Chapter 156: The Culprit

Meanwhile, at the engagement party, Ford and the Brown family were busy entertaining the guests. Clara and Briena managed to slip away from the crowd, and Lily soon joined them.

"Lily, any update?" Briena asked. "Didn’t she leave a while ago with her bodyguard?"

Lily nodded. "The staff handed her the room key just as we planned. I’m sure she’s there by now, with her bodyguard..."

Briena glanced at her mother. "Weren’t we supposed to arrange someone for her?"

"What does it matter who she sleeps with?" Clara shrugged. "In fact, it’d be even better if it’s her bodyguard. That would stir up an even bigger scandal."

Lily smirked. "She’s not slipping away this time. That footage of her with other man will be everywhere soon."

"When do we get it?" Briena asked, a wicked glint in her eyes, as if she couldn’t wait to destroy Natalie.

"The drugs should last a while. Let her have her fun. We’ll check on her in a few hours," Clara said, smirking. "Not just check, but she would be famous than ever."

"Mother, we can’t just leave the party. Grandma will scold us," Briena reminded her.

"Don’t worry, Briena," Lily reassured her. "I’ll take care of everything."

"Thanks, Lily," Briena said with a satisfied smile.

As they parted ways with Lily, Clara leaned in toward Briena. "It’s smart that you left it to Lily. If anything goes wrong, she’ll be the one to blame."

Briena gave an immediate nod. "That’s why I said we can’t get involved."

Clara’s eyes gleamed with pride. "You’re learning fast."

---

Albert was growing increasingly concerned that Natalie had been gone for too long. He decided to call her, only to discover that she had left her cellphone behind.

"Gael, go check on Natalie," he instructed his caretaker.

Gael left to follow the order while Albert tried to reassure himself.

A short while later, John arrived, his expression serious. Though he hadn’t been able to prevent what had happened to Natalie, he was determined to make those responsible pay.

"John," Albert asked anxiously, "where is Natalie?"

"Mr. Aiden has returned, and she left with him," John replied calmly. "She told me to let you know not to worry—she’s headed home with him."

Albert chuckled, his tension easing. "No wonder she didn’t even come back to say goodbye."

John gave a polite nod, then discreetly picked up Natalie’s cellphone. As he prepared to leave, he also pocketed the glass she had used to drink the juice.

While leaving, John caught the sight of a particular woman, who had now noticed him just as he had planned.

The juice server, who John had beaten the hell out of him, and the hotel staff who offered them a room key, both said Lily’s name. She even dared arrange the men to assault Natalie.

John didn’t need to be instructed by Justin on what to do. He himself decided what he was going to do with the culprit and he was sure to make the culprit regret everything, the brutal way he knew.

Without a miss Lily followed John, trying her best to not get noticed, unaware that he himslef was luring her away.

’Shouldn’t he be with that horny bitch at this moment? What is he doing here?’

------

Meanwhile, the new suite had been prepared for Justin and Natalie. In her unconscious state, Justin carried Natalie to the suite and laid her gently in the bedroom.

Fresh clothes had been arranged for Natalie so she could sleep comfortably after changing into them.

"Mr. Harper, the lady staff is here," Noah informed him.

Justin gave short nod and stepped out of the bedroom while letting the two women enter the room so they could change Natalie’s clothes and clean her as her entire body had sweated a lot.

"We have informed Mr Albert that Ms Natalie has returned home with you Sitting on the sofa in the drawing room, Justin asked, "Did you investigate?"

Noah nodded. "John caught the man who served the drink and the staff member who gave Ms. Natalie the room key card. They confessed everything—someone named Lily ordered them to do it. She’s Briena Ford’s minion."

Justin recalled the incident at the party when Natalie had pushed Lily into the swimming pool and mocked her. His eyes narrowed, dark thoughts brewing, as if he couldn’t wait to deal with Lily.

"Let that woman taste what she had planned for Natalie," Justin commanded.

"John must have taken care of it by now," Noah informed and asked, "Should we go after Briena Ford too?"

"I’ll leave her to Natalie. Hurting Briena at this moment means hurting Mr. Ford. Let Natalie decide her fate," Justin replied. "But by tomorrow morning, I want to see them crushed by a big loss."

"Understood, Mr. Harper." Noah handed Justin the laptop he pulled from his bag.

Leaving John to handle other matters, Noah and Justin immersed themselves in their work.

After some time, the women from the bedroom emerged and bowed. "Everything is done."

Noah nodded and instructed them to leave.

Justin set his laptop on the table. "Take care of the rest."

"Yes, Mr. Harper," Noah replied.

Justin returned to the bedroom and approached Natalie. She looked much better now—her complexion had returned to normal, and she was sleeping peacefully.

He sat in the bed and his hand moved to caress her cheek gently. He realized how much burden and difficulties she was carrying alone, when her own family would never stop plotting against her. How had she lived her life till now while standing up to such people?

’I wish if I had met her before, I would have never let her suffer.’

He remembered how panicked he was when he received the message from John that Natalie was in trouble.

Justin had just returned to the city after finishing his business trip and headed straight to Natalie’s home. Sitting in the car, he couldn’t stop smiling, still thinking about the message she had sent him half an hour earlier:

He chuckled to himself.

he mused.

The thought of others admiring her made his smile falter for a moment, but he knew it was necessary and would never let anyone mock her, especially when he was not around to take care of her.

As Justin was lost in thoughts of Natalie, Noah interrupted.

"Mr. Harper, John sent a message. Ms. Natalie is in trouble."

Without hesitation, Justin grabbed Noah’s phone and read the message, that froze his entire self: