Free Web NovelChapter 384: I Will Handle This
Christian saw Michael and Yonina preparing to get into their car and hurried toward them. Pretentiously, he advised Michael, "Brother, don’t treat my sister-in-law so harshly. Otherwise, if you later find out she is innocent, you’ll regret it!"
His words incensed Michael again.
He let go of Yonina’s shoulder and got ready to slug Christian. freewebnovёl.ƈom
Yonina immediately held him back. "The reporters will be here soon. If you hit him now, it will be in the headlines tomorrow!"
Realising that Michael was still fuming, she tried again, "It’s fine if you accuse me of things I didn’t do. It’s okay even if you hit me, but you should know that Christian is obviously baiting you. Can’t you see it? You must not fall into his trap! Let’s talk when we get home."
"Look, don’t you think this sister-in-law looks like my former sister-in-law when she’s trying to dissuade you from something?" Christian grinned as he blinked innocently at Michael.
"You..." Yonina saw Michael pulling back for a punch and hung on to his arm with all her might. "Michael! Do you really want to be in the headlines?
Christian laughed when he saw Michael trying his best to hold back despite being blatantly provoked.
Then, he waved at them, "Goodbye, brother."
The anger in Michael’s eyes dulled as he watched his brother’s retreating back.
Only when Christian had gotten into his car and driven off did Michael and Yonina get into their car to leave.
In the car, Michael took a deep breath. He looked around to make sure they were not being followed before turning to Yonina and asking her, "Are you okay? I’m sorry, I put too much force into that slap."
"It’s okay. This was what we agreed to do." Yonina rubbed gingerly at her swollen face and chuckled, "You didn’t hold back at all. It’ll probably take more than a few days for my face to recover."
Everything that happened today was a plot hatched by Michael and Yonina.
Yonina had gotten pregnant by Michael just as she was about to be engaged to Christian.
Now that this had happened, the first person Michael would suspect was Yonina.
Based on Michael’s history of violent outbursts, he was not above hitting a woman in public.
Both of them had agreed to put on an act, the purpose of which was to further assure Christian that everything was happening according to his plan. Christian would confidently start preparing for the project, thinking that it was guaranteed to be his.
"There were so many witnesses. If I held back, they might realise we were acting."
Michael sighed, "I’m so sorry. How about I let you slap me back?"
"Forget it. I will not be able to hit you with as much force anyway. I’ll just hurt my own hand in the process." Yonina did not blame Michael.
"How about I send you to the hospital for a checkup?" Michael asked.
"Is that a good idea?" Yonina frowned. She was worried it might affect their plan.
"The reporters will definitely watch us closely from now on."
"We have to go to the hospital precisely because the reporters will be watching."
Michael analyzed, "You still need to continue your act as a spy on both sides.
We can fight and argue but we must never fall out completely. Otherwise, you will have no reason to stay by my side.
I will call Grandmother and my mother, and have them visit you at the hospital.
Let everyone know that you have been injured and that my family is very concerned about your baby.
Let them think I have no choice but to accept you due to the pressure from my family.
That’s the only way you can stay by my side without arousing any suspicions and cement your position as my fiancee.
There aren’t any reporters around now. We’ll just leak the news that it was my family who sent you to the hospital when the time comes."
....
Yonina turned her head and glimpsed at Michael after hearing what she said.
Yonina burst out laughing, which pained her as she triggered the wound on her face.
Michael frowned and asked confusedly, "What are you laughing about?"
"I thought you were going to get beaten down and lost your edge because of the drama with Wendy, but I just happily found out that you’ve already thought of the next step," Yonina said to Michael jokingly. "This is nothing like you, Mr. Lucas."
Based on how Michael behaved recently, Yonina found it incredible that he could finish the bidding.
She would’ve never guessed that Michael had been thinking of what he needed to after the bidding.
Michael chuckled after Yonina’s teasing.
He stepped on the brakes at the traffic light, and he looked down on his legs solemnly.
Although he knew that Yonina was teasing him on purpose, he responded to her seriously, "You know what? Wendy was right. I need to grow up and sort out the priorities that I’m facing. All of us are facing a common enemy, and it’s a threatening enemy. Both you and Wendy are trying to help me out with all the resources you have, and I can’t afford to make another reckless mistake."
Yonina pouted after hearing what Michael said, and before she could say anything in response, Michael started rambling again.
"And besides, Wendy and Todd," Michael paused for a second and forced a smile, "they seem to be having a great time."
"Don’t be so pessimistic, Michael," Yonina said as she tried to comfort him. "We don’t even know what’s going on between Wendy and Todd."
She then continued, "And besides, Wendy and Todd are probably doing the same thing that we’re doing now. We should focus on one thing and one thing only, and that is to take down Christian. I don’t think Wendy has any mental capacity to be in a relationship at the moment. Anyway, don’t overthink."
