Nathan hesitated. "I'll admit, I couldn't stand that brat always picking on Liam, so I did speak up. But..."

He quickly added, "But I only spoke for myself. I never mentioned your name, Alexander. Maybe someone misheard."

Sebastian offered an icy smile. "Misunderstanding or not, the truth is easy enough to uncover. Mr. Prescott, you wouldn't be protecting an old friend, would you?"

Sebastian wasn't easily fooled. Having grown up with Alexander and Nathan, he could spot Nathan's lies instantly.

Alexander closed his eyes in disappointment. "Nathan, don't involve children in adult conflicts. This time, you've gone too far."

Nathan's face paled. He knew if Alexander decided to investigate, the truth would come out.

"I... I just wanted to teach him a small lesson, that's all. He's always bullying Liam—what was I supposed to do?"

The truth was, Nathan wanted to humiliate Amy, to strip her of the protection Sebastian and Oliver provided. With Sebastian constantly interfering, getting to Amy was nearly impossible.

Just like last time, when they froze Amy's assets and locked her out of her properties, Sebastian had immediately arranged for her to stay in one of his own apartments. Every time Nathan schemed against her, not only did he fail, but Amy somehow emerged stronger than before.

Last time, public backlash had been so severe that he became the villain everyone despised. Prescott Industries' stock plummeted for days.

His father had been furious, subjecting him to old-fashioned family discipline. The marks on his back still hadn't fully healed.

What hurt most was that, to salvage the family's reputation, his father had launched a PR campaign—for Amy. They spun the incident as a staged scandal, claiming they never intended to target their "charity ambassador."

Reginald Prescott had made it clear: if Nathan caused trouble for Amy again, he'd face dire consequences.

After all the chaos and wasted resources, Amy had walked away victorious. Nathan's resentment festered.

He was convinced the Kingsley family was secretly undermining him. Without their interference, crushing Amy would be effortless.

Now, he planned to use the same tactic that had isolated Liam—only this time, Oliver would be the target.

Yes, he had orchestrated Liam's bullying too. All to drive him away from Amy and closer to Victoria.

He'd enlisted some unsavory friends to humiliate Amy at a high-society event, then spread vicious rumors about her. Predictably, Liam had distanced himself from her afterward. Children were fragile that way.

Emboldened by that "success," Nathan was ready to try again. Even if caught, he could claim he was just defending Liam. Alexander wouldn't make a fuss over something so minor.

He never expected to be exposed so quickly.

But even if Alexander let it slide, Sebastian wouldn't.

Still, Nathan wasn't worried. He was Alexander's closest friend. Oliver hadn't actually been hurt—what was the big deal?

Alexander, seeing Nathan's utter lack of remorse, frowned and turned to Sebastian. "So, how do you want to handle this?"