Betrayed and Dumped: She Rose Stronger Than Ever novel Chapter 480

“Ms. Knotts, I got everything you asked for.” Joan took the camera and flipped through the photos, her smile growing wider with each shot. “These turned out really well. The angles are just right.” She lingered on the one of the check being handed over. The child’s profile was perfectly in the frame. Anyone who saw it would start to wonder about Stephen and the kid. That was exactly what Joan was after.

“Sort these out and send them to the toughest paparazzi you can find online,” she said.

The man hesitated. A few days ago, he’d seen Joan’s post looking for a photographer. He thought it was just a regular gig. He hadn’t expected it to be undercover work. Now she wanted him to leak the photos to gossip sites. He frowned. “Are you sure about this? Sending these to the paparazzi is kind of an invasion of privacy, isn’t it?”

He hadn’t been close enough to hear what Joan and the refined-looking man had talked about, but the scene was obvious. One man, one woman, and a child sitting together. The man handing over a check. It didn’t take a genius to figure it out. That kid was probably the man’s illegitimate son. And the man looked like he came from real money, maybe some big-shot CEO or the son of a politician. Just thinking about it made him nervous.

Before he could say no, Joan handed him a black bag. She unzipped it, and through the small opening, he caught a glimpse of what was inside. His eyes went wide, and he swallowed hard.

Joan smiled. “Relax. It’s all cash. No one can trace it back to you. It’s safe.”

He hesitated a little longer, then finally nodded. “Alright. I’ll send them.” Worst case, he could take the money and disappear. With that much cash, he could cover his expenses for years.

A few days later, the story blew up everywhere. Trending topics, local news, it was all anyone could talk about. The heir to the Duncan family—the most powerful family in Coralbridge—had a secret child. And this time, it wasn’t just rumors. There were photos, and they looked real.

The internet went wild.

“No way, the Duncan family? I know that guy, he’s gorgeous!”

“I know, right? Even in this blurry photo, you can barely see his face, but he still looks amazing. I’m impressed.”

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