Chapter 5 As soon as they walked in, those thugs made a beeline for Thea dropping to their knees with desperate looks. Rowland, we cant handle the beatings any longer. Youre the one who paid us. You cant just bail on us now, Thea stepped back, her brow furrowed in confusion. What are you even talking about? I dont know you guys. She was trying to make sense of the situation. If I were the one who hired you. I wouldnt be dumb enough to reach out directly. Wouldnt that just make it easy for you to pin me downe The lead guy clenched his jaw and whipped out his phone. Miss Rowland, heres the proof-calls and messages. Youre not going to deny it, right? Plus, you wired a cool 35 thousand dollars from the Rowland account to me just the other day. We could just head to the bank and verify that Jake was visibly fuming, looking really upset. Before he could even get a word out, Emmalie jumped in, saying, Mr. Hendrix, Thea only messed up because shes way too into you. I apologize to Miss Terell on her behalf. Lets just put this behind us, okay? Whatever Miss Terell needs to make things right, were on it. Jakes mood went from bad to worse, and he shot Thea a scathing look. So, you think youve outsmarted everyone, huh? If it werent for me standing up for Madelyn, you wouldve had her played, wouldnt you? Out of nowhere, Thea burst into laughter as if a lightbulb went off in her head. n Turning to Emmalic, she said with a sarcastic tone. Were still on this, and here you are, rushing to cover up and say sorry are you so eager to pin this on me? Emmalies eyes went wide, and before anyone knew it, she was crying Thea, I really want to help you. Why would you even think that of me? Ivy was visibly upset and shot Thea a furious look. Its tough for Emmalie to have your back when youre causing chaos at her welcome party. Do you only feel good when shes groveling and saying sorry for stuff youve done? Max just sighed, looking both helpless and tired. Thea, just say sorry if youve messed up. Were all trying to help you here. Duncan chimed in with a frown, Honestly, Emmalies the only que foolish enough to keep fixing your disasters, and shes been nothing but nice to you. Help me? By jumping to conclusions? Thea thought in disbelief Despite being used to not being trusted, Thea couldnt shake off the feeling of her heart being punctured, leaving her cold and empty. She tilted her head, giving off a vibe that was both cool and dismissive. Am I wrong? Right now, shouldnt we be focusing on figuring out the real story? Do you actually want to see me getting blamed for something I didnt do Max remained silent, his eyes fixed on Madelyn, who looked visibly shaken. Jake stepped in, his voice dripping with unfriendliness. Look, it clear as day. Youre doing this because moving on is hard for you. But lets get one thing straight Madelyn is innocent. Shes been caught up in something she has nothing to do with. Just say youre sorry, and we can all move past this. Im still here for you, but lets not make things worse with angry outbursts The others looked awkward, blushing for various reasons, not catching on that Jake was still willing to marry Thea despite Everything. 1/3 ווו Chapter 5 Madelyns eyes narrowed ever so slightly, betraying a sense of resignation. Thea, all smiles, kept her tone polite but firm. Hendrix, your generosity is touching, but Im not about to confess to things I havent done. And regarding the engagement… She glanced around the room. Just to clear the air for everyone here, my engagement to Jake is off. From this point on, hell go his way, and Ill go mine. Were not crossing paths anymore. With every word, her red lips painted a picture, and Jakes expression shifted through an entire spectrum of emotions, as vivid as a kaleidoscope. Darwin, hanging out in the doorway, couldnt resist jumping into the conversation. So, Miss Rowland is really done with Jake, huh? Shes making him look like a fool. Pretty slick. Nicolas stayed quiet, a fleeting, mysterious emotion flickering in his eyes for just a second. Madelyn felt a spark of hope and grabbed Jakes hand, pleading, Jake, I shouldnt have messed with Miss Rowland. If she can forgive me, I swear Ill leave the city for good. Jake, who had just started to soften up, snapped back to his usual stern self. With a dark look, he shot back, Thea, wanna test out how your family holds up against my fury? Max quickly chimed in. Cant you just listen for once, Thea? Say youre sorry. Jake and the Rowland family were pressuring her because they bet she wouldnt give up on love or family. Ive been bending over backward, getting frustrated time and time again. Not this time. Not today. Thea thought. Thea whipped out her phone, a playful smirk on her face. If youre really as innocent and wronged as you claim, lets get the police involved and see what they have to say. Lucky for us, Ive got some juicy recordings on my phone. The police can figure out whos lying and make sure no innocent people get blamed, No Madelyn was quick to reject, her voice a bit sharp because of the stress. She started panicking, looking for a way out, sounding shaky and lost. If this leaks, my reputation will be in shreds, she hastily added. Betting on whether Thea had incriminating stuff on her phone wasnt an option. If she did, Madelyn would be done for it. Next to Ivy, Emmalie shook her head, clearly not impressed. Isnt this messing with the Rowland familys good name? Its not cool letting this stuff get out. She gave Thea a concerned look. Thea, maybe we should just keep this low-key. Apologize to Miss Terell and get past this. Lets not wreck things with the Hendrix family, okay? Thea just winked and gave a mean sneer. Why should I be scare? Its the person pulling strings from the shadows who should worry, right? For Miss Terells sake, maybe its time to let the police handle it and catch the real troublemaker asap. It was pretty obvious who had sneaked into her room to set her up. She was down for a drug test, and whatever banned stuff they could find in her system was solid proof. As for witnesses, it seemed like those thugs who stirred up the mess didnt even hint at the possibility of jail time beforehand Thea was chilling, even though she had no recordings on her phone. 2/3 3/3 色 SEND GIFT Chapter 5 Those punks got all jittery the second they heard the word police. But somehow, they were biting down hard, keeping silent. Emmalies got this shadow passing over her eyes like she just went numb for a second. Max gave a sly nod to his bodyguard. Theas a bit out of it from all the drinks. Lets get her downstairs to crash off the buzz. Ill go to your place to apologize personally, Miss Terell Then, out of nowhere, Thea said. Excuse me, dialing up the police with everyone listening in.