Chapter 116

"Mr. Goldmann," Gregory approached abruptly, his brow furrowed with concern. "Have you seen Zoe? Her phone keeps going to voicemail."

Vivian feigned shock at his words. "What? She's not answering? Oh no... could something terrible have happened to Zoe?"

Gregory studied Vivian's face suspiciously. Since when did she care about Zoe's wellbeing?

"Impossible," he muttered. "Who would dare cause trouble in the VIP lounge?"

Just then, a group of passing women caught Nathan's attention with their hushed whispers.

"Did you hear? There's some... activity in the private lounge. They're not even trying to be discreet about it!"

Vivian hid a smirk as she saw Nathan's expression darken. Playing innocent, she added, "The lounge? That's odd... when I asked about Zoe earlier, the waiter mentioned seeing her head that way..."

Nathan's eyes turned glacial as he strode toward the lounge without a word.

Vivian watched his retreating figure with vicious satisfaction. 'Evelyn Vanderbilt, after tonight, you'll never dare show your face in high society again!'

When Nathan arrived, several flustered staff members were knocking frantically on the locked door. The unmistakable sounds coming from inside left no doubt about what was happening.

Vivian had orchestrated quite the audience, now gathered behind them with phones at the ready. She put on her best concerned expression. "Oh dear... that couldn't possibly be Zoe in there, could it?"

Nathan's piercing gaze made her shrink back. "What makes you so certain it's her?"

"I-I'm not!" Vivian stammered. "The waiter just mentioned seeing her come this way..."

At that moment, the very waiter who'd escorted Evelyn earlier pushed through the crowd. "I did see Ms. Vanderbilt enter this lounge, sir. And..." he hesitated, "...several gentlemen followed shortly after."

"Ms. Vanderbilt? The CEO's girlfriend?"

"My God, is she really... with multiple men?"

The murmurs spread like wildfire through the gathering crowd.

Gregory clenched his fists. "This is absurd! Zoe would never—"

Nathan silenced him with a look as the manager arrived with the master key.

Vivian could barely contain her excitement as the door swung open, dozens of phones raised to capture the scandalous scene.

The sight that greeted them was indeed shocking—a disheveled woman surrounded by equally ragged men, her dress torn, cheeks flushed, completely lost in passion despite the audience.

Vivian's triumphant smile froze when she recognized the woman's face.

'Penelope?! How—'

"Oh my God, it's Ms. Santiago!"

"Start recording! This is front-page material!"

The staff quickly intervened, pulling the dazed participants apart. As consciousness returned, Penelope took in the flashing cameras, the stains on her skin, the men around her—

"No! This isn't right!" she shrieked, collapsing to her knees as reality set in. The perfect trap had sprung on the wrong prey.