Chapter 183

Once the call with Verena ended, Isaac kept his attention on the live stream.

Verena had told him she needed to deal with urgent matters, so spotting her on stage didn't catch him off guard.

Still, after days of separation, with only a video call bridging the distance between them, seeing her appear through the broadcast felt strange and unexpected.

On the screen, Verena carried herself with a brilliance that seemed almost supernatural.

Isaac's lips curved faintly, his eyes softening as they lingered on her image.

···

From the moment Maxton uttered Evelyn's name, Katelyn hadn't dared to tear her gaze away from the broadcast.

Her breath caught when the camera cut to Verena.

Verena?

How could she possibly be there?

What in the world was she planning?

Katelyn's brows knitted tight as unease crawled through her chest, squeezing her heart until she could hardly breathe. The sense of dread prickled all the way to her scalp.

The whispers online calling Verena reckless and clueless for barging onto the stage didn't sit right with Katelyn.

She knew from experience that Verena wasn't a woman who acted without purpose.

Walking onto a stage of that magnitude without hesitation could only mean one thing...

The thought jolted her so badly that her complexion drained of color. She quickly shook her head,muttering under her breath to calm herself.

"No, no, that's impossible. It can't be true!"

Her fingers clamped down on the table edge, nails dragging with a piercing screech. "She's just some obscure doctor. There's no way she's Evelyn. If she really were, then all those times I flaunted myself in front of her, all my efforts to win over Danica,would have been nothing but a cruel joke to her."

Katelyn whispered to herself over and over, but each repetition sounded less certain than the last.

She failed to notice the way her chin quivered or how all the color had drained from her lips.

She could accept losing to Verena who was shielded by lsaac, but to lose directly to Verena was unthinkable.

That would make her nothing more than a fool in Verena's eyes since the beginning.

Drawing in a shaky breath, Katelyn forced herself to the idea that Verena could ever be Evelyn.

There had to be some other explanation for why Verena dared to step onto that stage.

Her gaze stayed locked on the broadcast, waiting anxiously for Verena to finally speak.

The audience, too, leaned forward, their attention riveted to the screen.

Plenty of people who disliked Verena were convinced she couldn't possibly be Evelyn.

They tuned in eagerly, hoping to see her stumble,humiliate herself, and get thrown out in disgrace.

Every eye in the hall and watching the live stream bored into Verena.

The reporters, who watched with a mixture of pity and scorn, were bracing for the moment Maxton would rebuke her and have security escort her away.

Instead, something no one could have predicted happened. Live on camera, Maxton's weathered face grew flushed, his eyes lit with unmistakable excitement,and he reached out to clasp Verena's hand.

The sight of Maxton eagerly holding onto her left the entire room stunned.

What had been expected to be her downfall suddenly turned into the most astonishing turn of events.

Everyone in the room knew the name Maxton Fairclough.

He wasn't just another wealthy man-he was Clokron's towering business legend, a figure whose reputation stretched far beyond the nation.

And yet, here he was, grasping the hand of a woman most had dismissed as insignificant, a woman with no public standing worth mentioning.

The sight left the reporters frozen, their jaws slack as if the scene defied reason.

One beat. Another.

A third.

Then came the sharp crack of a camera shutter.Click! Click...

The sound jolted the others, and suddenly the hall filled with frantic clicks as every reporter scrambled to capture the moment.

Their instincts told them this handshake was no simple courtesy. Maxton's eager expression, the spark in his eyes, spoke louder than words.

This woman could not possibly be just Tobin's romantic partner whispered about in rumors.

Meanwhile, in the Shoildon wealthy young people's group chat, the live broadcast sent shockwaves.

Those who had mocked Verena moments ago now felt an icy weight settle in their chests.

Maxton's demeanor made everything clear, and it was obvious to anyone with sense that he held Verena in high regard.

Still, denial clung stubbornly to them; they wouldn't admit the truth until it was spoken outright.

Every eye in the hall and watching the live stream fixed on Verena once more.

She remained steady on stage, her posture graceful,a faint smile curving her lips as she faced the cameras after Maxton released her hand.

"Good day, everyone," she announced, her voice steady and confident. "First of all, I want to express my gratitude to Mr. Maxton Fairclough for his generous words and for acknowledging my contributions to the field of medicine."

Maxton stood at her side with a warm smile, nodding several times in quiet agreement.

"But let me be clear," Verena said, her tone calm yet firm. "Mr. Fairclough agreed to accept this interview so that certain rumors about me could be addressed.You've all read the gossip linking me to Mr. Tobin Fairclough."

The press stared at her, puzzled and eager to make sense of her words.

What did she mean by "Maxton acknowledging her contributions to the field of medicine"?

Why was she suddenly talking about rumors?

Was she admitting to being tied to Tobin...

Wait! No... Could it be that she was...

The implication hung heavily in the air, and the sharpest minds in the room already suspected the answer.

"That's correct." Verena raised her voice just enough to carry through the room, her bright smile never faltering as she continued, "Tobin and I are not involved in the way some might think. My presence here has nothing to do with that and is actually for another purpose. I'm mainly here to oversee Maxton's treatment. However, Maxton became so enthusiastic about praising my work that he overlooked explaining the situation, so I felt it was better to step up and clarify things myself."

Verena's lighthearted tone carried a hint of humor,and it was only then that Maxton realized his excitement had led him to gush about her skills without addressing such an important point.

Her light remark drew a ripple of chuckles, while Maxton, realizing his oversight, rubbed his forehead in embarrassment.

"Ah, that's exactly it. I let myself ramble and nearly forgot the main point," Maxton admitted with a hearty laugh before turning to the crowd. "Allow me to clarify once and for all. This young lady is Evelyn Rowe, my attending doctor, and she has no connection to the gossip about my eldest son."

The declaration stunned the audience. Jaws dropped, and the room filled with an almost audible gasp as the revelation settled in.

Evelyn? She was Evelyn?

The revelation left everyone stunned.

The elusive physician who had remained hidden for years was suddenly revealed as a strikingly young woman. Her appearance alone was enough to leave jaws hanging.

The exposure of Evelyn's identity carried even more weight than the announcement of Maxton's recovery.

Maxton's awakening was surprising, yes, but Smoothdeed Group had long been stable under Tobin's leadership, so his condition hadn't threatened the company's strength.

Whether he recovered or not, the group would have endured.

The moment Verena's identity surfaced, however,chaos broke out. Reporters swarmed forward,shoving microphones in her direction as if afraid to miss a single word.

"Miss, are you really Evelyn Rowe?" one of them asked eagerly, his camera trained squarely on her,hoping for confirmation straight from her lips.

Verena's smile was radiant as she lifted her chin,meeting the camera with poise and unwavering confidence.

With deliberate emphasis, she announced, "Yes. I am Evelyn Rowe, and I came to Clokron for one reason-to treat Mr. Maxton Fairclough."

There it was. The doctor whose face and background had remained a mystery, whose very name carried an almost legendary status among the wealthy,was standing before them in plain sight.

The realization was staggering.

Excitement lit up the reporters' faces. Today was history in the making, and they were right there to capture it.

Click! Click!

The cameras went wild, flashes exploding across the room, yet Verena stood firm, her expression composed, her gaze steady as if the chaos around her couldn't touch her.

Her words echoed across the live broadcast: "Yes. I am Evelyn Rowe, and I came to Clokron for one reason-to treat Mr.Maxton Fairclough."

As Verena's words carried through the live broadcast, Shoildon wealthy young people's group chat exploded with activity, and some quickly sent messages filled with excitement.