Chapter 20
Eleanor heard the accusation and let out a silent, knowing smile.
“Mrs. Yates, don’t say I never gave you a chance.”
With those words, she pulled out her phone and played a video.
The video was a surveillance recording showing Lillian in disguise, sneaking into Eleanor’s room and hiding contraband under the bed.
A few days earlier, after the incident with the “demolition crew,” Eleanor had noticed Lillian lurking suspiciously around the orphanage, even attempting to bribe the security guards.
Eleanor had a hunch about what Lillian was up to.
Rather than play a game of cat and mouse, Eleanor decided to set a trap and end the trouble once and for all. She organized a field trip, taking the orphans out for a day of sketching, deliberately leaving the place unguarded for Lillian to make her move.
What she hadn’t anticipated was the audacity and madness of Lillian, committing such an illegal act. Even more shocking was that Selene dared to cover for her!
Eleanor turned to the officers with steady resolve.
“I’m not only reporting Lillian for drug possession and spreading malicious rumors about me, but I’m also pressing charges against her mother, Mrs. Selene, for perjury and slander. And I will not accept any settlements from them.”
Lillian collapsed to the floor like a puppet with cut strings. Even as the officers cuffed her, she protested:
“You’ve all been fooled by Eleanor! That video is doctored! That person isn’t me!”
“I was the one who reported Eleanor! She’s the criminal!”
The officer pulled her up, explaining firmly, “Eleanor filed a report before you did, claiming you were framing her.”
“We have substantial evidence; otherwise, we wouldn’t be arresting you.”
At this point, Selene realized the trap Lillian thought she had set for Eleanor was actually a snare for themselves.
As for herself, she knew she was getting what she deserved.
And the Yates family? It was finished.
Before being taken away, Selene attempted to seek Eleanor’s forgiveness.
*Ellie, I’m sorry, I…”
But Eleanor didn’t spare her a glance, stepping into another police car to return with the officers
16.548
for her statement.
Kane watched her leave, feeling both relieved and somewhat saddened.
He had already suspected Eleanor wasn’t as vulnerable as she seemed. True to form, she turned the situation to her advantage.
Still, his Ellie had become so strong that she no longer seemed to need him.
The final outcome was as expected: Lillian and Selene faced prison sentences.
Life at the orphanage became much more peaceful.
Kane didn’t return. Eleanor assumed he had come to terms with everything and moved on, so she didn’t give it much thought.
What she didn’t know was that Kane had gone to see Lillian.
Through the bars of her cell, Lillian’s eyes turned red when she saw Kane, calling softly, “Kay…”
Kane, having seen her true colors, was repulsed, his face showing impatience. “If you wanted to see me just to disgust me, don’t waste my time.”
As he turned to leave, Lillian blurted out, “Kane, wait!”
“I know why you keep coughing up blood!”
Kane paused, taking a deep breath before sitting back down.
Seeing this, Lillian’s eyes gleamed with a sinister smile as she began to negotiate.
“Kane, I know you have connections. If you get me out of here, I’ll tell you the reason.”
“Do you remember, when you were five, you were in a car accident? Isn’t your current condition exactly like it was back then?”
“Do you remember the last time Eleanor donated her bone marrow to me, she said if she died, you’d die too?”
“But she survived, didn’t she? Lived on by taking someone else’s body. You didn’t die, but you’re reliving the symptoms from that childhood accident.”
“So, the reason you’re coughing up blood and feeling like you’re dying is because of Eleanor.”
“If you want to get better, you have to start with her…”
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