Chapter 17

Moments later, Maya entered the kitchen. She walked up to Mia and said, “Mia, do you think making

some soup for Mrs. Barrett Senior is enough for you to convince her to stand up for you?

“I’ll let you in on something. I’ve hired a renowned and highly acclaimed cardiovascular surgeon to

perform surgery for Mrs. Barrett Senior. As long as the surgery succeeds, I’m sure she won’t object to

Tim and me getting married.”

Even though Dominic and Connor hadn’t agreed to Maya’s request, she was sure she could convince

Connor

to operate on Laura.

She believed that once she saved that old hag’s life, the latter would’ve no reason to stop her from

marrying Timothy anymore.

Mia knew that Laura had been living with a heart condition for some time now, but they had failed to

find a suitable person to perform the surgery.

Well, Mia figured things were better this way. At the very least, Laura could regain her health.

Mia stood up from the stool and said, “Allow me to offer my congratulations in advance. I hope you two

will have a big family with lots of kids, even if they all end up being half-siblings. Now, please get out of

my way.”

Maya’s eyes darkened. How dare Mia talk back to her?

Maya reached out to shove the pot off the stove, and it began tipping over in Mia’s direction.

“Watch out!”

A man rushed into the kitchen. Mia turned around and saw Timothy, but he ran over to Maya to protect

her.

At the very next second, the boiling soup splattered all over Mia’s hand, but she didn’t feel the pain

coming

from it-it couldn’t compete with the pain in her heart.

Mia quickly used cold water to soothe her skin. While doing so, Maya’s coquettish voice rang in her

ears. “Tim, my hand got scalded. It hurts so much. But please don’t blame Mia. I don’t think she did it

on purpose.”

Upon hearing this, Mia’s eyes flashed mockingly. She didn’t even bother turning around to defend

herself.

At the very next second, Timothy yanked her on the arm. “Mia! I didn’t expect you to be such a-”

Timothy caught sight of Mia’s hand. It was red and blistered.

Pursing his lips, he couldn’t finish his sentence.

Mia looked up at him. “You didn’t expect what from me?”

“Mia! I didn’t expect you to be such a vicious woman! How dare you hurt Ms. Lane on purpose?”

Sharon hurried into the kitchen. When she saw Maya clutching her wrist, she didn’t even bother to ask

what happened before she raised her hand to slap Mia.

Mia’s gaze turned scornful. Just as she was about to dodge the slap, a pair of hands shielded her.

She stared at Timothy in shock. His arms had kept Sharon away from her. She never thought he would

help

her.

Mia wasn’t alone in that. No one else expected it, either.

Sharon was a little annoyed. “Tim, don’t stop me from teaching her a lesson!”

Timothy’s expression was a little chilly. “The pot fell by accident.”

“Are you sure it was an accident?” Sharon clearly didn’t believe that.

Meanwhile, Maya clenched her jaw. Why did Timothy actually believe it was an accident?

Still, she quickly said pitifully, “It was really just an accident, Mrs. Barrette. Mia didn’t push the pot off

the stove on purpose. After all, she got injured, too.”

However, Mia calmly stated, “No. It wasn’t an accident. Maya had shoved the pot off the stove. She did

it on purpose!”

All at once, sparks seemed to fly in the kitchen.

Mia raised her head high and met Timothy’s gaze in defiance. She had signed the divorce papers

anyway, so why did she have to bother putting up with such things?

She wasn’t a pushover!

Timothy’s eyes slightly narrowed as he looked at Maya and said, “What on earth happened?”

Panicked, Maya defended herself, “I really didn’t push the pot off, Tim.”

Mia pointed at the security camera in the kitchen. “Just check the footage. Everyone will know what

happened

then.

“According to the law, assault is punishable with up to three years of jail time. The wound on my hand

is severe enough to require medical attention. I deserve the right to press charges.”

Maya gasped. Flustered, she glanced at the security camera. She didn’t expect there to be one in the

kitchen.

She was done for.

“Let’s check the security footage,” Timothy agreed with an icy expression.

Maya hastily said to Sharon, “It was really just an accident, Mrs. Barrett. I just wanted to help serve the

soup, but I was so clumsy that I ended up knocking the pot over.

“Ms. Bowen and I both got injured because of me. I really didn’t mean to do that.”

“Of course, I believe you, Ms. Lane. After all, you’re a young woman from a wealthy family. When have

you ever had to do these kinds of chores?” Sharon said.

“Plus, who knows if Mia’s just pretending to be hurt just so she could frame you? I’ll get the family

doctor to

check on your injury right away. It wouldn’t do for a young heiress like you to get a scar.”

Maya exhaled in relief. Just as she was about to leave the kitchen, she looked at Timothy and called

out, “Tim.

Timothy noticed Mia’s injured hand. His gaze darkened as he said, “Go to the living room, everyone.

Tell the

family doctor to come over at once.”

“That’s right, Tim,” Sharon piped up. “Get the family doctor to come over at once to take a look at Ms.

Lane’s

hand. That’s the most important thing right now.”

Mia’s eyes flashed with mockery. Her hand was stinging with pain, but indeed, to Timothy, nothing

mattered

more than Maya.

After following them into the living room, she looked at Timothy and said, “Remember to check the

security footage to clear my name.”

She wasn’t going to drop this matter so easily.