Twisted Ties of Love

"How could you suddenly forget your ex-wife, who died in a fire, and start having feelings for her? Brett, I used to think you were a deeply emotional man, but now it seems you're not." Brett was seething with rage. "Don't mention her!"

"Just because you said not to, I will." Nathaniel taunted him, and the corner of his mouth stung from the wound as he spoke.

He noticed Izabella's reaction. If it had been before, she would have been frantic with worry, her eyes red with tears. But now she didn't even give him a warm glance. It stung his heart, the pain spreading from his chest to his throat.

Nathaniel pointed at Brett, letting his emotions out. "This is Brett, the good man praised by the internet, who loved his wife more than his life and built a theme park for her after she passed away. But do you know why his wife died? He was abusive. He caused her to miscarry twice, and she broke her leg. He refused to get her treatment, tied her to a wheelchair, and left her to burn alive in a fire at his own engagement party!"

Nathaniel's gaze swept over the crowd, a mocking smile on his face. "This is the man you want to marry. Do you still want to? He's a man who brings ruin to his own family."

People involuntarily stepped back when his gaze fell on them.

"Nathaniel!" Brett was burning with rage and grabbed the nearest chair to hurl at Nathaniel, but was stopped by Liam.

Nathaniel exaggerated, "See? He's violent!"

Brett knew Nathaniel was deliberately provoking him in front of Izabella to make everyone see his ugly side.

Nathaniel did this not for Izabella, but for the person who was dead inside her body.

What would Nathaniel do if he knew the truth?

Brett knew Nathaniel well. He could imagine what Nathaniel would do, but he would never allow it to happen.

He had to deal with Nathaniel before he died. Otherwise, who would protect Izabella once he was gone?

Nathaniel watched Brett's thoughtful expression, not knowing what he was thinking, but he wouldn't back down now that the "Bell" was involved.

He wiped the corner of his wounded mouth. Compared to before, Brett's punches seemed weaker. Though he was injured, Brett wasn't doing well either. Despite his face showing no sign of injury, his wounds were all in his belly.

Nathaniel was fond of sneaky tactics. In such a public setting, he naturally played the victim. So, he intentionally took a few punches, and when he hit back at Brett, he aimed for unseen places. Brett's slightly tilted body was a clear sign that his belly was hurting.

Nathaniel smiled slightly, looking at the expressionless Izabella, feeling a bit uneasy.

"Brett, how about this? Let Izabella choose who she wants to be with."

Brett calmed down and turned to look at Izabella.

Izabella thought, What did their fight have to do with her?

Izabella thought quietly for a while. It had probably been ten minutes. She had texted Casey Dempsey fifteen minutes ago. She wondered when his people would arrive.

Izabella considered the looks around her: "Why don't you guys keep fighting? Fight until one of you dies. Whoever is left just needs to give me half an hour and $100,000, and I'm willing to chat." Izabella's words were even more biting than Nathaniel's. They left people gasping for breath. Wasn't she afraid of angering both of them?

But there was a saying that people in love were fearless.

Nathaniel's eyes darkened slightly. When did "Bell" become so sharp-tongued? She used to be quiet around him, but now her words were like a knife, showing no mercy. Nathaniel sneered, "Bell, you sure know how to count money. $100,000 for half an hour of chat. If you were this smart before, you'd probably be richer than me by now."

"So, the old Bell is gone. Don't forget, Nathaniel, I'm Izabella. While President Windham might not be a good person, neither are you. There are many good people in the world; why do I have to choose between you two?"

Her words were sharp, and her actions were foolish. This was Nathaniel's thought, but he had to admit that Izabella's words were like a needle in his heart. His face darkened, and his smile started to twist. He had thought Izabella was cold to him because they hadn't seen each other in over a year and she was still mad at him. But now it seemed she wasn't mad at him; she just didn't care about him. She saw him and Brett as the same, which was worse than if she hated him.

