The moment I stepped into view, the entire hall fell silent.
For one beat, the flashes stopped. Then they started going off even faster than before.
Nolan’s expression darkened.
“Mara, what the hell are you doing here? Security, get her out.”
He barked the order, trying to regain control of the room.
Several security guards rushed onto the stage and reached for my arms.
Elias stepped in front of me.
He gave them one cold, commanding look, and they stopped short.
“Why are you so desperate to get rid of her, Mr. Whitaker? Afraid of what she might say?”
I walked around Elias and stopped beside the display case.
Brielle instinctively shrank back behind Nolan.
“Mara, are you still angry with Nolan? What happened yesterday was just—”
She slipped into that same sweet, wide-eyed innocent act, trying to deflect attention.
“Shut up.”
I cut her off.
“Brielle, you don’t even know what fibers this material is made from, yet you had the nerve to have yourself listed as an inventor.”
I turned toward the press.
“Everyone, this material is actually called Tideweave. I spent three years developing it, and I’m the inventor behind the patent application.”
An uproar swept through the hall.
The reporters came alive like sharks scenting blood, raising phones and recorders as questions flew from every direction.
“Ms. Lennox, do you have proof that the invention is yours?”
“Mr. Whitaker just introduced this as Ms. Sutton’s work. Which one of you is lying?”
Nolan strode over and grabbed my wrist so hard it nearly crushed the bone.
“Mara, have you lost your mind? Do you even understand what you’re doing?”
His voice dropped into a vicious whisper.
“I can make sure you never work at Whitaker Group again.”
I tore my wrist out of his grip.
Looking at his face twisted with rage, I suddenly found the whole thing absurd.
“Whitaker Group?”
I stared at him.
“Nolan, did you forget we’re divorced?”
I pulled the filed copy of our divorce decree from my bag and held it up.
“Yesterday, Mr. Whitaker finalized our divorce just to make Ms. Sutton happy.”
A roar of disbelief swept through the hall.
Nolan went rigid.
Clearly, exposing the divorce in front of the press was the last thing he’d expected.
“You…”
He pointed at me but couldn’t finish the sentence.
“As for the proof, here it is.”
I ignored him and turned back toward the display case.
“This defective sample can handle an ordinary open flame. Real Tideweave can withstand even an industrial welding torch without being damaged.”
I took the torch from Elias and ignited it.
A brilliant white flame flared to life, the heat distorting the air around it.
Without hesitation, I aimed it straight at the so-called Brielle Weave.
“No!”
Brielle screamed.
But it was already too late.
Under the intense heat, the fabric melted almost instantly, giving off a harsh burnt smell as it collapsed into a pool of black, tarry sludge.
The revolutionary product Nolan had been so proud of was now garbage.
“So much for your breakthrough.”
I shut off the torch and looked at Brielle, whose face had gone white.
“Without my core concentrate, you can’t even produce the most basic fire-resistant layer.”
Brielle swayed and grabbed Nolan’s arm to keep herself upright.
“No… that’s not true. Nolan, tell them. Explain it.”
Her voice cracked.
Nolan stared at the ruined material, his face rigid with fury.
“Mara, what the hell do you want?”