"How are you going to do that?"
Skylar and Priscilla both asked curiously.
Claire looked at Zara too.
Zara puffed out her chest. "With cash, obviously. I've got plenty of it, and there's nothing a heavy wallet can't buy-even justice!"
Pfft-
Claire couldn't hold back a laugh.
Skylar and Priscilla, however, actually thought it was a viable strategy.
"You know, I think your logic is flawlessly sound," Skylar nodded.
"With enough money, there's always someone willing to do the dirty work."
"We should put out a bounty. Not only for the cafeteria footage but for anyone who overheard Claire turning Sloane down to come forward as a witness."
"A massive reward will bring all the brave souls out of the woodwork!"
"Done. I'm totally in!" Zara agreed without skipping a beat.
Then, as if remembering something crucial, she whipped her head toward Claire.
Wait a minute. If Zara could afford it, Claire definitely could.
Claire was infinitely wealthier than her!
Word on the street was that during that major banquet, Padgett had transferred all
of his daughter's corporate shares directly to his granddaughter.
Claire was easily sitting on a multi-billion-dollar net worth!
And this billionaire heiress had the nerve to sit there and say she wasn't "powerful enough"?
What did that make the rest of them? Plankton?
"Claire, why don't you just have your brother handle it? Pulling the cafeteria footage would be a piece of cake for him, right?"
Claire guessed Zara wasn't talking about Owen, but rather her oldest brother, Norris.
Norris was a mathematics professor right here at the university.
For him, getting access to the security room would be effortlessly simple.
"We'll see," Claire said, dismissing the idea.
Still, just to be safe, she flipped open her laptop.
Priscilla only hung around the dorm a bit longer to make sure Claire grasped the situation before heading back to her own room.
Claire woke up early the next morning. Of course, she still wasn't up before Lex.
By the time Claire rolled out of bed, Lex had already left for her part-time job.
Zara and Skylar were both fast
asleep, shoring softly. Claire got
ready and headed over to the net
apartment she owned directly across from the campus.
The building only had two units per floor. The Churchill family had bought it for her] Jong Before even started college.
The closets here were packed with Claire's wardrobe.
She kept very little in her dorm room simply because she had way too many clothes
to fit in a tiny shared closet.
Once back at her apartment, she tried on the elegant cocktail dress Owen had picked out for her. Satisfied, she swapped it out for at comfy hoodie and sweatpants and drove over to Sienna Darwin's villa.
She had an acupuncture session scheduled for Sienna today.
Sienna was steadily recovering. Thanks to Claire's medical intervention, she had narrowly avoided permanent paralysis.
Because of this, Sienna harbored immense gratitude toward her.
Knowing Claire was coming over, she had an absolute feast prepared for lunch.
Every single dish was one of Claire's favorites. You had to hand it to Sienna; she was incredibly observant.
She had made mental notes of exactly which dishes Claire reached for most during their previous meals together.
As they spent more time together, Claire started to notice a deeper issue.
Even though Sienna was a powerhouse A-list actress, some childhood trauma traits had stuck with her.
Namely, she was a bit of a people-pleaser.
The only reason she hadn't been eaten alive in the entertainment industry was because Karla had ruthlessly shielded her.
Otherwise, who knows how viciously people would have exploited her.
Take her cousin, for instance. The girl had been entirely unqualified to be her assistant.
But the moment Lillian cried and begged, Sienna had instantly caved.
If she hadn't been so soft-hearted, she never would have invited a wolf into her home.
"Sienna, you seem like you're in a pretty good mood today?"
Seeing a bright smile on Sienna's face—replacing her usual heavy gloom-Claire couldn't help but ask.
"I am. My lawyer called this morning and said the trial starts soon."
"No matter how hard Leon Byron tries to wriggle his way out of this, he's finally going to pay the price!"
Sienna despised Leon with every fiber of her being.
If he hadn't manipulated Lillian Cole into betraying her, she wouldn't be in this agonizing state right now.