Revenge is Best Served After Reborn (James)
Chapter 457

The other trainees feared Shirley might do something dreadful, and scattered to hide in corners.

Backstage, Johnny witnessed the scene, utterly shocked and speechless. "Oh my God, what's up with Shirley? Has she lost her mind? Does she not realize we're in the middle of filming?" "Mr. Ricardo and Mr. Burke are here. Can we even continue the show with this chaos?"

Hearing this, Julian frowned. Could this be Sophie's doing?

"I'm the team leader of the trainees at Aldridge Global, Shirley."

Shirley introduced herself in front of the camera, but the director, fuming with anger, said to the security guards at the door, "Are you all blind? Get her out of here, now!"

The security guards rushed forward, but Shirley, unafraid, pulled out a small knife from her pocket and charged towards Sophie in the audience.

"Ahhh!" The crowd screamed in terror, scattering in all directions, leaving the director clueless.

"Don't move! Or I'll kill her!"

Shirley shouted while whispering into Sophie's ear, "Don't think I don't know who you are!" After that, she violently ripped off the mask from Sophie's face.

James, who was previously unmoved by the turn of events, saw Sophie's face, and his pupils dilated in shock. "Sophie!"

James wanted to step forward, but Shirley pressed the knife harshly against Sophie's neck.

"Don't come any closer! Stay back!"

Shirley's eyes were bloodshot, like a wild beast ready to pounce at any moment.

"If it weren't for you! I wouldn't have been kicked out of Aldridge Global! My feelings for Julian wouldn't have been exposed to everyone! Sophie, you deserve to die!" Shirley seemed so agitated that she might stab Sophie any second.

Vanessa, sitting in the VIP area, stood up nervously and said, "Call the police! Come on!"

Her words, seemingly in concern for Sophie, only further infuriated Shirley.

Realizing this, James yelled, "Shut up!"

Vanessa was startled by James' shout and immediately fell silent.

Ricardo frowned and said, "Shirley, what do you think you're doing?"

"I don't want to do anything. I just want to ruin her! And ruin this show!"

Shirley's hands trembled. "I've put so much into this show! But just before it began, Aldridge Global kicked me out! I have to pay a huge penalty fee! I have no way out. I can only do this!"

As the standoff continued, Sophie simply smiled and whispered in a volume only the two of them could hear, "Was it Vanessa who made you do this?"

"It has nothing to do with anyone else! I just want your life!"

"You take my life, but Julian still won't like you. You won't continue in the show, and you'll still face a huge penalty fee. Who will pay it for you? I think Vanessa will."

Sophie continued whispering to Shirley, and Shirley's grip on the knife loosened a bit. Sophie said, "Now, as you wished, the show is ruined. Vanessa probably requested you to kill me during the chaos. She would then pay off your penalty fee. Even if you killed me, Vanessa could hire the best team to claim you had a mental breakdown and get you released without charges. Additionally, she would give you a large sum of money to start anew. Am I right?"

Realizing Sophie knew everything, Shirley paled. "You..."

"She must have told you that by killing me, Julian would be yours, and the show wouldn't air, which would appease your grudge. Eventually, she would pay your penalty fee, give you money, and ensure you're released without charges. It's a lucrative deal, isn't it?"

Sophie chuckled lightly and continued, "Shirley, I initially thought you had some brains, but now it seems you're really dumb."

"What do you mean?"

"If she abandons you, what will you do?"

"You're lying! She promised me everything, and we signed a contract!" Shirley blurted out, only to realize she had fallen into Sophie's trap.

James noticed something was off, and immediately looked at Vanessa, whose expression had also darkened.

Sophie raised an eyebrow and said, "Who do you think you are? And who is she? Faking a contract is something Vanessa can easily do. Why would she spend tens of millions on you? Clearly, once you kill me, you'd be facing the death penalty. If she ignores you, she'll never have any trouble. If you try to implicate her, she could simply accuse you of making false accusations. With the White family's legal resources, she wouldn't have to take any responsibility."

Hearing this, Shirley wavered again.

One option was to spend tens of millions to take Sophie's life. The other was to spend only on legal fees to get rid of both Sophie and a potential threat who knew too much. It was evident the latter was more cost-effective.

"If you wanted to ruin the show to vent your anger, you've succeeded. If you stop now, I can ensure you're safe."