Chapter 163

Isabella smiled sweetly at Ethan. "Darling, I'll always listen to you." Her eyes deliberately flickered toward Sophia with calculated smugness.

A sharp pang of sorrow pierced Sophia's heart.

Perhaps Ethan didn't truly love Isabella, but she carried his child. They were an unbreakable family unit now - a perfect triangle that left no room for outsiders. Watching Ethan's protective dominance over Isabella made Sophia feel like the universe's cruelest punchline.

Two pregnant women. Two vastly different fates.

Chin lifted defiantly, Sophia addressed the gathered elite with icy precision. "Since Mr. Blackwood is present, let me make myself perfectly clear."

Her voice cut through the murmurs. "I never seduced Ethan Blackwood. He sought me out because of my bond with his mother. Our contract existed solely to comfort a dying woman."

The room stilled.

"Not a single penny from that contract interests me. What Victoria and I shared was genuine - a mother-daughter bond no document could define." Her voice cracked slightly before steeling again. "I'd rather starve than tarnish that pure affection with your filthy assumptions."

Ethan's jaw tightened.

Sophia turned her withering gaze directly at him. "I cared for Victoria because I loved her. Not for your money. Not for your name. Without her, our paths would never have crossed." She drew a shuddering breath. "Consider our connection severed."

The declaration hung like a guillotine.

Nathan's eyes widened. Even Ethan seemed momentarily speechless.

Sophia pivoted toward Liam's mother next. "As for your son - I never loved him. He pursued me relentlessly. I tolerated his attention because he was the only light in my darkness." Her bitter laugh echoed. "How foolish of me to think kindness existed in your world."

She produced her phone with dramatic flourish. "Behold - the precious contacts of Harborview's golden boys." With a resounding crash, the device shattered against marble. "Consider this my resignation from your toxic social circle."

Gasps rippled through the crowd.

"My train leaves in thirty-six hours." Sophia's smile was razor-sharp. "May your precious sons find women worthy of their arrogance. Just know this - Sophia Montgomery wouldn't touch them with a ten-foot pole."

William Blackwood's face purpled with barely contained rage. His plan had backfired spectacularly - instead of a meek apology, Sophia had delivered a scathing indictment of their entire society.

"Remember your words," he ground out. "Should you dare return-"

"I'd rather drown," Sophia interrupted. Without sparing Ethan a final glance, she strode from the mansion, her shoulders straight despite the tears streaking her cheeks.

Only Victoria had ever shown her real kindness. Now that light was extinguished.

As Sophia disappeared, Ethan swept Isabella away, leaving the elites buzzing like disturbed hornets. The more they whispered, the louder their outrage grew - not at Sophia's audacity, but at the uncomfortable truth she'd forced them to confront.

Nathan watched helplessly as his boss departed, aching to explain how Ethan had spent the entire night erasing those damning videos from existence. But some wounds ran too deep for explanations.

The broken phone gleamed on the floor - a perfect metaphor for shattered illusions.