The Hidden Empress Stripping Her Secrets After Divorce novel Chapter 97

Dusk bled into the city skyline like spilled ink, and streetlights flickered on one after another, tracing the city's silhouette into a brilliant river of stars. Lyra merged the white Porsche—a gift from Christian—into the heavy evening traffic.

The faint, sweet scent of gardenia air freshener lingered in the cabin, jarring terribly with Lyra's tightly wound nerves. Her hands gripped the steering wheel, her palms slick with sweat and her fingertips icy cold. The GPS directed her toward an old, repurposed creative park on the west side of the city—The Willow Club was buried deep within that seemingly artsy but incredibly shady district.

Red light.

Lyra hit the brakes, her gaze drifting aimlessly out the passenger window. That diverging road led straight to the luxury apartment complex on the east side. She remembered from the tracking files that Evelyn lived there now.

A crazed thought suddenly spiked in her mind: flip a U-turn and go confront Evelyn right this second.

But to say what? Interrogate her about the media leaks? Beg her for mercy? Or... drag her down into mutual destruction?

A fierce surge of adrenaline made her grip the steering wheel until her muscles ached. A voice deep inside her screamed—go find her! Tear off that eternally calm, composed mask of hers! Make her taste what sheer panic and agony actually felt like!

The light turned green.

An impatient honk blared from the car behind her. Lyra snapped back to reality, took a sharp breath, and slammed on the gas pedal.

No. She couldn't go.

Facing Evelyn now would only ruin her own plans. That woman's mind was as deep and unfathomable as the ocean; confronting her blindly would only expose more weaknesses and send her straight into a trap. Wasn't Evelyn's greatest weapon that placid, dead-eyed stare as she watched people drown in her calculated schemes?

Lyra bit down hard on her lower lip, a ruthless glint flashing in her eyes. If she wanted to win, she had to be colder and infinitely more vicious than Evelyn.

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