Elise was playing the long game.
She had Zoey hire a fleet of internet trolls to spam the comment section of Fleur’s official account. Within less than an hour, Fleur’s page was completely overrun.
When Anna Olsen called, Fleur was at a salon getting a full-body spa treatment. Seeing the caller ID, she signaled the staff to stop and step out. Once the room was empty, she sat up and picked up the phone. "Yes?"
"Fleur, tell me the truth. Did you plagiarize?"
Fleur froze. A flash of guilt crossed her eyes, but she quickly composed herself. "Why would you suddenly ask that?" she asked in her usual sweet, gentle voice. "Did something happen?"
"People online are saying your videos look exactly like those of a content creator named ’Selin.’ Selin’s videos were all posted way before yours, but for some reason, they vanished five years ago. Now everyone is claiming you stole all your content from her!"
Fleur gripped her phone, adopting an innocent tone. "Anna, I didn’t plagiarize."
"Fleur, this is a critical moment. We’re doing this show specifically to steal the spotlight from Rina Harper. The boss spent a fortune insisting on promoting you. This is a rare opportunity, and absolutely nothing can go wrong on your end!"
"I know. I really didn’t plagiarize."
Fleur sounded incredibly firm, but Anna had already checked out Selin’s old videos before making the call. The style and content overlapped so perfectly that it couldn’t possibly be a coincidence.
Remembering how Fleur had always refused to show her face in the past, Anna strongly suspected she was guilty. After all, Selin’s videos came first, meaning anyone looking at the timeline would conclude Fleur was the thief.
"Fleur, I need to remind you," Anna said severely, "President Winston values your original creativity. If your videos are stolen, your worth to him changes entirely. You need to understand that. Do you get it?"
Fleur frowned, a flash of resentment passing through her eyes. Still, she maintained her stance. "I know how rare President Winston’s investment is. That’s exactly why I wouldn’t dare take the risk of lying to you. But I really didn’t plagiarize."
"But the content is practically identical," Anna sighed, her tone softening slightly. "Fleur, we’ve worked together for years. We’re a team—we sink or swim together. Can you just give me the real story?"
Fleur stayed silent.
Anna grew anxious. "It’s fine. Even if you did copy her, the show hasn’t been officially announced yet. There’s still time to fix this. We can come clean to President Winston before it blows up into a massive scandal and try to salvage the situation. Do you understand what I’m saying?"
Fix this?
Knowing the company’s track record, their "fix" would likely mean sacrificing her to save their own reputation. Alarm bells rang in Fleur’s mind. She had fought too hard for this opportunity to let it go now.
Her mind raced, and she quickly made a decision. Taking a deep breath, she said, "Anna, let me tell you the truth. Selin didn’t actually disappear."
On the other end of the line, Anna paused. "What do you mean by that?"
"I mean that whether it’s ’Red Bloom’ or ’Selin,’ they’re both me."
"What?!" Anna’s voice spiked. "Fleur, you can’t just make things up!"
"We’ve worked together for so many years. Don’t you trust me?"
When profits were on the line, the actual truth didn’t matter.
Sure enough, after half a minute, Anna spoke up again. "Fleur, are you absolutely certain every word of this is true?"
"Anna, would I joke about something like this? If I weren’t Selin, the real owner would expose me the moment the show airs and she sees me claiming her identity. I’d be shooting myself in the foot. I wouldn’t dare lie about this."
"As long as you know the stakes," Anna said, her tone finally relaxing. "As long as you didn’t plagiarize, we can manage the rest. Ignore the internet for now. I need to report this to the executives first. Wait for my cue on how we proceed."
"Okay," Fleur replied obediently.
The call ended.
As Fleur lowered her phone, she realized her palms were slick with sweat. Fortunately, Anna was driven purely by self-interest. Fleur knew her manager still had doubts, but because she couldn’t afford to lose a major player like President He, she had to buy into the lie.
As for the real Selin...
A cold smirk played on Fleur’s lips as she dialed a number. After three rings, the line connected.
"Fleur, love," a deep, resonant male voice answered, speaking with a distinct British accent.
"Ryan, I’m so sorry. I know I shouldn’t bother you again, but I really have no choice this time..."

Comments
The readers' comments on the novel: Walking Away While Pregnant: Dear Ex-Husband, I Don't Love You Anymore