Filed to story: Billionaire Bride’s Revenge (Vera & Howard)
Vera observed the scene in astonishment. Ever since meeting Victor, he had always been guarded, his emotions unreadable. This was the first time she saw Victor visibly express his annoyance. Despite this, it was clear from their interaction that they knew each other well. Vera realized they must be good friends who shared a playful bond.
Before Vera could gather her thoughts, the woman noticed her.
She eyed Vera intensely, sizing her up as she circled around her.
“Is this the woman you took a bullet for? She’s quite beautiful. Now I see why you turned down Lucia.”
Feeling slightly uncomfortable, Vera stepped back and introduced herself. “It’s nice to meet you. I’m Vera Montgomery.”
The woman tossed her curly hair and responded, “I’m Annette Pinch. I heard while I was overseas that Victor had taken a bullet for a woman. Now that I see you, I can understand why. It’s quite an honor for him to have done that for someone as lovely as you.”
Vera was baffled and turned to Victor for assistance, speechless.
The more she thought about Annette’s comments, the stranger they seemed. She was still unsure about the nature of Victor and Annette’s relationship.
Victor leaned back against the headboard, sighed in exasperation, and massaged his forehead. “Just ignore her. She’s my cousin. She’s been like this since we were kids. Don’t take anything she says seriously.”
Annette looked visibly hurt, glaring at him. “Watch your words, Victor! I traveled thousands of miles to see you after I heard about your injury.”
Victor’s eyes turned cold as he gave a half-smile. “Did you really come back for me, or was it for someone else? You know the answer to that. By the way, I sent Samuel recently. He won’t be back for at least a while.”
Annette’s face fell, and she said through clenched teeth, “You did that deliberately! It’s one thing not to support me, but actively hindering me-are you serious? We’re related!”
Victor remained unruffled. “You might as well think of me as not being your cousin.”
Annette was left speechless.
As she watched them argue, Vera felt a twinge of envy. Meanwhile, the conflict between the two major companies was escalating into outright animosity.
Reading the harsh comments online, Lily began to sense that something was amiss. She realized that from the start, Vera had deceived her into a trap meant to pit her against Tricia. Vera’s amusement was clear-her sole intention had been to stir up a conflict between her and Lily and then sit back to enjoy the show.
Once Lily grasped what Vera was aiming for, she hurried to the hospital to confront Tricia, but the Guerrero family barred her entry.
Fuming with anger, Delmar clashed with the Montgomery Group, who seized the opportunity to publicize the Guerrero family’s wrongdoings.
Already seething, Delmar found the perfect target for his anger when Lily showed up.
“How dare you show your face here! Didn’t you learn your lesson from last time? Believe it or not, I’m ready to slap you again!”
Hatred seared through Lily’s eyes. She had planned to retaliate after Delmar’s previous slap, but for now, she forced herself to stay calm.
Taking a deep breath, she said in a controlled, almost pleading tone, “Mr. Guerrero, please give me a chance to explain. Vera concocted this malicious scheme to cause all this chaos. Once I meet with Tricia, we’ll piece together what really happened and find out who’s behind all of this.”
Delmar’s eyes were bloodshot as he lifted his hand. “What more can be said? I witnessed you disconnect my daughter’s oxygen tube with my own eyes. You even pushed her toward suicide. Tricia is my only child, and if anything happens to her, I will make sure your entire family pays the price.”
Lily’s voice rose, edged with desperation. “Why won’t you just give me a chance to clear things up? It was an unfortunate accident. Do you really want our families to fight to the bitter end and both be ruined? Vera will come out on top if we let this division continue. Please, calm yourself and think about what I’m saying.”
Delmar remained unmoved. Seizing the moment, Lily shouted through the closed door of the ward, “Tricia, I know you can hear me! Please, think this through. Vera has been playing us from the start. We used to be friends-why are we fighting each other now? Please, consider what I’m saying.”
Delmar, his face flushed with fury, gripped Lily’s arm with a bruising force. “Get out!” he barked. “Or don’t blame me if I get rough.”
