Married to The Ice King: Pampered Princess' Survival Guide-Chapter 192: The Rumours

Evelyn’s visit became a quiet routine. She never talked about the incident directly, never mentioned Jasmine’s name or the chaos that followed. Instead, she stayed close, bringing meals, keeping Daisy company, and convincing her to step out of the house once in a while.

So when Evelyn suggested they go to the mall that morning, Daisy agreed. She told herself it was just for a short walk, maybe a distraction and a chance to breathe.

The world outside, however, had already moved on.

They walked past glittering shop windows and coffee stalls humming with chatter. Daisy was trying to focus on the soft tune playing through the speakers when a conversation from a nearby bench caught her attention.

"Oh right, that live-stream death..." a woman said, her tone half-gossip, half-horror. "I still can’t get that scene out of my head. It’s like—" she mimed a shooting gesture, whispering, "Boom, live. I mean, who does that? On camera?"

Her friend winced. "I heard the father didn’t even try to defend himself. Pleaded guilty on the spot."

"Yeah, they said he just kept saying I didn’t have anything to say." The woman shook her head, sipping her drink. "Imagine being that woman’s family. I’d never step outside again." 𝐟𝐫𝕖𝗲𝘄𝚎𝗯𝕟𝐨𝕧𝐞𝚕.𝕔𝕠𝐦

Daisy froze. Her fingers tightened around the shopping bag until the paper crumpled. The sound of their voices blurred, every word cutting sharper than the last.

Evelyn’s head turned slightly at Daisy’s sudden stillness. Her eyes softened when she saw the younger woman’s pale face and trembling hands.

"Daisy," she said gently, reaching out, "let’s go."

But Daisy didn’t move. Her gaze was fixed on the two women laughing lightly, their careless chatter slicing through the air like knives.

A bitter laugh escaped her lips before she could stop it. "Funny," she said quietly, her voice trembling but edged with steel. "People die, and it becomes a story for strangers to sip coffee over."

The two women turned, startled, recognition flashing in their eyes when they realized who she was. One of them fumbled for her phone, while the other shifted uncomfortably, murmuring, "We didn’t mean—"

"Yes, you did." Daisy’s voice cracked. "You all do. You talk about pain like it’s entertainment. Like my mother’s death was some kind of... spectacle."

Evelyn stepped in quickly, her hand firm on Daisy’s arm. "Enough, dear," she whispered, her tone steady but urgent. "They’re not worth it."

But Daisy’s trembling words had already drawn attention. A few people nearby turned their heads, whispers spreading like ripples in water.

"Isn’t that her? The daughter..." someone murmured.

"Yes, the woman from the livestream..." another added, lifting a phone discreetly and the other seemed to do it openly to take a photo.

Murmurs swelled into a low buzz. Cameras clicked. A few people tried to hide their curiosity behind sympathetic looks, but most didn’t bother.

Daisy stiffened, her breathing uneven. The world seemed to tilt, voices and flashes pressing in from every side. Evelyn’s grip tightened protectively around her arm.

"That’s enough," Evelyn said sharply, her voice slicing through the crowd’s murmurs like a blade. "Put those phones down."

Without wasting a second, she lifted her hand to shield Daisy’s face, her other hand motioning urgently toward the corner of the corridor. "Security!" she called out, her voice firm and commanding.

Two guards immediately responded, pushing through the growing crowd. "Ma’am?" one of them asked, and Evelyn gestured toward the people holding up their phones.

"Clear this area," she ordered coldly. "Now."

As the guards began dispersing the bystanders, Evelyn wrapped an arm around Daisy and guided her toward the exit, her tone softening only for her. "It’s all right, sweetheart. Don’t look at them. Keep walking."

But Daisy couldn’t help it. Even as Evelyn shielded her, the faint echo of whispers followed, her mother’s name, her grandfather’s crime, and her own face caught in flashes she couldn’t escape.

"But that makes her the sole heir, right? Of the Kennedy fortune?" someone muttered nearby.

"Well, her uncle kind of has something wrong with the head, so it makes her the only one left," another voice chimed in. "Don’t you think... her mother did it for her? I mean, no one would pull a stunt like that unless—"

"Unless it was planned," another finished in a low whisper. "A setup to clean the slate and secure everything in her name. Tragic, but smart."

Daisy froze mid-step. Each word sliced through her composure like glass under skin. She turned slowly, her eyes wide and glassy, her lips trembling as she whispered, almost to herself, "Planned...?"

Her voice rose, shaking. "Why would she... Why would my mother sacrifice herself for money? For some inheritance I never even wanted?" She took a step forward, trembling, her voice cracking with fury. "Do you think I’d ever—ever—conspire with her death just for fortune?! She died because of him! Because of that man’s cruelty, not because of greed!"

Evelyn caught her arm, pulling her close. "Daisy, stop—" she murmured urgently, but it was too late. The crowd had gone dead silent, every camera turned to catch her words, the tension thick in the air.

Daisy’s chest heaved, eyes blazing through her tears. "My mother wasn’t a conspirator," she spat out, voice trembling but fierce. "She was a victim. And none of you have the right to twist her death into something ugly!"

Evelyn quickly signaled the guards again, her voice tight. "Get her to the car—now!"

Daisy kept talking, her voice raw and uneven as tears streamed down her cheeks. "You all talk like you know her! Like you watched her live, breathe, suffer—" She pounded her chest with trembling fists. "You didn’t see how broken she was! You didn’t see how hard she tried to fix everything while drowning in guilt!"

Evelyn tried to steady her, murmuring, "Daisy, please, that’s enough—"

But Daisy couldn’t stop. The dam had burst.

"She wasn’t perfect, but she was my mom! She didn’t deserve to die that way! And I—" Her voice cracked, her breath catching painfully. "I sent—"

A figure suddenly appeared before her, pulling her into an embrace.

Daisy froze, her words caught mid-sob as Theo’s familiar warmth enveloped her. His hand moved gently through her hair, his voice low and steady against the storm of whispers and camera clicks.

"Shhh... it’s okay... I’m here now," he murmured, his tone firm but soft enough to ground her.

Her fingers clutched his shirt tightly, knuckling white as she buried her face against his chest. "They said awful things, Theo... about her... about me..."

"I know," he whispered, his jaw tightening. "Don’t listen to them. None of it matters right now."

Evelyn exhaled in visible relief, signaling the nearby security to disperse the small crowd forming around them. But the damage was already done, phones still raised, flashes still popping like cruel fireflies.

Theo glared at them, his voice dropping to something colder, sharper. "Delete those pictures. Now... or the next thing you’ll find in your mailbox is a letter of demand."