Chapter 8
I groggily opened my eyes and clicked on the news link.
What I saw made my blood run cold-intimate photos of me splashed across my screen.
My heart lurched as I shot up in bed.
The headline screamed in bold black letters.
CEO’S WIFE CAUGHT IN WILD SEX SCANDAL!
My fingers trembled as I scrolled down, and the images below were even more graphic.
Since the photos couldn’t be published uncensored through official channels, they had to blur certain parts to avoid violations.
But aside from thin pixelation over the most private areas, my face and the rest of my body were completely exposed.
Meanwhile, the man’s face was completely blurred out with heavy mosaic censoring.
After all these years with Leonard, I could still recognize his body in a heartbeat.
Though from the background, this definitely wasn’t taken in our old mansion.
“Emma, did you look into this? Are these photos real?”
“Ms. Hayes, I checked-the photos are authentic. What should we do? The company’s stock is already starting to tank.”
I stared at each photo, examining every single detail carefully.
Suddenly, I spotted something suspicious.
“Emma, I need you to handle something for me.”
Leonard sat in front of the camera, tears streaming down his face.
“When Maya and I first got together, we couldn’t even scrape together a hundred bucks between us. I busted my ass building my startup because I loved her-I wanted to give her everything.”
“But right after we got married, she started staying out all night, constantly asking me to transfer money to her. I’ve got all the transaction records right here.”
“I was just getting my company off the ground back then, in that crucial growth phase, so I didn’t have time to keep tabs on her. By the time I realized what was happening, it was too late-God knows how many times she cheated on me.”
“I was devastated and wanted a divorce, but then my mom got really sick and everything got put on hold. Priya and I didn’t even meet until later, but Maya went completely psycho and attacked her.”
“To protect the woman I love, I’m speaking out today so Maya can finally face the truth about what she’s done.”
This SOB story sent Priya’s livestream numbers soaring past 200K viewers.
While some people were still calling them out, those voices quickly got drowned out by supporters flooding the chat.
I watched the livestream with narrowed eyes.
So this was what he meant when he said I’d come crawling back to him in tears.
This whole mess had been brewing online for three days now, and I was getting absolutely destroyed in the court of public opinion.
Dad wanted to bring in the company’s top legal team to handle this for me.
“Sweetheart, don’t worry-Daddy’s got this. I know you’d never do something like this, and I’m going to make them pay.”
I shook my head, watching the two of them on screen with genuine amusement.
“If we shut this down now, we’d be letting them off way too easily. I want to let them climb as high as possible first.”
Soon enough, it was time for our divorce hearing.
Leonard showed up with his arm around Priya, looking smug as hell.
“Maya, just wait-your reputation is going to be in the gutter.”
Priya laughed lightly. “Thanks, Maya! You really helped me break into the influencer game.”
I didn’t say a word. Let’s see how much longer they can keep this up.
Over the past few days, Leonard and Priya had milked the sympathy angle for all it was worth, gaining tons of followers and donations.
Sure, the money was pocket change compared to what Leonard’s company used to pull in, but Priya had never seen this kind of cash before.
Three more days passed, and the scandal hit peak viral status. Priya had officially become a minor internet celebrity.
That afternoon, I started my own livestream.
