Accidental Marriage with the CEO: Unwanted Bride
Chapter 68: Drug him

Chapter 68: Drug him

"Are you seriously going to protect her after she killed someone?" Mireen snapped, glaring at Roman, who calmly entwined Patricia’s fingers with his and pulled her behind him protectively.

Patricia, already spiraling with panic, felt her heartbeat slow as her eyes fell to their joined hands. A new, unfamiliar warmth spread through her chest, an emotion she was only now starting to understand. For the first time, it felt like... something real.

"How does a child’s claim make her guilty of murder?" Roman asked coldly, turning his icy gaze on Michelle. She immediately looked away, lowering her head in silence.

"Then explain how the inhaler ended up in her bag. Or are you accusing me of planting it?" Mireen countered, her sharp eyes shifting to Patricia behind him.

Without responding to Mireen, Roman turned to face Patricia. "Did you do it?" He asked, his voice calm and unreadable.

Patricia’s chest tightened at first, hurt that he would even ask. But when their eyes met, she saw no accusation, only trust. He looked like a man who already knew the answer but wanted to hear it from her.

"No," she said steadily. "I have been in the same spot all day. I don’t even know who the patient is."

Roman gave a slight nod, then turned back to Mireen.

"Now that we have heard it from her, why don’t we confirm it with the CCTV footage?" He suggested.

Michelle’s eyes widened, her heart lurching. CCTV? Here? In a place this remote?

Frantically scanning the area, her eyes landed on a pole with a small camera angled directly at the entrance to the pharmacy. Her stomach twisted. If there was a camera, there had to be a surveillance room... which meant someone could have seen everything.

Her heart thudded painfully as the realization hit.

"No!" She suddenly blurted, making everyone turn sharply toward her. Mireen, already on edge, looked at her with irritation.

"Why did you yell?" She asked sharply, narrowing her eyes at Michelle.

Realizing her outburst had exposed her nerves, Michelle forced a quick smile and turned to Roman.

"Roman is right," she said smoothly. "We can’t rely solely on a child’s claim. No one saw Patricia take it, it could have been a mistake." She shifted quickly to Patricia’s defense, much to Mireen’s confusion.

"What?!" Mireen gasped, staring at her niece like she had lost her mind. Anyone hearing Michelle would think she genuinely cared about Patricia but Mireen knew her too well. There was only one reason Michelle would suddenly switch sides.

"Mireen wants clarity. We don’t mind checking the CCTV," Roman pressed, his eyes locking with Mireen’s in a way that made her hesitate.

Turning back to Michelle, she noticed how pale the girl had become. Her niece’s panic was obvious now. Mireen sighed inwardly. Sometimes she wished Michelle had inherited even a fraction of her mother’s cunning. Even her older sister had been naïve. Despite all the lessons she had tried to instill in them, both had turned out disappointing. She had always been more lenient with Michelle, thinking she might not survive her heart condition. Now, she was beginning to regret that leniency. If she knew things would turn out this way, she would have arranged everything before now. Now she would be forced to clean up after her niece’s careless moves.

"My niece is right," Mireen said finally, voice tight. "It was wrong of me to jump to conclusions."

She stepped closer to Patricia, stopping just beside her.

"I am sorry for accusing you without evidence," she said with a forced smile. "I hope you can forgive me. I was only thinking of the patients."

The apology put Patricia in an uncomfortable position. She wanted to believe Mireen, but after everything she just witnessed, she feared it was nothing but an act, a calculated move to shield Michelle from the consequences of her actions.

Before she could say anything, Roman cut in coolly.

"You might have apologized," he said, voice hard, "but we are still going to find the person who framed my wife, and the one responsible for killing an innocent patient."

Patricia exhaled slowly, relieved. She didn’t need to respond. Roman had already said everything she couldn’t.

"Yes. I will make sure the culprit is found. You can rest assured," Mireen promised, her tone firm. But she knew Roman wasn’t someone easily convinced. Still, they had no choice now but to back down, for the moment.

