The Ex-Wife's Burning Elegance novel Chapter 1154

Three days later, Joshua told her the company’s network was finally restored. There wouldn’t be any more incidents—at least, not from the same breach.

But while their cybersecurity was back up and running, what had already been stolen was gone for good.

They could tweak their plans, but most partnership agreements were set in stone; changing them now would be nearly impossible.

Israel now had a clear picture of Stella’s next intended business target—he could easily intercept their deals before they even got off the ground.

The only way to avoid being cut out was to drop those contracts entirely.

But walking away wasn’t much different than being muscled out.

It was then that Joshua suddenly made a suggestion.

“What if we put together a fake proposal?” he said. “Hit Israel hard while he’s distracted. If he’s busy cleaning up his own mess, he won’t have the time to come after us.”

Stella had considered this tactic before.

The problem was, making Israel believe the bait was real wouldn’t be easy.

Israel wasn’t stupid; a deal that appeared out of nowhere would instantly raise his suspicions.

She voiced her concern.

Joshua just smiled, a sly edge to his expression. “Trust me. I have a way.”

Just then, Stella’s phone rang.

On the other end, Aicken’s voice was tense.

“Ms. Cameron, you’re in the news.”

Stella’s brows drew together. “What news?”

Aicken wouldn’t call for just any headline—this had to be something serious.

“It’s negative press about the company. I’ve already contacted PR to try and suppress the story, but our tech team says it can’t be taken down. Apparently, a top-tier hacker released it. We don’t have permission to delete the posts.”

His eyes turned thoughtful, dark with calculation.

“This is the perfect opportunity,” he said quietly.

Stella caught on instantly. “If I call in the PR team now and hold a late-night press conference… I just acquired the Pearce Group, so the whole country is watching. Now there’s a scandal about me all over the news. Everyone will assume I’m overwhelmed and distracted—they’ll let their guard down.”

Joshua’s lips curled into a smile. “Star, you’re getting sharper by the day.”

That night, Stella held a press conference, inviting all the major media outlets for a carefully orchestrated damage-control campaign.

The journalists had all been handpicked, and every question was designed to cast Stella in a favorable light.

But online, the public wasn’t buying it. The insults and accusations kept pouring in.

Stella doubled down—she brought in a PR team and hired social media managers to help sway public opinion. For a few days, the tide seemed to turn, but then it swung back just as viciously. The backlash was relentless.

Finally, Stella could take no more. She addressed the rumors herself, posting a personal statement online. It backfired spectacularly—rather than clearing her name, she found herself on the verge of being canceled by the entire internet.