Love in the Eye of the Storm

Chapter 10

Their voices were loud, and the questions were coming at me fast, making my head spin. Slowly, my mind began to clear, and it hit me, something must've happened online. I grabbed my phone and quickly searched for my name.

It was everywhere.

I was trending. For slapping Chelsea.

Chelsea was now a well-known influencer with over three million followers. Of course, with Alexander's resources, she had shot to fame in no time. An hour ago, she'd posted a video. In it, I looked like some vengeful villain, slapping her repeatedly. The video was muted, so no one could hear the venom she'd spewed at me. All they saw was a bitter, older woman striking a younger, prettier girl who was crying in response.

Her fans were furious.

"How dare she hit Chelsea?!" "Typical rich woman thinking she can get away with anything." "Ugh, she's just jealous because Chelsea's younger and prettier!" "Madeline looks like an evil witch. No wonder Alexander prefers Chelsea." "She's disgusting! She should just die!"

Reading those comments made me feel a twisted mix of sadness and amusement. These people had no clue about me or my life, yet they were so quick to judge, tearing me down from the comfort of their screens.

But credit where it's due, Chelsea had a special kind of boldness, or stupidity, to turn herself into the victim and rally the internet against the wife she was replacing. If only they knew the truth.

I didn't care what they thought of me anymore. I was done with Alexander, done with all of it. But as long as our divorce wasn't finalized, Chelsea was still nothing but a mistress, a fact she conveniently ignored in her online narrative.

"Madeline, is it true that you attacked Chelsea out of jealousy because she's now with Alexander?" a young male reporter yelled, his voice sharp and accusatory.

The way he asked, like he was defending Chelsea's honor, made me laugh bitterly. My brother had saved her life, only for her to dig up his grave. They had no idea.

"Before you jump to conclusions, maybe you should do some research," I said, my voice calm despite the chaos. "I've been trying to divorce Alexander, but he refuses to sign the papers."

The reporters fell silent, stunned. Most of them didn't know Alexander was still married. We'd kept our relationship private, even though, at one point, he treated me like I was his whole world. But now, it was Chelsea flaunting their love on social media, making it look like they were about to tie the knot.

"Y-You're still married to Alexander?" one reporter stammered, trying to process it. "Doesn't that make Chelsea...?"

"Yes," I said, unflinching. "She's the other woman."

A murmur ran through the crowd. One reporter finally asked, "Is that why you're divorcing him?"

"Yes," I answered simply. "That's part of it."

"Then why did you hit Chelsea?" another asked. "Is it just because of the affair?"

"No," I whispered, my voice steady, though my heart was breaking all over again. I brushed some dust off Daniel's urn, then met their eyes.

"The reason I slapped her is because she dug up my brother's grave."

Gasps echoed in the air.

"My brother, Daniel, was a firefighter. Ten years ago, he died saving a little girl's life. That girl... was Chelsea."

I swallowed hard, fighting back the tears. "Even if she doesn't feel grateful, the least she could've done was leave him in peace. Instead, she desecrated his grave."

The reporters were shocked into silence.

"Wait, Daniel? As in the hero who saved that girl during the fire?" one older journalist asked, his voice filled with recognition.

"I remember that night," he continued. "He was a real hero. And that little girl... that was Chelsea?"