"I will have one of my men stay behind to investigate with you," Roman said, before picking Patricia up into his arms.

Without sparing them another glance, he turned and walked back to the car, placing her gently in the passenger seat. He moved around to the driver’s side, opened the door, and sat down. Pulling out his phone, he made a call.

"Get her bag," he instructed when the call connected, then ended it abruptly.

He started the engine, and the car pulled away into the night. Patricia felt betrayed because they were leaving without giving her the justice she needed again. If he wasn’t there today, they would have arrested her and put her in a cell where who knows what would have happened to her. She didn’t know how deep Michelle and Roman bond ran but if things kept on moving this way, she would have to take action herself.

...

Back at the hospital, Michelle stood quietly behind Mireen, her hands wrung nervously in front of her, waiting for the inevitable scolding.

"I am sorry. I shouldn’t have plotted against her... I just couldn’t stand her," she muttered, her voice low and full of false remorse.

"My problem isn’t that you plotted," Mireen replied coldly, turning to face her. "It’s that you did it so stupidly."

Michelle’s eyes widened slightly, stung by her aunt’s tone.

"You see, your mother once snatched your father away from her best friend, without lifting a finger. There was no karma, no punishment. Just intelligence. If only you were even slightly like her." Mireen sighed, disappointment radiating from her.

"I was careful this time," Michelle said defensively. "I just... overlooked a tiny detail."

Mireen’s eyes narrowed, unmoved. "If Roman gets hold of that CCTV footage, he won’t hesitate to hand you over to the law. You know what kind of man he is, yet you insist on chasing him." She stepped closer. "I am going to have you engaged to someone else."

"No!" Michelle cried, pulling away. "I don’t want anyone else. I only want Roman! It’s unfair, you don’t get to choose my fate!"

The slap came fast and sharp across her cheek.

"Then be smart!" Mireen shouted. "Own your actions and stop being a child! You think life is unfair? I didn’t get married just to take care of you girls, and the same girl I raised with my blood and sweat turned her back on me for a man! Did I throw that in your face? No, I endured because I love you. I would do anything for you two. But I would not watch you go to jail because of a man, your mother’s ghost will haunt me forever."

Michelle’s lower lip trembled, and tears slipped down her cheeks. "But... I want him."

"Then take him," Mireen said coldly. "Be selfish or be the sacrifice. You have to choose."

"How?" Michelle demanded, voice cracking. "Everything was set. I got rid of every obstacle, until she showed up. And now I don’t know what else to do."

Mireen nodded slowly. "I will help you. But only if you help yourself. Enough with these petty, emotional games. Use cruel tactics. In war, you either win or..."

"Die," Michelle whispered, finishing her sentence.

Mireen smiled at last. "Now you are finally waking up."

"I will meet with Roman’s grandfather tomorrow," she added. "It’s time he’s reminded of the promise he made."

Michelle hesitated. "But... what if he doesn’t agree?"

"He will. But as long as she is still in the picture, you will never have his full attention. You saw it yourself today, he is already smitten, even if he doesn’t realize it. We need to help him forget her."

A sinister smile curled on Mireen’s lips as she envisioned the plan.

"What should I do in the meantime?" Michelle asked, her own expression darkening.

"Visit him. Stay close. Make sure they don’t get too intimate. If she gets pregnant, he will tighten his defenses, especially knowing the enemies he has. That would make her nearly impossible to remove. Also, look into her family, find out everything you can. If we can manipulate them, they will be the perfect scapegoat."

Michelle’s eyes lit up with understanding. "Perfect riddance," she murmured. She hadn’t observed Patricia with her family much, but she sensed there was distance there. That would work to their advantage. If they planted the right idea, make it look like her family was behind everything, no one would suspect them.

"And one more thing," Mireen added. "Seduce him. Drug him if you must. If you can get him into bed, and pregnant with his child, everything changes."

Michelle nodded slowly, eyes gleaming with renewed resolve.