Michael stepped on the gas pedal as the traffic light turned green.
What Yonina said did make sense to him.
Before he went to Rheinsville City and saw Todd and Wendy being on a date, he also thought that they were only putting on a show to trick Christian.
However, after seeing how intimate Todd and Wendy were when they were together and that Wendy didn’t make any explanations to him in private, he was so suspicious of the authenticity of their relationship.
He was in no way mentally prepared for the worse.
Yonina, trying to ease Michael’s stress, smiled and said, "You’re much more mature than I thought you were, Mr. Lucas. Maybe we’re a big step closer to our ultimate victory."
Michael took a deep breath and smiled without saying anything in response.
As they were about to arrive at the hospital, Michael took out his phone and called the old mansion.
His grandmother picked up the phone, and she couldn’t be happier to hear that it was Michael calling.
Neither her children nor her grandchildren visited the old mansion often, and Winnie was the only one staying with Mrs. Lucas aside from the help.
As for Winnie, she had been long mentally unstable, so she needed at least one person to stay with her at all times, and she wasn’t allowed to go outside of her room as much as she wanted, which left Mrs. Lucas all alone in the old mansion.
"Hi, Michael," Mrs. Lucas greeted him first.
Michael felt distraught when he heard how delighted and tired his grandmother sounded.
He had decided that he would devote a lot of his free time to take care of his grandmother after he was done with Christian. After all, he and Wendy were Mrs.
Lucas’s favorites.
Now that Wendy had to stay in Rheinsville City, he was the only one who could spend time with Mrs. Lucas.
"Grandma," Michael pouted and said, "Yonina got injured. Would you mind coming to the hospital with my mom?" ƒгeewёbnovel.com
...
Mrs. Lucas frowned and sighed after hearing the news. She asked, "Have you really decided to stay with Yonina and take care of her?"
Mrs. Lucas didn’t know what was going on between Michael and Wendy, but she did know that there had been conflicts and struggles between him and Christian.
"It’s too complex for me to explain now, Grandma. Could you go to the hospital with my mother if it fits you?" Michael requested. "If not, could you at least ask my mother to be there? I’ll fill you in with the details later."
Mrs. Lucas always had a soft spot for her golden grandson, and besides, Michael had almost never asked her for any favors. Thus, she couldn’t bear to reject a small favor like that.
"Sure. I’ll be heading there with Winnie soon," Mrs. Lucas agreed. "But the thing is, your mother is still kind of mentally unstable, so you might want to keep an eye on her."
"Sure," Michael said.
They then both hung up.
Michael said to Yonina, "Can you call Christian now? Tell him that we’re in a huge fight and see how he’s going to react."
Yonina nodded as she understood what Michael intended to do.
In a couple of minutes, they arrived at the hospital and walked in. Yonina took out her phone and called Christian.
Christian wasn’t surprised to receive a call from Yonina, especially after what had happened earlier today.
Yonina lowered her voice on purpose and said to Christian, "Christian, I think Michael is really getting suspicious of me this time and he’s completely pissed off. If I didn’t play it smart and called the old mansion, he would probably beat me to death."
"Really? Does he even not care about the baby you’re carrying anymore?" Christian asked.
"Didn’t you see the way Michael reacted today? He was this close to tearing me apart, and besides, he has never loved me anyway. I don’t think he’ll let me off the hook easily just because of the baby," Yonina said, pretending to sound as anxious and scared as possible. "I don’t want to go undercover anymore. Otherwise, I’ll die anytime soon."
"No. Too soon yet," Christian said.
"Haven’t you got the bid already? What more do you need me for?" Yonina lowered her voice even further. "The only reason why I teamed up with you was to keep Collins Group intact, not to kill myself."
"I thought you know how to protect yourself. Winnie has always been your huge fan, and Grandma will side with you because you’re pregnant with Michael’s child. Trust me, you’ll be safe," Christian said calmly.
"Stop with that pregnancy nonsense. You, more than anyone else, should know what this so-called ’baby’ is about," Yonina replied.
"Rest assured that I won’t let anything happen to you," Christian guaranteed.
"Where are you at the moment?"
"On my way to the hospital. Winnie and Grandma were forcing Michael to take me to the hospital and see a gynecologist after finding out what happened, and they said Michael would bear responsibility if anything happened to the baby," Yonina explained worriedly. "What if they figured out the truth about this baby thing?"
"Is it Metropolitan Hospital?"
"Yes."
"Don’t worry. I’ll handle the doctor thing. Try to stall the examination for as long as you can."
Christian hung up before Yonina could say anything in response.
Michael was standing next to Yonina while she was on the call with Christian, and he heard what Christian said.
"Let’s wait for a while," Yonina said. "I bet Christian will try to bribe a gynecologist and ask me to look for that doctor."
Michael had the same thought as Yonina did.
