If Marina hadn’t been so conniving herself–trying to seduce him just to hurt Niamh–none of what happened afterward would have come to pass.
As far as Quentin was concerned, Marina was simply reaping what she’d sown.
Niamh had made a point of thanking him publicly during her speech, but in truth, Quentin hadn’t done much at all.
The idea had been Niamh’s from the start.
Back when Marina first tried to lure him in, Quentin told Niamh about it right away. He didn’t take matters into his own hands; he wanted to hear what Niamh thought.
Niamh suggested they could turn the tables on Marina and use her to pull off their magic act at Luminous Divas Fashion Week.
That way, Marina’s every scheme was under their control; she was unwittingly following a script they’d written.
Quentin thought it was a solid plan.
Still, Niamh made it clear: if Quentin felt uncomfortable at any point, they’d scrap the ruse immediately.
He’d already been burned once–he’d hurt Niamh before, all because he’d tried to help Marina.
In the end, Marina had betrayed him, while the one who pulled him out of the mess was Niamh.
Quentin never considered himself especially clever, but he knew he wasn’t stupid enough to let Marina use him again.
After everything that happened at the Nova Jewelry Design Awards, he’d seen clearly who truly deserved his loyalty.
The plan was flawless; the only hitch was whether he could convincingly fool Marina with his performance.
To avoid arousing her suspicion, Quentin had to act the part of the lecherous, overeager fool, all the way until he’d spilled every detail of Niamh’s theme and concept for the Luminous Divas Fashion Week.
The bottle of perfume Quentin handed Marina really did contain hydrochloric acid.
Niamh had prepped the fluorite by exposing it to a UV lamp for hours, charging it
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Chapter 266
up, then coated it with an alkaline layer to block its phosphorescence.
The top–tier Burmese rubies were covered with the same alkaline coating.
On the night of the and rubies, the acid would slowly neutralize the coating.
Show when Marina sprayed the diluted acid onto the fluorite
While the models continued down the runway during the blackout, the fluorite jewelry they wore would gradually begin to glow, the vibrant green
phosphorescence shining through as the alkaline layer faded away. The effect would be a dynamic display–an illusion of thorny vines coming to life.
Then, as soon as the fluorite reached full brightness, the stage crew, following. Niamh’s instructions, would switch on the UV emergency lights.
With the protective coating dissolved, the Burmese rubies would ignite under the UV, blazing with fiery brilliance–a perfect vision of red roses blooming among
thorns.
Every step of it had been Niamh’s brainchild; Quentin was just the actor playing his
part.
“You make me sick!” Marina spat, her voice trembling with rage.
“Right back at you,” Quentin replied, utterly unfazed.
Just then, Marina caught sight of her target across the room, her eyes lighting up.
Niamh was dancing with Peter, lost in the music and too buoyant to notice the hostile gaze fixed on her.
Marina plucked two cocktails from a passing waiter’s tray and handed one to
Elaine.
“Who would’ve thought? After all the trouble Niamh caused you, she’s still riding high,” Marina sneered.
Elaine shot her a withering look, took a sip, then set her glass down.
“A woman like her–she only gets ahead by sleeping with men. One after another, she just hops from bed to bed. Absolutely filthy…” As she said this, Marina subtly switched her own glass–the one laced with acid–for Elaine’s.
“Sure, Daniel Kingsley isn’t exactly a saint, but at least he’s rich and powerful. If it weren’t for Niamh, you wouldn’t have had to divorce him. This whole mess has even dragged your family’s business down…”
“What exactly are you getting at?” Elaine snapped, her patience thinning.
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Marina put on a look of wounded innocence. “I’m just saying, you deserve better. If
someone stole my husband and ruined my reputation, left me with nothing, I wouldn’t let her get away with it. At the very least, I’d toss my drink right in her
face–just for the satisfaction.”
