Chapter 217
217
+8 Pearls
Ronan Duskcliff was the last person to want to see Scarlett cry. His eyes sharpened with warning as he fixed Tessa with a severe look.
“Tessa, you can’t just say things like that. This concerns Scarlett’s reputation. And I believe Scarlett would never do such a thing.”
Tessa’s anger flared instantly. “Her reputation? What about Riley’s?” She clenched her fists, her eyes burning with resentment.
If she could stand, she would have struck Ronan without hesitation.
“Do you want to know why Scarlett lured me into the Black Forest? Why I was attacked by Rogues?” Tessa’s voice cracked with bitter hatred.
“Because those two–Scarlett and Alpha Alaric–are nothing but beasts. They conspired to destroy Riley. They didn’t care if she lived or died. Their plan was to trap her in a hospital, declare her brain dead, harvest her kidneys for Scarlett, and donate the rest of her organs. Even Riley’s body was to be donated as a cadaver for medical students.”
“They wanted me silenced because I overheard their scheme. Then they framed Riley with attempted murder to cover their tracks.”
Breathing heavily from the fury, Tessa shouted the five–year–old truth directly at Ronan. Her face flushed crimson, voice ragged from exhaustion and rage.
Ronan’s expression collapsed as if struck by lightning. The truth shattered everything he believed.
In his twenty–plus years, he had never met such ruthless cruelty.
He shook his head in disbelief. “Impossible. You’re lying. Even if Scarlett and Alaric planned this, no hospital would cooperate.”
His eyes lit up suddenly, catching a supposed flaw in Tessa’s story.
“Exactly! Hospitals don’t cooperate with evil plots. You must be delusional from being a vegetable for five years. Riley’s the one who hurt you, and you’re mixing up the truth, blaming Scarlett.”
He turned to his parents with an exasperated tone.
“Mom, Dad, don’t be fooled by Tessa’s lies. This is clearly a misunderstanding. Let’s take her home. Causing a scene in someone else’s house-”
Before he could finish, Mrs. Duskcliff fiercely shook off his hand and slapped him across the face.
“How did I raise such a fool who can’t tell right from wrong?” she scolded bitterly.
Ronan turned away, bloodshot eyes blazing red with humiliation.
“How can you not believe the glaring evidence that hospitals wouldn’t help Scarlett and Alaric harm someone?”
His gaze suddenly snapped to Riley, who sat coldly observing the scene. He ground his teeth in fury,
“You’ve turned me against my own family. Are you satisfied now? ”
Riley had long since endured Ronan’s foolishness.
Foolishness, she knew, could be far worse than malice.
She had tried to explain, but Ronan had deaf ears. Even when Tessa testified, his doubts remained.
His self–righteous attitude–that everyone else was blind but he alone saw clearly–made Riley want to laugh bitterly.
“Since you say hospitals would never cooperate with Scarlett and Alaric, I’ll show you proof of exactly why they did.”
Riley opened the drawer of the coffee table and pulled out a document.
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12:25 AM P
217
She rose slowly, limping slightly, and walked toward Ronan.
As she approached, his heart suddenly hammered fiercely.
Her eyes were too steady, her expression too calm–something told him this wasn’t going to end well.
Standing in front of him, Riley met his gaze without flinching and handed over the papers.
“Read this. Then you’ll understand why the hospital was complicit.”
Ronan instinctively avoided her eyes. Masking his inner panic, he scoffed coldly.
“Fine. Let’s see what tricks you have.”
He snatched the document from her hand and flipped through the pages quickly.
With each turn, his hand began to tremble uncontrollably, and his breathing grew shallow.
The director of Mooncrest’s top hospital was none other than Scarlett’s biological mother–and Alaric’s mistress.
No wonder Scarlett and Alaric had been so confident the hospital would cooperate.
Scarlett stood beside Ronan, watching the papers with equal clarity.
Her pupils dilated sharply; fear and shock overwhelmed her.
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