Twisted Ties of Love
Chapter 458

Since the premiere of "Who's the Ghost," Izabella had been the talk of the town, with her acting skills receiving renewed recognition.

She was impressive on reality TV, but she's even more stunning on the big screen.

In "Who's the Ghost," Izabella outshone all others. Her skills were top-notch, earning her not only a handsome paycheck but a multitude of fans. She's hit the jackpot in both fame and fortune.

Watching Izabella now, people were forgetting that she was once universally criticized. Today's Izabella was like a phoenix reborn from the ashes.

Sometimes, when they saw her on screen, people can't help but wonder why they ever criticized Izabella. How can someone so radiant deserve any criticism?

This Izabella was so captivating, she's like a sun that can't be ignored.

Her co-star, Casey, also showcased his acting skills in this film. The two of them worked in perfect harmony, marking a beautiful ending to the movie.

In the film, they played a married couple who, from the very beginning, were like the title of the movie, "Who's the Ghost."

The line between human and ghost was blurred, but by the end, it no longer mattered.

Some people lived in the world but felt like they were in hell, while others were in hell pretending to be in the world. The film presented a tale of redemption, culminating in the wife gradually disappearing in her husband's arms, drawing tears from the audience.

The husband came to understand the meaning of life, cherishing the world with the memory of his wife.

After the release of Izabella's film, Brett secretly booked cinemas in various cities to exclusively show "Who's the Ghost."

It can be said that he alone contributed three hundred million to the box office.

Izabella knew about this. Whatever Brett wanted to do, she'd let him. The money he was offering was too good to pass up.

Brett would watch Izabella's film whenever he had free time. Even after watching it over twenty times, he never got tired of it. The most popular topic in his company, aside from work, was this blockbuster film. At some point, he couldn't escape hearing "Izabella" everywhere. More and more people were talking about her, but Brett felt that Izabella was drifting further away. His world suddenly felt empty and devoid of everything.

Brett, diagnosed with lung cancer, quit smoking. He refused chemotherapy, which could prolong his life, but he felt that being bedridden was worse than death.

The cancer had a significant impact on his body. He was not only in pain, but his hair started to fall out. To prevent further hair loss, Brett got a buzz cut. His handsome features looked good with any hairstyle. With his forehead exposed, his facial features appeared more defined. Where his eyes once sparkled, there was now no light.

Brett started watching the film again. Every time the female lead's spirit faded away, he would start crying.

Although it was a movie, it reflected real events. Wasn't Izabella also lost to him in a similar way?

Izabella's performance was flawless. She brought out the essence of the script, fully immersing herself in the role. It felt like she wasn't acting, but rather, she was the character herself.

Brett often searched the internet for news about Izabella and read praises from her fans.

They described Izabella as a radiant beauty, like a blooming red rose basking in the sunlight, stunning and eye-catching.

Brett had seen this Izabella before and had etched her image deep into his soul.

That wilted red rose had sprouted new buds, blossoming even more brilliantly than before.

Brett never truly possessed this "red rose." When he had her, he ruined it. And now that she had come back to life, she no longer belonged to him.

Upon receiving news that Kristin had died, Liam was shocked.

After being tortured by Nathaniel for eight long months, her death was horrifying.

Liam had seen the pictures and had nightmares for several nights. Just looking at her wounds, it was clear that Kristin's last eight months were worse than hell.

"Are we sure she's dead?"

Liam replied, "Yes, it's her. I had someone verify the DNA."

Ever since Nathaniel learned of Bell's death and lost the use of his legs, he vented all his anger and murderous intent on Kristin. That she managed to hang on for eight months was already a miracle. When Kristin died, she was already insane. To her, death was a release.

The company's old shareholders were already discontent with Nathaniel, but they dared not voice their grievances due to his power.

Brett, in the meantime, had secretly started to make his move. Now, with just one final strike, the Windham family's assets in J City could be transferred under his name. Nathaniel could also be imprisoned for murder, a crime punishable by death.

Nathaniel was a ticking time bomb. When Kristin was still alive, he had an outlet for his rage. Now that she's dead, he might shift his attention back to Izabella.

Nathaniel was a mentally unstable madman. There was no guarantee he wouldn't blame Bell's death on Izabella.

Coughing, Brett tasted blood in his throat. It had been a year since he was diagnosed with lung cancer. The doctor had said that without hospitalization and chemotherapy, he had at most three years to live. A year had passed in the blink of an eye. He had at most two years left, maybe even less.