"Izabella, do you believe me when I say I can make it impossible for you to survive in the entertainment industry?"This belongs © NôvelDra/ma.Org.

Such a blatant threat-truly, he was no different from Brett.

Izabella's gaze didn't falter. She tilted her head slightly, her red dress making her look as proud as a plum blossom.

"If you want to make it impossible for me to survive in the entertainment industry, you'll have to see if President Windham agrees, right, President Windham?" Brett hadn't revealed her truth of rebirth, which meant her decision to gamble with her life three years ago successfully made Brett fall in love with her.

And what she had do was to use Brett's feelings as a counterattack.

Izabella knew she couldn't deal with these two men with her current abilities. It was better to let them tangle with each other and hurt each other, and the best outcome would be if they both ended up losing. When Brett saw Izabella looking at him, his gaze softened.

Nathaniel clenched his fists, his chest heaving. "Do you really think he'd waste his time on a stand-in like you?"

As soon as the words left his mouth, he fell silent. How could he have forgotten? The word "stand-in" was the last thing she wanted to hear.

He carefully studied Izabella's face, but she didn't seem to be bothered by his words at all.

Nathaniel was about to continue, but Izabella cut him off: "You talk as if you've never treated me as a stand-in before. Do you need me to remind you of what happened that year?"

Izabella's voice was calm, without any fluctuation.

Nathaniel looked at her unfamiliar expression. He was having a hard time breathing. After a moment, he said in a soft voice, "Sometimes I wonder if you've changed your heart. You're so different than before."

Brett frowned slightly.

Izabella smiled and reminded him again: "Haven't I told you? The Bell who was willing to be your stand-in is gone. She's not coming back, don't understand why you're here. I'm not going back with you. Even if I did, it wouldn't be the same me."

Nathaniel looked confused; he didn't understand what Izabella was trying to say.

He looked at her with the same face, eyes, nose, mouth, and hands. It was all the same person.

If it was a split personality, it could be cured. Why couldn't she go back to the way she was before?

He didn't believe it. He wanted to bring her back. If he couldn't take her away now, he'd wait a couple of days. He wanted to prove it himself. See if her split personality could be cured. Nathaniel blinked, unaware that his eyes were already red.

Brett began to cough again. His coughs were not as violent as before, but every cough caused pain in his abdominal wound.

The scene was silent; only the sound of Brett's cough could be heard.

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"Are you two going to fight again? If not, please compensate for the damages. The staff still need to

clean up." Izabella said, then turned to Brad, "Mr. York, are we stil

working today?"

Brad looked at the damaged equipment on the ground and shook his head. "Let's take a couple days off; we'll continue once the new equipment arrives."

"I'll be on my way then."

Brad heard her casual tone. If he hadn't witnessed everything, he would've doubted if she was really Izabella.

How could she be so calm?

Two men were fighting over her, yet she left without a care in the world after making some sarcastic comments. Didn't she care at all?

Brad was not simple-minded. Today's incident was a big deal. If it got leaked online, it would definitely harm Izabella's reputation.

The crowd was filled with ill-intentioned gazes.

He needed to find a solution, but the atmosphere was so tense that no one wanted to intervene.

When Izabella was about to leave, both Brett and Nathaniel panicked and yelled at the same time.

"Don't go!"

"You can't leave!"

Izabella was annoyed. She hated trouble. Ever since she was reborn, she had been trying to keep a low profile, always choosing to sit in the corner.

When did she become the center of attention? Fame was a curse, especially when it involved these two men. She'd rather not have it.

Others might be jealous, but Izabella wanted to stay as far away as possible.

Luckily, she spotted a familiar figure running towards them.

"Someone's coming, not a staff member."

"Who's this now?"

"Another investor?"

"Wait, he looks familiar? His eyes look like my idol, Casey?"

"Casey? Here? Are you daydreaming? Why would he be here?"

The actress froze, her eyes wide open. "No, that's Casey. I'm his die-hard fan. I'd recognize him anywhere. If he's not Casey, I'll write my name backwards!"