Chapter 26%
Zafrielle received a three–year suspended sentence. The first thing she did after her release was to spread stories about Shawn and me all over the internet. Social media was instantly filled with trending topics like:>
#EvelynAndShawn Sibling Marriage, #Evelyn Faked DeathToMarryHerBrother, #Evelyn MarriageFraud and #EvelynAndShawnAreTwisted.“] Arielle exaggerated and twisted the story, posting multiple explosive versions online, dragging me, Shawn and Joshua into the mess. Before long, we were being viciously attacked by netizens. They dug up all our personal information and our social media accounts were bombarded with insults from furious users.
“Does Evelyn have no shame? She ignored the devoted Joshua just to mess around with her own brother. Disgusting!“}
“Clearly a plastic surgery face. A freak. More terrifying than the cockroaches in my village.”
“Evelyn, just go die. If I ever see you in real life, I swear I won’t be able to hold myself back from hitting you.”
“Poor Joshua. He’s so handsome. Hey, Joshua, what about me? Forget that plastic surgery monster!“}
Even outside my company’s building, people had posted giant pictures of me with curse words scrawled all over them. Shawn picked me up in his car. On the way back, his face was grim. “Don’t worry. I’ve already reported it to the police. They’ll handle it soon. For now, just stay off the internet. it’s not worth ruining your mood.“}]
I raised an eyebrow. “And what about you? I bet you’re getting just as much hate.“>
He was silent for a second before giving a bitter smile. “It doesn’t matter. I’m a man, I don’t care about that kind of thing.”
“Well, I don’t care either.”
Later, the police arrested Zafrielle. I thought the scandal would continue to spiral online, but surprisingly, Joshua stepped forward and issued a public statement. “My wife, Evelyn Sutherland, has truly passed away. My brother, Shawn Sutherland’s wife, Sierra Salvatore, merely bears a slight resemblance to her. The rumors are false. I loved my wife dearly. Please stop spreading lies. I don’t want her to continue suffering from these insults, even in death.”
Joshua’s statement was more effective than anything else. Instantly, the insults stopped. People began to sympathize with Joshua and the online sentiment reversed. Some even apologized to Shawn and me.
That evening, Shawn put his arm around my shoulder as we looked at Joshua’s statement on his phone. “He finally did something right.”
I raised an eyebrow and said calmly, “Yes, Evelyn Sutherland is dead.”