Just a faint voice drifted from inside the ward, steady but weary. “Dad, let her in.”
It was Tricia. She had pushed herself through the press conference but was later drained and bedridden, finally beginning to recover after a day on an IV drip.
Lily seized the chance, pulled her arm free from Delmar’s grasp, and pushed the door open, stepping resolutely into the ward.
Tricia slumped weakly against the head of the bed, each cough wracking her frail frame. She lifted her tired eyes to Lily, her gaze steely despite her exhaustion.
“What exactly are you trying to say?” she rasped. “Be direct.”
Lily’s face hardened with resolve as she spoke. “I’m saying that Vera set both you and me up. Her plan was to…”
“Think it through. Why would I suddenly pull out your oxygen tube? Why would I cause you harm?”
Delmar’s anger boiled over, his voice seething with fury. “How dare you bring this up!”
Tricia’s lips twisted into a bitter smile as she looked at Lily with sharp eyes. “You were afraid I’d survive and tell everyone you talked me into committing suicide, then shifted the blame to Vera. Your best option to keep me quiet was to kill me, thinking it would also ruin Vera’s reputation.”
Tricia’s accusation landed with cutting precision. Lily’s jaw clenched as frustration flared inside her. Her mind raced, clear on her mission: to stop the escalating feud. If she didn’t succeed, both the Montgomery and Guerrero families would be left in ruin. Her goal was to persuade Tricia-whom she considered easily swayed-to join her in opposing Vera.
“This is just the beginning,” she said firmly. “If our families keep fighting, who benefits the most from our destruction?”
Tricia showed confusion, her thoughts clearly in turmoil. She hadn’t considered this perspective before. Unable to immediately identify who stood to gain, Tricia remained silent.
Seeing this, Lily put on a serious expression. “The real winner is Vera, but more precisely, it’s Victor. Vera orchestrated all of this to gain his support.”
Tricia’s eyes widened in disbelief as she absorbed Lily’s words. Her mind raced, trying to grasp why Lily had come to see her and what her real motives were in telling her these things.
Under the blanket, her hands tightened into fists, frustration etched on her face as she struggled to make sense of Lily’s words. Unable to fully understand or respond, she remained silent, only fueling Lily’s irritation.
Lily took a deep breath, her frustration palpable as she continued. “Vera is powerless and broke. There’s no way she could have nearly bankrupted the family on her own. It’s Victor who’s orchestrated this.”
Tricia’s eyes widened in surprise, while Delmar’s expression shifted to one of disbelief.
Lily leaned in, her voice low and urgent. “Vera and Victor have been in league for a long time. If we keep fighting, the Adams family will take advantage of our division, merging our companies with minimal effort and strengthening their position.”
Lily’s eyes drilled into Tricia’s face, searching for any sign that her argument was landing. This was the most she could offer.
Delmar, his eyes sharp with scrutiny, remained silent, but his intense gaze was fixed on Tricia. He silently hoped she would piece things together and figure out a way to resolve the situation.
Tricia, caught off guard, took a moment to process before responding. “That doesn’t make sense. How could Vera be working with Victor? And if the Adams family wanted to ruin us, they could do it with a single command. Why go through all these elaborate schemes?”
Lily’s frustration flared as she stared at Tricia, her grip tightening into fists. She was astonished and irritated that Tricia, whom she had always believed to be naive, now seemed to grasp the situation with unexpected clarity.
“I’ll show you the proof,” she snapped, barely containing her irritation.
While talking, Lily pulled out her phone and started scrolling through old news reports about Victor and Vera’s relationship.
Delmor and Tricia exchanged a glance, their eyes reflecting a hint of disappointment.
Tricia’s brow furrowed; she had expected Lily to present something more solid, something they could really use. Instead, it was just the usual gossip from the media.
Those stories had been buried a long time, and all Lily could show were outdated screenshots, remnants of a once-hot topic.
She locked eyes with Lily for a hint of defiance in her gaze. “You really think I’m that easy to trick?”