Private Marriage, Secret Love-Chapter 18: Slap, Don’t Cry
The video was long, making everyone feel awkward and mortified. For something like this to appear at the Wallace family’s private dinner, it was obvious someone wanted to publicly humiliate Ethan Lancaster.
Near the end, the woman in the video finally showed her face for a split second. You couldn’t tell who it was without looking closely.
Ethan Lancaster called out, "Stop. Rewind it. Let me see that face."
The person running the projector cut back the footage, pausing it precisely on that frame. The woman’s face was projected onto the large screen.
"Zoom in."
The operator did as told, zooming in on the face that should have been buried in the man’s neck. The features gradually became clear. Raina Reddington lowered her head, frozen stiff with shock.
That face was Mia Reddington’s!
’Impossible. How could this be?’
Many people recognized her, and their murmurs could no longer be suppressed. "Wait... is... isn’t that the Reddington family’s younger daughter?"
"That’s right. Didn’t the Fourth Master just marry into the Reddington family?"
"But he married the eldest daughter!"
"Oh my God—"
Ronan Reddington and Zoe Scott were also stunned. They never expected something like this to happen. Zoe was so overcome with rage that she couldn’t utter a single word in protest.
Ethan Lancaster rose from his seat and strode over to Mia Reddington’s side. Mia’s face was a mask of wronged innocence, flushed bright red.
He placed both hands on her wheelchair, leaned down, and asked, "Do you trust me?"
"Brother-in-law, why is this happening?"
"I’ll clear your name," Ethan Lancaster said as he began to push Mia’s wheelchair toward the front. Raina Reddington watched him stop and gently place a hand on Mia’s shoulder.
"I’m sure that as you were watching, you all noticed the face in the video belongs to my sister-in-law. The footage supposedly shows me holding her as we walk into a bedroom. However, Mia injured her legs in an accident and is still in recovery. It’s impossible for her to stand, let alone walk. Therefore, it’s obvious that the video is fake."
With so many eyes on her, Mia Reddington was overcome with shame. She wished she could find a hole to crawl into and disappear.
Ethan Lancaster stepped in front of her at just the right moment. She lifted her eyes, and all the judgmental stares were completely blocked by his frame. His gaze swept across the room before finally settling on Raina Reddington’s table.
"It’s not difficult to create a fake video these days. As it happens, I have a team of people who do just that." After speaking, Ethan Lancaster took out his phone and made a call.
Not even five minutes later, someone walked in.
Raina Reddington felt a deep sense of unease. ’That person arrived too quickly,’ she thought, ’as if they knew something was going to happen and were just waiting outside.’
The original video was quickly restored. The faces in the footage changed. The man was not Ethan Lancaster, and the woman was definitely not Mia Reddington.
Miles Hawthorne picked up a piece of food with his chopsticks and placed it in Hannah Lynch’s bowl. This play had devolved into a farce, and he estimated it wouldn’t end so easily.
Ethan Lancaster beckoned to Raina Reddington. "Raina, come over here."
She swallowed hard, pushed her chair back, and slowly rose, her hand accidentally knocking over a glass of red wine. Feeling as if she were walking on razor blades, Raina Reddington made her way to Ethan Lancaster’s side. He stepped aside slightly. "Take your sister back home."
"Brother-in-law," Mia Reddington whined, refusing to let it go. She grabbed the corner of Ethan Lancaster’s shirt. "Why would someone want to frame me like this? I’ve never done anything to offend anyone..."
Her heart aching for her daughter, Zoe Scott came over, intending to take Mia home.
Ethan Lancaster turned back to stare at the screen. "The bedroom in that video is in my apartment at The Veridian Tower. In other words, those two people went into my home to film this."
Raina Reddington’s hands clenched into fists as she stared at his profile. Ethan Lancaster turned to meet her gaze. For just an instant, the cruelty and coldness in his eyes were unmistakable. "It’s not easy for just anyone to get into my apartment. Besides my own family, who else could have gotten my key card?"
Mia Reddington’s lips trembled, and her voice shook as she spoke. "Sis, do you really hate me that much? We’re sisters. Couldn’t you have just talked to me?"
’If Ethan Lancaster hadn’t had a backup plan, Mia would have been utterly disgraced today,’ Raina realized. ’The Reddington family would have become a laughingstock, too afraid to even show their faces in public!’
Zoe Scott, overcome with a blinding rage, was no longer thinking clearly. She stepped forward and viciously slapped Raina Reddington across the face.
The force of the blow snapped her head to the side, her ears ringing. She didn’t scream or make a sound, feeling as if the slap had landed on someone else entirely.
Ethan Lancaster instinctively started to reach for her, but he forced himself to stop.
Hannah Lynch clucked her tongue. Leaning toward Miles Hawthorne, she whispered, "Even if she really did it, she didn’t deserve to be slapped in front of everyone, did she?"
The man hadn’t once glanced toward the commotion. "It’s someone else’s family matter. Why bother paying so much attention?"
"True."
A flicker of regret passed through Zoe Scott after the slap, but what was done, was done.
Clear, red finger marks welted on Raina Reddington’s pale cheek. Mr. Wallace quickly had the screen turned off. "Fourth Master, there must be some misunderstanding. Please, calm down."
As Zoe Scott pushed the wheelchair past, Mia Reddington grabbed Raina’s hand, her fingernails digging painfully into the back of it. Despite the slap, Raina remained surprisingly calm as she pulled her hand free.
Zoe Scott placated Mia in a gentle voice. "Mia, there are too many people here. Don’t make a scene. I’ve already taught her a lesson for you..."
The image of her family in her eyes seemed to shatter. A sour sting pricked her nose, and she turned to leave.
Ethan Lancaster grabbed her wrist. "Sit back down."
He led her back to their round table. After all that had happened, the rest of the Reddington family had no desire to stay. Ronan Reddington and Zoe Scott left, pushing Mia’s wheelchair ahead of them.
"Fourth Master, I’ve been a poor host tonight. Allow me to offer you a toast," Mr. Wallace said.
Ethan Lancaster picked up his wine glass and stood. Raina Reddington tucked a stray lock of hair, disheveled by the slap, behind her ear. She no longer had the energy to care about how others were looking at her. ’Whatever,’ she thought. ’I’ll just have to get used to it.’
"We’ll get to the bottom of how a video like this showed up here."
"Yes," Mr. Wallace nodded eagerly. "I’ll launch a full investigation."
"I imagine," Ethan continued, "it has something to do with the water conservancy charity project."
Miles Hawthorne picked up a napkin and began folding it into a shape, not participating in the discussion. He listened as Ethan Lancaster’s analysis hit the crucial point. "When it comes to charity projects, personal and corporate image are paramount. If that had really been me in the video, I would have lost my eligibility to even bid for the project, wouldn’t I? Isn’t that right, Miss Lynch?"
Hannah Lynch’s brow furrowed. "What are you implying?"
"Perhaps Miss Lynch isn’t the one calling the shots. In that case, I should ask someone else. Isn’t that right, Mr. Hawthorne?"
Half of Raina Reddington’s face was still numb, but at Ethan Lancaster’s words, she couldn’t stop herself from looking up at the man opposite them.
Miles Hawthorne finished folding a paper crane and carefully set it down. "Didn’t you just say it yourself? You were stabbed in the back by one of your own. Instead of investigating the person sharing your bed, Fourth Master, you’re wasting your time on these trivialities."
’Every single one of them,’ she thought bitterly, ’is determined to push me into the fire tonight.’
