Chapter 4
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"Get them down from there this instant!"
They scrambled to undo the ropes, finally getting Wanda and me down. They hurried Wanda into the ER immediately. I, on the other hand, collapsed onto a cold bench in the hallway while paralyzed with fear, feeling like every second was dragging on forever.
It was then that the sound of hurried, heavy footsteps echoed from the far end of the hallway, and a middle-aged man in an expensive, tailored suit—his eyes sharp as a hawk's—came charging forward, flanked by a group of bodyguards in black.
It was none other than Victor Lawson—the richest man in the country!
He immediately noted the red light above the ER doors, then turned to look at me—pale, disheveled, and trembling by the door. "Where is Wanda?"
It was then that one of the nurses replied hurriedly, "Ms. Lawson is being treated in the ER right now, Mr. Lawson!"
Victor immediately clenched his fists, his knuckles turning white from the tension. He then turned on me sharply, his eyes brimming with a murderous intensity. "What happened? Why is Wanda in this state?"
I tried to speak, but my throat felt parched and raw.
I was just about to explain when Ella spotted Victor from the crowd. She was momentarily stunned before she narrowed her eyes and rushed over.
She forced herself into a state of distress and beat me to the punch with a sob, saying, "It was Yvonne's fault—she's responsible for everything, Mr. Lawson!"
Victor immediately turned his piercing gaze toward Ella.
Ella explained, "You see, during our outdoor orientation boot camp, Wanda tried to slack off by faking an illness, and Yvonne started causing a scene just to help her. Mr. Jensen, our drill instructor, tried to intervene, but Yvonne went berserk and attacked him!
"Wanda tried to break it up, but Yvonne shoved her, causing her to hit her head—and that's when she collapsed and had a seizure. Yvonne even snatched her medicine away!
"Plenty of us struggled hard just to get Wanda to the hospital! Yvonne was the one who did this to Wanda, Mr. Lawson!"
Joseph stepped forward at once, standing at attention. "That's right, Mr. Lawson—Ella is telling the truth. Yvonne's behavior has been atrocious! She physically assaulted Wanda, which led directly to her hitting her head and having a seizure!"
In an instant, I became the sole target of everyone's accusations, which caused the doctors, nurses, and even the patients and their families to turn to look at me, their eyes burning with contempt and rage.
"Oh, my goodness! She looks so innocent—who knew she could be so cold-hearted!"
"How could she shove her own classmate and steal her medicine? That's practically attempted murder!"
"That drill instructor even testified against her! How could it be anything but the truth?"
"That kind of person belongs behind bars!"
Upon hearing that, Victor instantly turned to me, his gaze hardening from fury into a lethal resolve. He closed the distance between us in a single step, snarling with gritted teeth, "It was you who pushed Wanda and snatched her medicine, huh?"
I shook my head in denial with everything I had, but my throat felt constricted, as if gripped by an unseen force. I tried to speak, but the only sound I could manage was a faint, pathetic wheeze.
Upon seeing me remain silent, Victor took it as a confession, his eyes turning bloodshot with rage. He gave a sharp, mirthless laugh before suddenly reaching out toward one of his bodyguards. "Very well, then!"
His bodyguard instantly handed him a baseball bat while the others moved in to restrain me.
"I don't think you'll be needing this arm anymore since you had the nerve to lay a hand on Wanda!" Victor barked as he raised the baseball bat and swung it toward my arm.
I stared in utter terror as I stood rooted to the spot, completely paralyzed by fear.
It was at that exact moment that the ER doors flew open, and Wanda charged out, covered in blood.
"Stop, Dad!" Wanda cried out in desperation, her trembling hand rising to point directly at Ella and Joseph. "Yvonne isn't the one who bullied me! It was both of them!"
