
She was in Room 305, and right next door in Room 306 was Nathaniel and Estelle’s suite.
Laura immediately got up and peered through the peephole. She saw Estelle looking haggard, as if she hadn’t slept a wink all night, anxiously searching the corridor and repeatedly dialing a number on her phone.
Finally, biting her lower lip helplessly, Estelle retreated back into her room.
Laura’s eyes lit up. She knew exactly what Estelle was doing.
She was obviously looking for Nathaniel!
It made perfect sense. According to the plan, Nathaniel had been in Thea’s room all night. He obviously hadn’t returned to his own suite, and Estelle hadn’t been able to reach him by phone. Naturally, she had been too fraught with anxiety to sleep.
This was fantastic... just fantastic!
Thea had successfully pulled it off! Today, Laura was going to revel in the agonizing expressions on Nathaniel and Estelle’s faces.
The more Laura thought about it, the more excited she became. She quickly changed her clothes and headed down to the restaurant, deliberately seeking out a few noble ladies to strike up a conversation about jewelry.
"This set of rose pink diamond jewelry? I own it, but I gifted it to Thea.
"Oh my, are you all really that interested? Why don’t we go to Thea’s room together and have a look?"
Regardless of what had transpired yesterday, the ladies maintained polite social decorum with Laura. They were genuinely curious about the rose pink diamonds. "Really?"
"Would I lie to you? I bought it for eighty million initially, and since Thea said she liked it, I gave it to her. It’s in her room right now."
"Well then, Mrs. Sloan, let’s go have a look together."
"Yes, I’ve heard those rose pink diamonds are incredibly rare. Let’s go broaden our horizons."
Seeing their eager responses, Laura couldn’t help but smile triumphantly.
Thea York was staying in Room 405. As they went upstairs, they ran right into Estelle Lockwood coming from the opposite direction.
Estelle looked thoroughly haggard, gripping her phone tightly.
The ladies were taken aback. "Mrs. Sloan, whatever is the matter with you?"
She had been perfectly fine last night, so why did she look like she had lost her soul today?