Chapter 5
“What did you just say?”
All the color drained from Ethan’s face.
“Victoria Hale? That is impossible!”
He stared at me as though he were seeing me clearly for the first time.
I ended the call and raised an eyebrow.
“Which part is impossible? Do you not believe my last name is Hale, or can you not believe you destroyed your own engagement and Brooks Group’s investment with your own hands?”
The ballroom doors suddenly opened.
Ethan’s father hurried inside.
Hale Capital’s investment team followed him, along with our attorneys and head of audit.
His tie was crooked, but he did not stop to fix it. He walked straight toward me.
“Miss Hale, there must be some misunderstanding about what happened tonight.”
The ballroom fell completely silent.
The people who had laughed at me only moments ago froze where they stood.
The head of Human Resources slowly lowered the termination notice in his hand.
Chloe was the first to recover.
“That is impossible. Her name is Eva Stone!”
I looked at her and gave a quiet laugh.
“Stone is my mother’s last name. I kept my identity private because I wanted to evaluate my fiancé’s character and determine whether Brooks Group deserved Hale Capital’s investment.”
My eyes moved across the phones in their hands.
“The result is clear now.”
Chloe’s face turned white.
Ethan suddenly grabbed my wrist.
“Why did you not tell me? You knew we were engaged!”
I pulled my hand free.
“I have a question for you too. If my last name were not Hale, would you believe you had every right to destroy me tonight?”
Ethan froze.
The people who had mocked me began avoiding my eyes.
I turned toward the investment team and gave my orders.
“Effective immediately, suspend every pending Hale approval involving Brooks Group. End all contact regarding projects under Ethan’s control.”
“Until the independent audit is complete, Hale will not allow any Crown Club member to remain involved in our projects.”
“Brooks Group must also provide full access to the relevant employment, financial, and compliance records.”
The executives nodded at once.
“We understand, Miss Hale.”
Ethan’s father’s expression changed.
“Victoria, you cannot put a $2 billion investment at risk over a joke between a few young people.”
“A joke?”
I cut him off and pointed toward the large screen.
“They planted evidence of a data leak, manipulated Human Resources into firing an employee, secretly recorded her, and tried to destroy an ordinary employee’s career in public.”
“Is that what Brooks Group calls a joke?”
No one answered.
Ethan finally began to panic.
“Victoria, I admit it started as a game.”
He stepped closer.
“But it stopped being one. I really do care about you. I just did not realize it before.”
I looked at him and almost laughed.
“You did not realize it before, but the moment you learned I was Victoria Hale, you suddenly discovered that you cared about me?”
“Which woman do you care about, Ethan? Eva Stone or the heiress to Hale Capital?”
His lips moved, but no answer came out.
He lowered his head and stayed silent for several seconds. Then he reached for me again.
“No matter what happened, I admit I was wrong. I apologize. We can discuss the engagement again, and I will deal with everyone involved in what happened tonight.”
I stepped away from his hand.
“The engagement is over. You are also barred from every Hale project.”
The warmth vanished from his face.
“Do you really have to go this far? Brooks has spent two years preparing for this investment. You cannot destroy the entire company because of a personal conflict between us.”
I laughed.
One moment earlier, he had claimed to care about me.
Now all he cared about was the $2 billion.
I ignored him and handed a black folder to the attorney.
It contained the raffle video, the Crown Club group messages, the system access log, and the complete plan for tonight’s public humiliation.
Ethan could not deny any of it.
His father, however, quickly regained his composure.
“A group of young employees behaved improperly, and Brooks Group will deal with them. But this only proves what happened tonight. It does not prove that Brooks Group has spent years allowing this so-called Cinderella game.”
He looked at the list of victims.
“These names also need to be verified. We do not know whether their claims are true. No punishment should be imposed until a full investigation is complete.”
People began whispering among themselves.
Several of them nodded, apparently convinced by his argument.
A voice suddenly came from the back of the ballroom.
“Every name is real.”
A young man stepped out of the crowd.
He wore a white shirt, black-framed glasses, and an employee badge from the Compliance Department.
His name was Noah Reed.
He walked to the table and removed his badge.
“I sent the anonymous emails to Miss Hale.”
Ethan’s face darkened.
“Do you understand what happens to employees who leak company information?”
“Yes, I do.”
Noah placed his badge on the table.
“But I also understand what happens when people keep helping you hide the truth.”
He opened his laptop.
A formal complaint from two years earlier appeared on the screen.
The complainant’s name was written at the top.
**Anna Lewis.**
Seven more names appeared below hers.
Noah looked around the ballroom.
“Over the past three years, the Crown Club selected eight female employees.”
“Brooks Group buried every complaint they filed.”