He could feel his body deteriorating. A light cough brought the taste of blood. He knew his body couldn't hold on much longer. But before he faded away, he must settle everything that threatened Izabella. Only then could he leave in peace.

"Is everything I asked you to prepare ready?"

Liam paused, his face pale, "President Windham, are you really going to quietly transfer all your assets to her name?"

"The sooner this is done, the sooner I can rest easy. I don't know how much longer I can hold on. I don't even know if I can live to see the sunrise tomorrow."

"You're being too pessimistic."

"It's not pessimism, it's reality," Brett said, pausing for a moment before calling out, "Where's Liam? You only truly understand the depth of a situation when it hits you personally. Wasn't Izabella in a similar state, awaiting her fate helplessly? I can't blame anyone but myself. If I had believed Izabella back then and shown her even a smidgen of kindness while she was lucid, we wouldn't be in this predicament." Just like Izabella's question: have you ever heard the summer cicadas in winter?

Summer cicadas don't sing in winter because their life span only covers one summer. When their song ceases, their life is over.

He was too late now, like trying to water a plant that had already withered. Was there any use?

For Izabella, this was undoubtedly a good ending.

The film "Who's the Ghost" grossed 6.5 billion, setting a record in domestic box office history, and it was a horror film at that. When most people thought of horror films, they thought of Hollywood, but surprisingly, a domestic film had made its mark. "Who's the Ghost" decided to expand its reach globally after screening domestically.

An investment of 80 million yielding 6.5 billion was beyond anyone's wildest dreams. This was Izabella's debut film, and its success had already surpassed many of the previous Academy Award winners. On the other hand, "Lost in Lumina" faltered before vanishing completely. The first wave of paid social media influencers were wasted funds.

In today's film market, the audience was discerning. They can recognize a good film, and the artificial hype created by these paid influencers can't sway them. Instead, it only cast a negative light on "Lost in Lumina", which not only failed in quality but also in public sentiment.

The loss from "Lost in Lumina" was incalculable. They had poured three billion into it, not to mention the marketing cost, paid trends, and influencers. All this was beyond estimation.

To break even, they needed a box office of at least 1.5 billion, but they hadn't even reached 700 million.

The biggest loser was undoubtedly Vivian. Before the film's release, she was confident that she could outshine Izabella. But who would have thought that she would be the one trampled underfoot?

Her debut film was met with harsh criticism. It was unlikely she would be offered more film roles and would have to stick to TV dramas, where the competition was fierce, and good scripts and directors were hard to come by. Vivian had hit rock bottom.

The box office flop was a heavy burden to bear. No one wanted to take the blame. The director, Mr. Hackett, was a renowned figure in the film industry, and so were the cast members. No one dared to offend them. As a result, all the blame fell on Vivian.

Vivian earned a new title, "Box Office Poison," tarnishing her once good reputation.

On Izabella's side, they celebrated as they should. The film, which had cost 80 million to produce and a further 100 million for post-production and marketing, had made a whopping 6.5 billion at the box office. After splitting profits and paying taxes, they had a net profit of around 4 billion.

The windfall also elevated The Maple Group's status, something Beck Dempsey noticed.

Despite being in different fields, Beck was surprised at how lucrative the entertainment industry was. A few months ago, he had thought of paying Izabella five million to leave Casey.

Later, Izabella turned the tables on him, demanding 995 million to leave Casey alone.

At that time, he had said that paying such a hefty amount might bankrupt The Maple Group.

But Izabella had been full of confidence, not caring about the company's money. Just six months later, Izabella had probably amassed a fortune of around seven or eight billion. Had she foreseen this day?

He felt a pang of regret, not for himself or Casey, but for Izabella.

Casey had landed a goldmine. Where had he found such a wife?

After some thought, Beck frowned deepened. He wondered what Izabella saw in Casey. Was it a momentary whim?

No matter what, he had to make sure Casey held on to her. Wives as lucrative as Izabella were hard to come by.

The Dempsey family was not short of money. Their assets could buy several of Izabella's companies.

Beck had never paid much attention to The Maple Group. What caught his eye was Izabella's potential to make money.

Beck had long considered retirement and traveling the world with his wife, but The Dempsey family couldn't function without a leader.

Casey showed no interest. When Beck decided to groom him as the successor, Casey simply refused and entered the entertainment industry.

Bringing Casey back was too late. It was impossible to start from scratch, and forcing him to work in the family company would only lead to resentment. Fortunately, they had a daughter.

Wendy Dempsey also had a knack for business, but she was more interested in managing online stores. She was a hundred percent unwilling to take over The Dempsey family business.