Farewell to Love: The CEO's Desperate Chase novel Chapter 261

Emilia gave her friend’s arm a reassuring pat.

“I’ll handle it,” she promised.

The finals. Time to take off the mask. After tonight, no one would have reason to doubt her.

After double-checking her costume, Emilia allowed herself a brief rest before heading out that afternoon for the Voice of the Divine dress rehearsal.

Every show had a rehearsal to ensure the live broadcast went smoothly. The only one she’d missed was the very first—she’d still been bedridden in the hospital at the time.

Later, Christian had used her medical records to request a leave of absence on her behalf, just quietly changing the date to make it look like she’d been in the hospital ten days earlier.

That little trick was the very reason Vivienne started to suspect Serena was Christian’s secret lover.

Normally, rehearsals were a solitary affair—everyone focused on their own performance and stage setup. But this time, something was different.

Backstage, while Emilia was still waiting for her turn, one of the other contestants, Beatty, sauntered over.

Beatty perched herself on the edge of Emilia’s makeup table, looking down at her with a sly grin.

“Serena, I can’t believe you actually showed up,” Beatty drawled.

Emilia was wearing a plain mask, so she just glanced up at Beatty, unfazed.

“Why wouldn’t I?” Emilia replied coolly.

Beatty let out a laugh—a little too loud, a little too forced. “Have you not been online lately? You haven’t seen what people are saying about you?”

“What are they saying?” Emilia was genuinely curious to see what angle Beatty was playing.

Everything had been fine through the previous rounds of the live shows. Now, right at the end, here came the intimidation tactics.

Beatty didn’t answer immediately. Instead, she grabbed her tablet, pulled up a webpage, and handed it to Emilia.

Emilia glanced at the screen. It was filled with harsh headlines about Serena:

#KickSerenaOutOfTheIndustry

“How noble of you,” she said flatly, calling Beatty’s bluff.

Every contestant had a talent agency backing them. News that the show was safe from cancellation was common knowledge among the agencies. Beatty was well aware.

This little performance was a joke.

Beatty had been runner-up in the last round. The vote gap between her and Serena was huge. If Serena dropped out now, Beatty would likely win the whole thing.

After all, the semifinals had already produced the top three. For the finals, previously eliminated singers were invited back for a few fun performances and games, but the competition was really between the three of them.

If Serena was out, the odds would suddenly be fifty-fifty between the remaining two.

“Come on, we’re all professionals here. Just say what you mean,” Emilia pressed.

Beatty didn’t respond. Instead, her eyes darted out toward the audience.

Emilia followed her gaze. Out in the front row, Theodore Glenn was seated, deep in conversation with a member of the production crew.