Chapter 449 I'm Not Mad At You
Simon's POV:
To make sure that the project on the east bank would proceed as planned, I rummaged through the documents in my office for an entire night. The next morning, I decided to take a shower to freshen up.
After coming out of the bathroom, I dried my hair with a towel and turned on the TV to watch the news.
Lo and behold, when I saw what was on the news, I froze.
"Caroline Wilson of the Wilson Group is suspected of murder."
At this time, my assistant, Leah, came into my office. She appeared to be apprehensive.
"Mr. Felix, I just received word from Miss Lewis. She has refused to continue to work with us."
Upon hearing that, my vision dimmed. "What's going on? Why did she suddenly terminate our cooperation?"
Vanessa was one of the most talented architects
I had met. Both Caroline and I were quite impressed with her works.
The project on the east bank was about to begin. However, during this crucial moment, Vanessa abruptly called off the partnership.
Things weren't going as smoothly as I'd hoped.
"Miss Lewis didn't tell me a particular reason," Leah explained.
Annoyed, I frowned and commanded, "Contact her and see if we can patch things up with her." "There's no need to do that. I'm already here." Just then, Vanessa came in along with her assistant. "Ah, Miss Lewis, long time no see," I greeted with a polite smile.
She smiled back at me and said, "I intend to cancel the partnership with the Wilson Group." "Could you shed light on that matter? Are you not happy with the contract price we offered you? If so, then we can renegotiate the terms later," I replied.
"I read the news and found out that Miss Wilson has just been involved in a murder case. I'm sure it would be perfectly understandable that I'd want to cancel our partnership because of that reason, yes?" Vanessa replied firmly, shaking her head in disappointment.
I wanted to appease her again, but she didn't give me a chance to explain.
Wearing a stern expression, she left the office.
Meanwhile, I was lost in thought, thinking of how to solve this predicament.
At this time, I received a call from Edward.
"Have you seen the news on the Internet? What on earth happened to Caroline?"
I could tell from his voice that he was agitated.
I explained to him what I knew of the things that had happened in the past two days.
"Someone must be manipulating the narrative to sway the public opinion and ruin Caroline's reputation," said Edward.
He scoffed and added, "How dare they plot against Caroline? They must be courting death!" "The Wilson Group's stock price is plummeting. If we don't control the situation in time, the consequences will be dire," I replied, letting out a sigh.
"I won't be able to go back to LA until next week. Simon, try your best to protect Caroline and solve this problem the soonest that you can," Edward responded.
"Got it. I'll do what I can."
After the phone call, I said to Leah, "Find out what you can about Vanessa's preferences. I'll try to win her favor again."
Leah nodded before leaving my office.
The thought of all the accusations and rude remarks against Caroline circulating online made me feel upset.
Just then, a scene appeared on the TV broadcast.
I saw Charles protecting Caroline and warning the rioters to back away.
He declared to them that she was his woman. And ever since I heard it, it had been lingering in my mind.
As I watched them leave hand in hand, I got mad.
"Charles Moore!" I roared through gritted teeth.
Resentment and anger arose from my heart, causing me to throw the remote control to the ground.
'Why is Charles always badgering her? What a damned eyesore!1
All of a sudden, my phone rang, interrupting my thoughts.
When I saw the caller ID, I could no longer get angry.
"Hello?"
"Simon, I'm going to need a few days of rest. I apologize in advance for this, but you might have to work extra hard for the coming days." The sound of Caroline's voice was filled with remorse. "It's fine. I just watched the news. Are you hurt?" I was mostly concerned about her situation.
"I got bruised, but it's nothing serious. Don't worry. I'm okay."
The exhaustion from her tone broke my heart.
"Get some rest, Caroline. Call me if you need anything. I'll always be on your side," I answered.
Charles' POV:
"Richard, contact the biggest multimedia companies in the country and ask them to quash the rumors about Caroline."
News of Susan's death occupied headlines of almost every newspaper overnight. Someone must be controlling the situation behind the scenes.Published by Nôv'elD/rama.Org.
However, I hadn't found enough evidence to prove that.
After the phone call, I clenched my fist and punched the wall with every bit of anger I'd been bottling up.
Every time I closed my eyes, I would see the horror of Caroline's image, curled up on the ground, being beaten and cursed for something she had never done.
I tried my best to restrain my desire to kill all those people.
Moments later, I saw Caroline stagger out of the consulting room.
My heart ached for her and I quickly walked to her side.
"Are you alright, Caroline? Does it still hurt?" I asked.
"I'm feeling much better now. The doctor prescribed some pain killers for me, and some medicine to heal my bruises and control the bleeding," Caroline muttered. Upon hearing that, I breathed a sigh of relief, intending to pick her up.
However, Caroline backed away.
"What do you think you're doing?" she asked, staring at me vigilantly.
"Are you sure you can get out of the hospital on your own in that state?" I asked, raising my eyebrows.
"Of course, I can!"
Caroline snorted and walked forward.
I just sighed and followed closely behind her.
As I stared at her feeble body, my heart felt like it was being torn apart.
I suppressed the urge to hold her in my arms and just followed her out of the hospital.
Later on, when Caroline was about to get on the car, she almost stumbled forward.
Fortunately, I was able to catch her waist in time to keep her from falling. Then, I carried her into the car.
"If you want to get mad at me, it's fine. But you have to take care of yourself first!" I exclaimed.
"Mad? Why would I be mad at you?" Caroline rolled her eyes at me.
Her gaze didn't hold any resentment, and instead, they looked a little coquettish.
Her bright eyes were like the warm winter sun, shining down on my heart.
"If you say so."
I chuckled at her response and handed her a business card.
"What's this?" Caroline asked tentatively.
"I heard from Elena that you've been having nightmares more often. I think you need a psychologist. This doctor I know is excellent. She'll be able to help you," I explained.
"I don't need a psychologist!" Caroline grunted.
The look in her eyes and her stubbornness made me feel a bit frustrated.
Caroline was always so distant to me.
The more I tried to get closer, the further she drifted away from me.
But in all honesty, I didn't want to force her.
"Go home and get some rest. Call me if you need anything," I said in a soft voice.
Caroline turned her face away, as if to say that she didn't want to talk to me.
Once more, I sighed helplessly. Soon, Elena arrived. I told her to look after Caroline before I left.
After leaving her villa, I drove back to the Moore mansion with a gloomy expression.
"Charles, is that you? You're back!" Raina was surprised that I showed up at home.
I grunted at her and grabbed her neck.
"Were you the one who asked those people to assault Caroline?"
"I have no idea what you're talking about!" Raina struggled to break free from my grasp.
"If you hadn't done that, Susan's death wouldn't have attracted so much publicity. Tell me, Raina, have I been too merciful to you?" I growled.
"I didn't do it. I swear! I know
nothing! Charles, how could you set
think that I'd do something like that? This is a misunderstanding!" Tears welted up in Raina's eyes.
"A misunderstanding? Really? Oh, so you're not the one who posted all that crap online?" I asked through gritted teeth.
"My biological mother is the one
who died. Is it so wrong of me to
post something online to mourn her? Besides, I didn't even mention Caroline's name! The netizens were the ones who guessed it was Caroline," Raina countered
"Charles, Raina just lost her mother. How could you be so cruel to her?" My mother was quick to defend that snake, Raina.