Trick Him Into Divorce, Then Flee With His Unknow Kid novel Chapter 334

Chapter 334: Chapter 334 No Family Will Claim Her

The moment Evelyn Cooper publicly washed her hands of Samantha, another wave of whispers swept through the ballroom.

To everyone watching, it no longer mattered whether every video was authentic.

Samantha Hill had become the night’s biggest spectacle.

She had spent years trying to claw her way into one of New York’s oldest and wealthiest families.

Now she stood in front of the entire city’s elite—

Pregnant.

Disgraced.

And publicly rejected.

The Cooper family had discarded her as though she were nothing more than an inconvenience.

Samantha bit down so hard on her lower lip she tasted blood.

She stared at the contempt written across Evelyn Cooper’s face.

Every word felt like another knife twisting deeper.

As though she were contagious.

As though merely standing near her would stain the Cooper family’s reputation.

Then another voice rose from the crowd.

"Wait a second."

A middle-aged venture capitalist frowned.

"Doesn’t the Hill family have a little boy who’s about six?"

He glanced toward Samantha.

"So... they’ve been raising her son while she pretended to be America’s sweetheart?"

The room fell silent for half a heartbeat.

Then the murmuring exploded again.

"So that’s why the timeline never made sense."

"Her parents covered for her."

"She abandoned her own kid."

"No wonder she kept everything so secret."

Every gaze directed toward Samantha grew colder.

Sharper.

More unforgiving.

Her mind went completely blank.

She dug her fingernails into the thick ballroom carpet until they hurt.

She wanted to disappear.

To run.

To wake up from what had become a nightmare.

But two private security officers had already positioned themselves nearby.

Her knees felt weak.

A crushing regret consumed her.

She never should have denied everything so aggressively.

She never should have insisted, in front of hundreds of people, that the baby she was carrying belonged to Ryan.

If she hadn’t pushed so hard...

Edward Knight never would have ordered every piece of evidence onto those screens.

Now...

There was no coming back.

By tomorrow morning, every business publication, celebrity news site, and social media account in New York would be talking about Samantha Hill.

The realization made her entire body tremble.

Then someone deliberately added fuel to the fire.

"If that video really shows drug use..."

"...won’t the authorities have to investigate Mr. Cooper?"

The ballroom erupted again.

Evelyn Cooper froze.

Grayson Cooper’s face lost what little color remained.

He turned toward Ryan.

His voice was tight.

Controlled only through sheer effort.

"Mr. Knight."

"What will it take?"

"Name your price."

"Delete the video."

The arrogance he’d displayed all evening was gone.

Only fear remained.

If federal investigators became involved...

If prosecutors reopened old incidents...

His life would be over.

Most of what he’d done had happened overseas.

The rest...

His family had buried with expensive lawyers and carefully managed settlements.

But once the footage became public—

The Cooper Group’s carefully cultivated image as one of America’s most respected family-owned corporations would collapse overnight.

Years of reputation.

Billions in shareholder value.

Gone.

Grayson clenched his fists.

"This was between Samantha and the Knight family."

"You had no right to drag my family into it."

His eyes burned with anger.

"Don’t push this any further, Mr. Knight."

Across the room, Evelyn Cooper rounded on Margaret Knight.

"Margaret!"

"You introduced that woman into our lives."

"When my grandson got hurt because of your family, we let it go."

"And now this?"

"What exactly are you people trying to do?"

Edward’s eyes shifted toward his wife.

Margaret immediately understood the warning.

Her expression hardened.

"I have no idea what you’re implying."

She met Evelyn’s glare without flinching.

"No one forced your grandson to break the law."

"If you’re looking for someone to blame..."

"Start with your own family."

Evelyn’s chest rose and fell violently.

She looked ready to explode.

Before she could answer—

Ryan finally spoke.

His voice remained calm.

Almost conversational.

"The recording wasn’t mine."

He looked directly at Grayson.

"Samantha made it."

"She kept it."

"She never deleted it."

He paused.

"Have you ever wondered why?"

The ballroom became silent.

Ryan answered his own question.

"Because she planned to use it someday."

"If everything else failed..."

"She could always blackmail the Cooper family."

His words landed like ice.

Samantha’s breathing stopped.

Because every word...

Was true.

Years ago, by the time she’d confronted Grayson about the pregnancy, she was already well into her second trimester.

She had believed he couldn’t simply walk away.

But the Cooper scandal...

That was new.

If he’d been making the decisions tonight, he never would have chosen to expose another prominent family at his own gala.

The Knights didn’t gain anything by creating unnecessary enemies.

Unless...

Ryan had his own reasons.

A personal score to settle.

Edward didn’t ask.

Not tonight.

Instead, he raised one hand.

"Remove her."

His voice was flat.

"She’s ruined this evening long enough."

Everyone knew he meant Samantha.

For a brief moment...

Something inside Samantha broke.

Then survival instinct took over.

If she was going down—

She wasn’t going alone.

She jerked free from one of the guards and pointed straight across the ballroom.

At Ethan.

"Why should I be the only one?"

Her voice cracked.

"The Knight family still has responsibilities!"

"The baby I’m carrying belongs to—"

Smack!

The slap echoed through the silent ballroom.

Ethan had crossed the distance in seconds.

His hand struck Samantha’s face so hard her head snapped sideways.

"Get her out of here."

His voice was low.

Dangerously cold.

"She’s embarrassing herself."

Inside, however, Ethan’s pulse was racing.

He glanced instinctively toward Edward.

His grandfather was already looking at him.

The disappointment in Edward’s eyes was worse than anger.

Ethan realized his mistake the instant it happened.

By silencing Samantha...

He had practically confirmed she was telling the truth.

Edward looked at him for a long moment before speaking.

"Remove her."

This time, there was no room for discussion.

The Knight family couldn’t allow Samantha to publicly reveal that Ethan was the father of her unborn child.

Not after everything that had happened tonight.

Ethan stood frozen.

Knowing the real reckoning would come later.

Only Ryan remained untouched by the chaos.

He calmly lifted his bourbon from the table.

Took another slow sip.

As security dragged Samantha toward the ballroom doors, she twisted violently, her tear-filled eyes locking onto him.

"Ryan..."

Her voice was hoarse with desperation.

"I don’t believe you never loved me."

"Tell me..."

"Was any of it real?"