Chloe Pulls Her Old Trick Again

The chaotic energy of the production set escalated outside the rundown shelter, a jarring contrast to the quiet tension inside. Shouts from the directors, the heavy thud of equipment cases hitting the muddy ground, and the blinding flash of setup lights echoed through the damp island air. A nervous staff member in a rain-slicked jacket broke away from the main crew and hurried toward the shadows of the leaky shed. His boots squelched in the thick mud as he approached. He headed straight for Gael, though his eyes darted toward Sienna, who was still resting her injured foot against the damp dirt floor.

"Mr. Montgomery," the producer murmured, keeping his voice deferential and low, terrified of offending the billionaire. "We're about to resume filming the main broadcast. The cameras will be live in two minutes. Would you like to head back to your private suite for now?"

Gael had arrived without warning during the production break. Letting a superstar of his untouchable caliber appear on the live feed of a low-tier, despised contestant like Sienna was not part of the network's script. They wanted a grand, hyped-up entrance for him, not a dirty corner of a leaky shed sharing a frame with the internet's current punching bag.

Gael lifted his gaze. His expression remained calm and detached. "No need," he replied, dismissing the producer with a casual wave of his elegant hand.

The staff member swallowed hard, forced to adapt on the fly. He offered a tight nod and backed away, sneaking one last, envious look at Sienna. He figured she had hit the jackpot. Earning screen time with Gael Montgomery was a golden ticket to overnight fame. The crew silently agreed to keep Sienna’s stream offline for a few more minutes, planning to unleash the superstar’s massive traffic later for maximum impact once the show went live.

Sienna stared at the man sitting beside her. Her face remained deadpan. She had no interest in his fame or his traffic. "So if I don't agree to treat you, are you going to keep sticking to me like glue?"

The dazzling, harsh production lights filtered through the gaps in the wooden roof, casting a golden aura over Gael’s features. With the stark shadows playing across his sculpted jaw and sharp cheekbones, he looked less like a mortal man and more like a descending god. A charming, almost roguish smile curled his thin lips. The aloof superstar persona vanished, replaced by a magnetic, dangerous charm.

"Miss Lockwood, do you not like me?" he asked.

Sienna stared at him, silently judging his behavior as borderline harassment. If he did not possess such a striking face, she would have kicked him out of her shelter already. Her silence was answer enough.

"What can I do?" Gael murmured. His dark gaze lowered, taking on a quiet, intense allure that sparkled at the corners of his eyes. "I value my life, and it's rare to meet someone who might actually save it. To stay alive, I'll have to stick to you without shame."

Sienna scoffed, folding her arms over her chest. "Do your fans know you act like this?" she shot back. The untouchable, cold public persona he projected to the world was clearly a crafted act, hiding a relentless and stubborn man underneath.

Before Gael could reply, a soft, sickening sweet voice rang out through the muddy camp.

"Sienna!"

The tone was laced with dramatic worry. Sienna looked out past the shelter's entrance. Chloe approached through the mud, a perfect picture of delicate grace dressed in a pristine white dress that seemed immune to the island's grime. She was nestled limply, almost tragically, in Declan's strong arms.

Declan supported her weight, his face tight with genuine concern as he helped her take painstakingly slow, unsteady steps toward the booth. She moved at a snail's pace. Every few seconds, she would let out a soft gasp, and her eyes would brim with fresh, glistening tears. Declan looked frantic. He kept offering to scoop her up and carry her through the muck, but Chloe refused every single time with surprising determination, insisting she could walk on her own.

Sienna narrowed her eyes. Her hands curled into loose fists at her sides. Here came Chloe. The girl who took her place, stole her family, and orchestrated her ruin in her past life. Chloe never missed a chance to make Sienna look terrible in front of the Lancasters. The broadcast had barely resumed, and Chloe was already staging her 'caring brother, devoted sister' dynamic.

She engineered this display to provoke and hurt Sienna. The goal was obvious. Make Declan look like the ultimate doting brother over a minor scrape, rub it in Sienna's face, and trigger an ugly, jealous meltdown on camera for the world to mock.

