Chapter 4
In the blink of an eye, everything at the Fontaine family went viral.
Major news platforms exploded with commentary.
"Oh my God, why is the Fontaine girl stripping in public?"
"How did a snake get into a perfectly good ballroom? And it was in her dress!"
"The Fontaines just crashed and burned hard."
Meanwhile, upstairs in her bedroom, Katrina sat peacefully in her lounge chair, sipping her favorite watermelon juice.
Through the door, various sounds from downstairs filtered up faintly. It might as well have been the apocalypse down there.
She casually pulled out her phone and, sure enough, saw the news. Every platform was pushing it. She clicked on one at random—inside were close-up shots of Helena's miserable, twisted face.
This was... perfect!
Katrina nearly laughed out loud. She couldn't help remembering her past life self.
Back then, she'd had it even worse than Helena. A whole room full of snakes, slithering and flicking their tongues, closing in like ghosts. Some climbed up her legs, some bit her arms, and others burrowed like eels into her clothes...
That terrifying feeling still made her skin crawl whenever she thought of it.
This time, the culprit should get a taste of that horror herself.
The commotion outside continued for over half an hour before finally dying down. No one seemed to notice her. The entire mansion fell silent as death.
Katrina enjoyed the peace and rested well all afternoon.
Because she knew another battle was waiting for her.
Sure enough, that evening, the whole crew returned.
Brandon came upstairs himself and kicked her door open.
Before Katrina could react, his murderous aura had already engulfed her.
"Katrina, how can you be so vicious!" Brandon's gaze was cold and sinister, worse than a venomous snake.
In the past, Katrina would've already been scared into bowing and begging for mercy.
Right now, though, she sat quietly, not even trembling as she held her watermelon juice.
"What's wrong, Bran? What did I do now?" She smiled faintly, her gaze mocking.
Brandon seemed enraged by her indifferent attitude. He actually stepped forward and grabbed her arm. "Whatever you have to say, you can say it downstairs in front of everyone!"
He was fierce and menacing, his grip so strong it numbed Katrina's wrist. He dragged her forward roughly. She stumbled several times, nearly falling, but he didn't care at all—just gave her his cold, harsh profile.
Though she'd forced herself not to care, being hurt again by someone she once cared about still sent sharp pain through her heart.
She bit her lip and yanked herself free.
"I can walk by myself!"
That cold shout rang especially clear in the suddenly quiet room.
Ignoring Brandon's momentarily stunned expression, she went downstairs on her own.
Helena sat on the sofa crying, her shoulders shaking.
"Lance, Ken, I don't know what to do anymore. Everyone outside is laughing at me. Those people are so cruel. I can't show my face anymore."
Lancelot and Kent sat on either side of her, gently comforting her. The two grown men's eyes were full of sympathy, as if they wished they could bear all her grievances themselves.
Lancelot said softly, "Don't be afraid. I've already had people contact those media outlets one by one. Your news will disappear soon enough."
Kent added, "Yeah, they wouldn't actually dare offend the Fontaine family."
Hearing these two, Katrina nearly laughed coldly.
In her past life when she was reported on, they'd only stood on their moral high ground to accuse and insult her for embarrassing the Fontaine family. Now with a different person, the treatment was night and day.
Absolutely ridiculous.
"Katy, what are you laughing at?" Suddenly, Helena turned around. The moment her gaze touched Katrina, coldness flashed through her eyes.
She cried even louder and actually rushed over, kneeling before Katrina.
"Katy, I know you resent me for stealing the affection that should be yours, but I really didn't mean to. You're upset with me—you can hit me, yell at me, even kick me out. But how could you do something so horrible? Releasing a snake to bite me, making me humiliate myself in front of everyone?"
She sobbed with every word, full of pain and sadness, as if Katrina had really done something utterly heinous.
Katrina just found it laughable.
Reborn into a new life, and Helena's tricks still worked like a charm. So cheap, yet these Fontaine idiots totally bought it.
Sure enough, before she could speak, Brandon immediately stepped forward and shoved Katrina aside. "You're so vicious! Lena's kneeling before you and you're completely unmoved!"
"How could you do that? Lena is your sister. You can't tolerate her so much that you'd harm her like this?" Lancelot also scolded coldly.
"You're the one who should be kneeling!" Kent shot up, pointing at Katrina's face and saying through gritted teeth, "Either kneel and apologize to Lena, or this isn't over today!"
The instant the three finished speaking, Katrina saw a mocking smile flash across Helena's eyes.
So obvious.
Katrina's heart went ice cold.
But she didn't argue based on reason. Instead... she pinched her palm hard and forced out a few tears. Then she choked out, "What are you even saying? I don't even know what happened, and you're accusing me like this. I won't accept it..."
She had a real talent for acting. With one blink and a trembling lip, that aggrieved energy came through, her nose turning red—utterly pitiful to look at.
The men were momentarily speechless.
Brandon snapped coldly, "Stop playing dumb. Don't think I can't prove you released that snake!"
"It wasn't me!" Katrina's voice suddenly rose. "You just locked me in the snake room! I fainted from fear that day. Do you think I'd dare go near them again? Do I have a death wish?"
Her tears spilled over, hanging on her face, full of broken vulnerability.
Brandon's expression changed. The words at his lips wouldn't come out.
Lancelot also frowned. "If not you, then who? You're the only one in this house with a grudge against Lena!"
Katrina wiped her tears, trembling as she said, "I know you like Lena, Lance. I already know I was wrong—I wouldn't dare compete with her anymore. If you don't believe me, I can swear to heaven. If I'm lying about even one word, let me get hit by a car when I walk outside!"
"You..." Lancelot was about to scold her again, but seeing Katrina's tears fall even harder, he inexplicably swallowed the words back.
The living room fell silent except for Katrina's sobbing.
Watching her like this, Helena's eyes filled with venom.
Bitch, don't think a few tears will get you off the hook!
Helena immediately burst into loud sobs. "Katy, if you really can't stand me that much, I'll just bash my head in and die..."
She actually moved toward the wall as if to do it.
Seeing this, Katrina stepped forward to block her. "If you really want the truth, then call the police. After all, deliberately hurting someone is enough to land you in jail for a while."
Brandon came over and snatched Helena from her arms. "What are you talking about? This is a family matter—how can we call the police?"
