Islaâs eyes betrayed a trace of panic as her gaze was firmly locked onto that report.
Tom then walked in and handed the report to Keira.
Keira glanced at it, and sure enough, it didnât match.
She looked at Jake with a smile that wasnât quite a smile.
Jake sneered. âNow that the report is out, letâs show it to everyone and see whatâs going on!â
Right as Keira was about to hand the report over to Jake, a hand suddenly reached out and snatched the report away.
Poppy glanced at the report, and her pupils
immediately contracted. She stared at Isla in disbelief.
Islaâs eyes flickered guiltily. âAunt Hill, why are you looking at me? Show us the report nowâ¦It can prove my innocence!â
Jake also said, âExactly, bring it over to prove Islaâs innocence, so Uncle Lewis and Keira stop framing her!â
But as Jake came over to take the report, Poppy
suddenly crumpled it into a ball and stuffed it into her mouth.
Everyone was dumbfounded
Jake was shocked. âWhat are you doing?â
Isla also asked anxiously, âAunt Hill, what are you doing? Spit out the reportâ¦â
But the more they said, the more resolute Poppy became, swallowing it forcefully. âThis report is fake. I canât show it to you! Otherwise, if you leave evidence behind, what if you sue Keira?â
Jake was furious. âYouâ¦!â
The corners of Islaâs lips curled slightly.
She had brought Poppy here just for this moment.
Unfortunately, her smug expression didnât last long on her face before she heard Keiraâs clear, cold voice. âItâs just a report, isnât it? If itâs eaten, just print another.
Tomâ¦
Tom smiled, âAlright, Iâll go print another one nowâ¦â
With that, he left the room.
Poppy glared viciously at Keira, then suddenly turned to Jake. âYoung Mr. Horton, could you please leave first? Iâll try to persuade Keira to confessâ¦â
Jake sneered. âShe killed my child. Why should I give her that chance?!â
Poppy was a bit at a loss for a reply.
Then Isla said, âJake, for the sake of us having been classmates, Iâm willing to give Keira a chanceâ¦â
Classmates for four yearsâ¦
Jake pursed his lips, thinking of the four years when he pursued Keira with simple and pure intent.
He looked at Keira again, suddenly feeling a bit soft-hearted. âFine, Keira, Iâll give you this one chance. If you admit your wrong deeds and accept the punishment, Iâll let it drop. Otherwise, I definitely wonât let you off!â
Having said that, he turned to leave.
Isla said, âIâll stay behind to persuade her tooâ¦â
âFine.â
After Isla saw Jake out, she closed the door, isolating
the bodyguards and everyone elseâs prying eyes, then she turned around with a vicious look and dropped the pretense completely. âKeira, you are not allowed to take out that report!â
Seeing her change of face, Keira scoffed. âWhy not?â
âBecause youâre not allowed! Whereâs your reason?â Isla glared at her. âIf you take it out, itâll spell disaster
for me!â
Keira looked at her. âYou brought this upon yourself by lifting a stone only to drop it on your own foot. What does that have to do with me? If you hadnât framed me, I wouldnât be so petty with youâ¦â
âYouâ¦!â
Keiraâs face turned cold. âIsla, donât mistake my repeated concessions for weakness! This time, itâs a
mess of your own making!â
Isla clenched her fists tightly.
Poppy exclaimed in surprise. âIsla, why isnât the child young Mr. Hortonâs? How can it not be young Mr. Hortonâs? Whoâs the father?â
Isla frowned in disgust. âIt doesnât matter whose it is.
The Horton family must not find out about this; otherwise, Iâm done for!â
If she divorced Jake, especially under these
circumstances, even with the protection of the Clance Olsen Family, she wouldnât be able to find a respectable new husband!
Upon hearing this, Poppy immediately nodded in agreement. âYes, they must not know!â
After saying this, she turned directly to Keira. âYou ungrateful creature, you better keep quiet! Do you hear me?! Seal your lips, and you also need to persuade Lewis to keep quiet as well! If Isla gets divorced by the Horton family because of this, youâll have to answer to me!â
Keira said indifferently, âWhatever.â
âYouâ¦!â
Poppy pointed at her, furious, but as she looked up at Keira, taller than her, and thought about her combat skills, she realized she was now completely powerless against her.
A ruthless look flashed in Poppyâs eyes.
âBang!â
Suddenly, Isla knelt in front of Keira.
Poppy was startled, then rushed over, grabbing Isla by the arm. âIsla, youâre the young miss, how can you kneel to her? Get upâ¦â
But Isla pushed Poppy away, her face no longer showing madness but just calmness. âKeira, Iâm begging you, please spare me this once.â
Keira looked down at her from above.
A trace of confusion flickered in her eyes.
Ever since they were young, she was always Islaâs sidekick. When they were kids, Isla would often make her kneelâ¦
She had knelt to put shoes on for Islaâ¦
She knelt so Isla could step on her to mount a horseâ¦
She knelt to scrub the floor at the Olsenâs houseâ¦
She knelt in front of Isla to be scoldedâ¦
It wasnât until middle school that she regained her dignity and never knelt before anyone again.
kneel before her.
Yet, there was no sense of vindication from revenge, only the realization of how naive and ridiculous her younger self had been!
Keira gazed at her, saying, âI told you. It was you who framed me first. That report was the only evidence I had to prove my innocence.â
Isla shouted immediately, âIt doesnât matter. Iâll tell everyone I wonât pursue it. Iâll help prove youâre innocent and say it wasnât intentional⦠Right, and thereâs the Clance Olsen family-Iâll plead for you too. Keira, the Clance Olsen family has more power than the Horton family. Do you really think Lewisâs appearance downstairs can suppress Uncle Olsen? If Uncle Olsen really gets angry, Lewis wonât be able to protect you! But I canâ¦â
Isla tried to persuade her first, and upon seeing her unmoved, she began to make threats. âOf course, if I really get divorced by the Horton family, Iâll definitely beg my dad to disown you! But if you just step back and admit your mistakes, I can make everyone forgive you. Isnât that the best of both worlds⦠How about it?â
Keira lowered her gaze. âThereâs something I donât
understand.â
âWhat?â
âWhy did you want to abort the child?â
As Keira finished the sentence, her hand slipped into her pocket and turned on the voice recorder.
None of them noticed her subtle movement, especially with her phone in her other hand. Upon hearing this question, Islaâs eyes flashed with ruthlessness, and without any hesitation, she confessed.
âBecause this child is an obstacle on my path to happiness! As long as it exists, itâs a threat to me! What if after itâs born, it doesnât resemble Jake? Keeping it means endless trouble. Itâs just a baby. Iâm still young. I can always have many more in the futureâ¦â
To appear sincere and convince Keira, Isla was blunt with her words. It was the first time she exposed her true feelings in front of them. âI must marry into the Horton family to lead a life above others, Keira. You donât understand! This is my obsession! For this, I can sacrifice everything!!â