The Million-Dollar Heart (Percival and Vivienne)
Chapter 278

Vivienne glanced meaningfully towards the entrance.

Percival smirked. "Even breaking his arms and legs won't be enough."

Eddy lunged at Vivienne, but Percival held back. He watched as Vivienne's silver needle plunged into Eddy's flesh.

He wasn't a doctor, so he didn't know where the needle had hit, but after watching the man go mad, he had to admit that Vivienne had quite the skill.

In front of everyone, Scott decided to hand Eddy over to the police.

To outsiders, he appeared to be a righteous man who was willing to turn against his own family for the sake of his daughter. But Percival saw through it. Scott wanted to save Eddy. Once Eddy was in police custody, his life would be spared.

Vivienne must have seen it too; that was why she decided to take matters into her own hands.

Having been with Vivienne for so long, he knew she didn't want blood on her hands, which was why she only crippled Eddy.

But this punishment was far too lenient.

Vivienne looked up at him as a smile suddenly spread across her face. "You only saw me breaking his arms and legs, but did you not notice that I fed him my specially prepared poison?"

Percival froze. He hadn't noticed.

Vivienne chuckled but said nothing more.

She had fed Eddy her special poison, shadowfall, when she attacked him.

This poison was refined from a hundred different toxic herbs. It was colorless and tasteless.

Shadowfall wouldn't instantly kill a person. Instead, it would slowly take over their body. It would feel like a million bugs were gnawing away at them, ultimately affecting their brain and slowly turning them into a lunatic.

Moreover, no medical method could detect the presence of this poison.

At that moment, Percival handed her a piece of strawberry cake. She took a bite and said nonchalantly, "Soon, he'd be wishing for death."

The hard part was wanting to die but not being able to.

At the moment, the sound of a piano started to fill the room.

Mila had chosen a rather cheerful piece for the evening.

Perhaps because of the incident that had just transpired, she decided to lighten up the atmosphere with her music.

Mila was indeed a skilled pianist. However, to a connoisseur, something was missing in her performance, especially in comparison to Debra's.

"Mila sure knows how to play the piano. She's a famous pianist, after all. Not to mention, she's incredibly talented and beautiful. When she stood with Scott earlier, they looked like the perfect couple." Someone in the crowd commented.

Most of them could only appreciate the beauty of the music but couldn't discern its imperfections.

"Isn't it? I heard that she hasn't remarried since her divorce from William Pendleton. The only man she's been close to is Scott. Don't you think she's into him?"

"You didn't know? It's not exactly a secret that she's into Scott. It's just that Scott hasn't made any moves."

"In my opinion, since Scott is still single and Mila is clearly into him, he might as well marry her. Especially since a beautiful and talented woman like Mila is hard to come by. Plus, she just helped save this banquet. She really does fit the part of the lady of the house."

"Wouldn't that mean that Vivienne will have a new mom soon?"

The whispers from the crowd grew louder. Mila, who was playing the piano, couldn't help but smile at the comments. She was rather pleased with herself, so she didn't even notice a few wrong notes. Calista, standing by the side, looked at Vivienne with a hint of malice and resentment in her eyes.

So, what if she was Mr. Percy's fiancée?

So, what if she was the Brooks family's young miss?

As long as her mother married Scott, she'd be the lady of the house, and Vivienne would have to live by her rules.

It was a known fact that stepmothers were hard to deal with, and being a stepdaughter was even harder. Especially when you have to live under the thumb of your stepmother.

Vivienne heard the whispers and lifted her cool eyes to look at the confident Mila on the stage.

She wanted to be her mother?

She'd have to see if she was even qualified to have such a thought.

Aside from her own mother, only Cordelia Wilson had the right to be called her mother.

Mila?

Who did she think she was?

Vivienne put down her cake and headed towards the stage.

She pulled up a chair and sat next to Mila.

Mila was taken aback since she was still playing. She almost stopped when she saw Vivienne.

Her brows furrowed as she wondered what Vivienne was up to.

Was she planning to play with her?

Could this country girl even play the piano?

Did she even understand music?

She hoped she wasn't planning on ruining her performance.

With these thoughts in mind, Mila abruptly stopped playing and looked at Vivienne. "Vivienne, what do you think you're doing?"

Vivienne gave her a glance. "Ms. Mila, playing by yourself seems a bit monotonous; how about I join you?"

The Brooks family was taken aback.

They knew Vivienne was a good pianist. She was, at the very least, better than Mila.

But why was she suddenly in the mood to play with Mila?

On the other side, Cecilia knew of Vivienne's talent, but the rest of the Ellington family didn't. Some were gleeful, hoping to see Vivienne make a fool of herself, while others were worried.

Mila frowned. "Vivienne, even though you're Scott's daughter, there's a time and place for everything. Your family just went through a scandal, and I'm trying to save your banquet. What do you think you're doing?"

Calista's face had darkened as well. She immediately chimed in. "Vivienne, playing the piano isn't as easy as you think. It's not about hitting a few random keys. Please step aside and stop disturbing my mother."

Vivienne's icy gaze swept over Mila and Calista. She didn't bother to respond; instead, she placed her hands on the piano keys as her fingers slowly and gracefully tapped out a melody.

She continued with the song that Mila had left unfinished.

But her tone and rhythm were far superior to Mila's.

Her speed was even faster, making the song sound more upbeat and uplifting.

The melodious tune filled the hall, and everyone felt their minds clearing and their moods improving slightly.

Mila and Calista were completely stunned.

What was happening?

How could this country bumpkin play the piano?

Vivienne turned her head and saw Mila's dumbfounded expression. "Aren't you going to play?" She indifferently asked.

Vivienne's question brought Mila out of her daze. After hearing Vivienne's rendition, a sense of panic unexpectedly rose in her heart. Vivienne was just too good.

She felt that her own skills were nowhere near comparable.

But with everyone watching her, if she didn't play, her reputation as a pianist would be tarnished.

Mila hesitated for a moment, then plucked up the courage to play alongside Vivienne.

But the first note she played was wrong.

Her mistake was glaringly obvious, and it clashed horribly with Vivienne's harmonious piano playing.