In her past life, the mere sight of Declan doting on the girl who stole her place would have shattered Sienna's heart into jagged pieces. She would have yelled, cried, and demanded justice, only to be branded a hysterical villain. Now? Sienna felt nothing but icy detachment. She was over the Lancasters and their toxic games. Watching Chloe put on this pathetic, theatrical act, Sienna only found it laughable. She figured only the Lancasters possessed a collective IQ low enough to buy this garbage.

Spotting Sienna standing near an unidentified tall man in the shadows of the shed, Chloe sped up her supposedly unsteady steps. She failed to hide the malicious excitement dancing in her eyes. A man! Sienna was hiding in a shed with a random man!

Chloe raised her sweet voice, projecting her words for the benefit of the two camera crews trailing her every move. "Sienna, who are you hanging out with? You two look pretty cozy when you whispered in each other's ear. Careful, the livestream's about to start. You don't want to get caught on camera."

It was a calculated shout. Chloe had her own camera operator, and Declan had his. Both livestreams were up and running, broadcasting live to millions. By raising her voice in mock concern, she framed Sienna as a shameless woman fraternizing in the dark, creating a scandalous scene for the viewers.

Sensing the potential for massive buzz, the filming crew turned their heavy lenses away from Chloe's tragic limp. They pointed the cameras straight into the dim shelter, focusing directly on Sienna and her mysterious companion.

As Chloe closed the distance and finally got a clear look at the man's face sitting in the shadows, her sweet, innocent mask shattered into a million pieces.

"M-Mr. Montgomery..." Chloe’s eyes widened in shock. Her voice choked in her throat. Her delicate frame trembled against Declan's chest, and this time, the shaking was genuine.

The untouchable entertainment mogul was sitting in the mud, shoulder to shoulder with the woman she despised. How could Gael be here? Why was he with Sienna? Of all the people on this island, it had to be him. His top-tier status in the entertainment world and his terrifying family background operated on a plane of existence the Lancasters could only dream of reaching.

The internet livestream erupted. Viewers lost their collective minds over the legendary addition to the cast. They catapulted Gael—and the mysterious, stunning woman standing right beside him—to the top of every social media trending list in mere seconds.

[Damn! It's Gael. The Primal Survival squad is legendary. They actually managed to bring in Gael.]

[I knew there was going to be a surprise guest, but I never imagined it would be this epic.]

[Help! I'm so hyped I can barely breathe. Look at him sitting in that dirty shed like a king on a throne.]

Instead of the wave of vitriol and slut-shaming that Chloe had orchestrated, the live chat buzzed with pure, fascinated curiosity. Thanks to Chloe's loud accusation, the heavy lenses captured Sienna standing right beside him, bathing her in the same viral spotlight.

[Who's that woman next to Gael? Are they getting cozy? Were they whispering in each other's ear?]

[Gael's never had a woman by his side. This is literally the first time he’s allowed anyone in his personal space.]

[@Jamie, I need all the information you can find about her, ASAP. She looks gorgeous even in that messy shelter.]

The chat remained devoid of the hate Chloe desperately wanted. Nobody was trashing Sienna. Nobody cared about Chloe's limp or Declan's doting act anymore. They only cared about the magnetic energy radiating from the two figures in the shed.

Snapping out of her frozen shock, Chloe realized the catastrophic mistake she had just made. A dark, intense resentment burned in her chest like battery acid. Her manicured fists balled tight at her sides, her nails digging deep into her palms.

Had she known the man in the shadows was Gael Montgomery, she would never have directed the cameras to capture them together. She had handed Sienna the biggest publicity boost of her life on a silver platter. Her plan to humiliate Sienna had backfired in her face, giving her rival an untouchable shield.

A poisonous, jealous obsession took root in Chloe's mind as she stared at the man's godly profile. She watched the way he sat beside Sienna, unbothered by the dirt, unbothered by the cameras, his attention focused solely on the woman Chloe hated most. The only woman in the world who deserved to stand next to a man like Gael Montgomery was her, and her alone.