The Villain Mom Awakens — Going Viral by Parenting on a Reality Show-Chapter 255: I’ll Record It and Help You Post It Online
Clementine Coleman stared at Renee Jennings, her expression wounded. "I treated you with all my heart, so how could you lie to me? You knew perfectly well how much I love WK and how badly I wanted her autographed photo. Why would you use that as a gimmick to trick me?!"
Then, as if remembering something, realization dawned on Clementine Coleman. She gave a bitter smile. "So what your kid said was true. You really did write that fake autograph yourself. And I was stupid enough to fall for it!"
Clementine Coleman mentally scrambled for insults, finally spitting out, "You’re so despicable and shameless!"
Renee Jennings said, "No, that’s not it. Please, let me explain. This is all a misunderstanding."
Naomi Kenway let out a laugh. "The depths of your depravity never cease to amaze me. Forging an autograph to swindle someone out of their money... is there anything you won’t do? How are you planning to explain this? Let me take a guess..."
Naomi Kenway propped her chin on her hand. "You’re not going to claim the WK standing right here is a fake and the one who gave you the autograph was the real deal, are you?"
Renee Jennings faltered, her expression growing even more pained. "No, Clementine, I really didn’t mean to. I just couldn’t bear to see you so let down. It broke my heart every time you were disappointed. I just wanted to make you happy, so I came up with a way to get you an autographed photo to cheer you up."
Clementine Coleman was simple-hearted and began to waver, thrown off by Renee Jennings’s twisted version of the story.
Renee Jennings pressed her advantage. "We’ve been friends for so long. Maybe I really did do something wrong, but how I treated you was genuine. I spent time with you, helped you with your acting... Don’t you feel that any of that was real?"
Sensing Clementine’s hesitation, Naomi Kenway shook her head at her. Then her gaze shifted to Renee Jennings, her tone mocking. "Oh, give it a rest. You make it sound like you’re some kind of saint. So, you’re saying you intentionally deceived Clementine for her own good? Maxing out Clementine’s credit card was for her own good? Having her bring you to all those lavish parties was also for her own good?"
No wonder Renee Jennings had been acting so high-profile lately, constantly flaunting her wealth on social media in a complete reversal of her usual behavior. The comments were full of wild guesses that the expensive jewelry was from Christina Lynch, and Renee Jennings had ’liked’ them, essentially confirming it. Now, it seemed especially likely that Clementine was the fool who had been footing the bill all along.
It instantly clicked for Clementine Coleman. She said, disappointed, "Even now, you still don’t think you’ve done anything wrong? You’re still putting on this righteous act like you did it all for my sake. Renee Jennings, you’re absolutely terrifying!"
She took a step back as she spoke, her voice turning cold.
"Renee Jennings, I want you to apologize to me right now. And I want you to pay me back all the money I spent on you."
Renee Jennings froze, her expression turning pleading. "Clementine, I really know I was wrong. Since you don’t need the money, why make things so hard for me? I’ve spent all my money on my child, I really don’t have that much..."
Clementine couldn’t stop herself from rolling her eyes. "Don’t you dare use your kid as a shield. I’ve been shopping with you countless times and I’ve never once seen you buy anything for your child! Now, pay me back!"
Renee Jennings kept trying to weasel out of it. "If I had the money, I’d pay you back, I swear. But... Christina Lynch manages all our household finances. I... what if I give you acting lessons to cover the debt? Or if there’s anything else you need help with, I’ll do my best..."
"Are you some master acting coach? Are a few lessons from you worth millions?" Clementine was incensed by her shamelessness.
She had given Renee Jennings gifts whenever the mood struck, without keeping receipts or asking for IOUs. If Renee dug her heels in, denied everything, and played the victim, there was nothing Clementine could do.
’Maybe I should just let it go,’ Clementine thought. ’Chalk it up to experience. I’ll just never associate with such a despicable person again.’
Just as she was about to speak, she glanced over and saw Naomi Kenway slowly pull out her phone, aiming the camera directly at Renee Jennings’s pale face.
Renee Jennings jumped, quickly raising a hand to cover her face. "Naomi Kenway, what are you doing?!" she demanded, flustered and exasperated.
She lunged forward to snatch the phone, but someone grabbed her wrist and shoved her back.
Chloe Murray said impatiently, "Stay put."
Renee Jennings didn’t dare to make another move, merely holding her hand rigidly in front of her face.
"Naomi, what are you trying to do? Can’t you just let me off the hook?"
Naomi Kenway moved the camera closer. "You were saying you have your reasons, right? I’ll help you out. I’ll record this and post it online. We can see what everyone thinks. I’ll even start a poll. If more people support you, I’ll convince Clementine to forgive you. How does that sound?"
Renee Jennings’s pupils trembled with fear, and she seemed to deflate. "No, you can’t..." For the first time, she showed weakness in front of Naomi Kenway. "Nina, this isn’t a good way to solve this. It’s not that I’m refusing to pay you back, it’s just that money’s really tight right now."
"Tight on cash?" Naomi Kenway sneered. "How could you possibly be tight on cash? Christina Lynch spoils you rotten, and you can’t even come up with this little bit of money?"
Renee Jennings was suffering in silence, not daring to speak her mind in front of the camera.
Naomi Kenway looked down at her phone. "First, I need a title. What should it be? ’Famous Influencer Plays the Victim, Refuses to Pay Her Debts?’ Nah..."
She shook her head. "That’s not specific enough. How about: ’Famous Influencer Caught in a Scam, Plays the Victim and Refuses to Pay Her Debts!’"
Naomi Kenway nodded. "Yeah, that’s better. I’ll figure out a way to make it even more eye-catching."
Renee Jennings was in a full-blown panic. "No, you can’t..."
Naomi Kenway shot her a cold glance. "And who are you to tell me what I can and can’t do?" Her fingers flew across the screen. "All edited. And... post."
In a panic, Renee Jennings grabbed Naomi Kenway’s arm, promising profusely, "I was wrong! I’ll pay it back, I swear I will." She gritted her teeth. "Just give me three days."
"You’re asking for three days?"
"Two days." 𝚏𝐫𝚎𝗲𝕨𝐞𝐛𝕟𝚘𝐯𝚎𝗹.𝕔𝐨𝗺
Naomi Kenway said, "One day. You have one day. If you don’t pay it back by then, I’m posting this video. And then I’m going to Christina Lynch for the money." Naomi smiled, her voice dripping with malice. "Since you don’t control the purse strings, we’ll just go to the one who does. How’s that for being considerate?"
Renee Jennings shivered. ’If Christina Lynch finds out I made such a huge fool of myself, she’ll kill me.’
After Renee Jennings left, Clementine looked at Naomi Kenway with pure admiration, her eyes sparkling. "You actually scared her! That was amazing!"
Naomi Kenway smiled. "You’re just too naive, which is why you fell for her tricks. To deal with someone that shameless, you have to find what she’s most afraid of."
"Afraid of? So Renee Jennings’s biggest fear is what people say about her online?"
Naomi Kenway said, "Something like that. Anyway, since you wanted an autograph, Clementine..."
Naomi Kenway and Chloe Murray exchanged a glance.
Chloe Murray smiled. "Of course I’ll sign it. For one, I got to meet a fan who’s supported me for so many years. And for another, thank you for letting me watch such an entertaining show. This trip was well worth it."
With a flourish of her pen, Chloe Murray’s elegant signature appeared on the white paper.
