I smiled blandly. “Thank you for visiting me even at this hour, everyone.”
Rebecca glared at me and knelt down to check on Ashton. Suddenly, the television in the room switched on by itself.
As I suspected, that video started playing on the screen, forcing Rebecca to watch it until the end.
I was already numb by then, so I observed everyone’s expressions instead.
There was fear, heartache, shock and disbelief.
John really was a genius to have come up with this idea to let all of them watch the video together.
The video finally ended after some time. Rebecca looked at me, then at Ashton’s hand.
She was ashen-faced; I liked seeing her this way. Putting down the glass of water in my hand, I slowly approached her. Then, I crouched in front of her and smiled. “Ms. Larson, did you enjoy the video? Do you wanna know what it feels like when your child is finally taken out of you after being suffocated to death?”
Her face blanched with horror as she exclaimed, “You’re crazy!”
I huffed out a humorless laugh, admiring the panic sprawled across her face as she protected her protruding belly with both hands. Slowly, my smile turned vicious, and I lowered my voice to say, “Would you like to have a taste of the pain I felt at that time? Hmm? Your mother probably likes that method too. Why else would she have used it on me? Don’t you agree?”
“You can’t go around throwing baseless accusations, Scarlett!” Rebecca fell back onto the ground in shock, scrambling backward on her fours.
Having just recovered from his shock, Joe helped the panicked Rebecca up from the floor. “How can you be so sure that it was her mother who did this, Scarlett?”
I raised my brows in response. “Would you like to see the evidence, people?” I paused for a moment before saying in a bored tone, “Actually, spoilers are no fun. Tell you what, I’ll show you guys what a suffocated child looks like some other day.”
Then, I pinned my gaze on Rebecca’s belly and smiled meaningfully. “Isn’t it great? You get to watch in advance what your child will look like after being suffocated to death.”
“Take me away! Take me away! She’s crazy!” Rebecca was so petrified that she started rambling incoherently, yanking on Joe to bring her away.
Joe stared at me with conflicting emotions swirling in his eyes.
As soon as Rebecca left, I felt immensely bored. So I flicked my gaze to the man on the ground who had a devastated look on his face, then glanced at Jared who was standing by the door.
Seeing the heartache shining in his eyes, my own heart wrenched with pain.
Frustrated, I dialed for Marcus and immediately expressed my displeasure when the call connected. “Do you not want me anymore? Don’t just leave me at the hospital. I’m scared!”
Ashton looked at me with eyes that held endless darkness.
I knew that he was hurting, but so what?
To my surprise, Marcus arrived at the hospital in no time, so I suspected that he had been nearby all along.
Seeing the mess in the ward, his face clouded over as a crease appeared between his brows. Then, his gaze landed on Ashton. “Mr. Fuller, look at the state she’s in. How long are you planning to keep tormenting her?”
Ashton didn’t say anything. From the start until then, his eyes hadn’t once left me. I could tell that he was drowning in self-blame and grief.
Despite knowing that, my heart didn’t break for him.
I walked toward Marcus, who frowned upon noticing the blood on the back of my hand. “You pulled it out on your own?”
I nodded and said softly, “Let’s go. I’m exhausted.” Just like everyone else, there was a limit to my energy. Hence, going out of my way to hurt others had taken a toll on me.
Sensing the truth in my words, he replied curtly, “Let’s go then.”
At the door of the ward, Jared’s face seemed to be covered with a layer of frost. His eyes glinted coldly as he blocked our way out and said to me, “The child was also Ashton’s. He isn’t hurting any less than you are. Why do you hate him so much? Does piling all your pain on him and letting him bear it for you make you happy?”
“Move aside!” Marcus’ expression darkened. They were both men who wielded power in the corporate world. Thus, they were equally imposing.
Jared stood as still as a statue with his gaze fixed on me.
Pursing my lips, I looked back at Ashton to say, “On the night of Rebecca’s birthday, you were at the Moore family’s banquet, right?”
Ashton looked at me, his eyes dimming slightly. “Yes.”
My chest still ached, but I pushed past it and replied, “I’m sure you know better than me why Cameron chose to do it that night, right? For two months, Marcus hasn’t let me touch any electronic devices. I didn’t watch the TV or read the news. I didn’t even have any contact with outsiders.”
Having said that, I couldn’t help but release a soft laugh. “But I’m not an idiot. Even though I didn’t read about your engagement with Rebecca in K City’s news headlines, I already guessed that Cameron did what she did because she wanted both me and my child dead. After all, with me gone, there wouldn’t be anything standing between you and Rebecca. It’s too bad she miscalculated. She never expected that Marcus would show up and take me away.”
I didn’t wait to see the look on Ashton’s face. Whether he was hurting, distressed, or wallowing in guilt had nothing to do with me.
