Chapter 160 Cancel All Cooperation with the Ellis Family
Thea didn't know what Ava was planning to do, but with so many people around, she figured Ava wouldn't dare do anything, so she walked over.
"Ava..."
The slap came out of nowhere.
A numb pain spread across her left cheek. Thea froze instantly, staring at Ava in shock for a few seconds before realizing that Ava had actually slapped her.
"You... you hit me! Why did you hit me?"
Ava stared at her coldly, "I don't believe in solving problems with violence, but you crossed the line when you laid hands on my daughter."
Thea was startled. Cleo had actually dared to tell.
But with so many people watching, there was no way Thea would admit it.
"Ava, what are you talking about? I don't understand. How could I hit Cleo? Cleo is so sweet, I care about her so much. Ava, you must be mistaken!" Thea immediately defended herself with tears in her eyes.
"What's going on here? Ava, what did you just say?" Victor also sensed something serious was happening and asked sternly.
"Cleo's arms are covered in bruises." Ava's voice was ice cold.
"What?" Ursa immediately picked up Cleo and carefully rolled up her sleeves, revealing arms covered in black and blue marks.
Ursa's heart ached.
What kind of person could be so cruel to hurt such a small child so badly?
Victor's eyes turned cold. He slammed the table, his voice incredibly dark, "Who did this?"
Ava clenched her jaw, her eyes locked on Thea the whole time.
Thea's body trembled slightly. Under Ava's gaze, she shook her head desperately through her tears, "It wasn't me, it wasn't me, it really wasn't me. I care about Cleo so much, how could it be me? You all know I've been trying my best to help Cleo get better. I could never do something so heartless."
"Is that so?" There wasn't a trace of warmth in Ava's eyes. "So you're saying I'm wrongly accusing you?"
"I don't know why Ava is saying it was me, but Cleo's injuries really weren't from me."
Thea cried uncontrollably and rushed to Cleo, grabbing her little hand, "Cleo, Cleo, I know you don't like me, but you can't accuse me like this. I didn't hit you, I didn't hit you."
Thea gripped Cleo's hand hard, her eyes full of warning.
As if saying, if you dare tell, I'll make sure Ava dies!
Cleo hid fearfully in Ursa's arms.
Ursa held Cleo, her heart breaking.
Why was Cleo so unlucky, suffering so much at such a young age?
"Mrs. Thomas, do you believe me? I really didn't do it."
Ursa softened and helped Thea up. She had watched Thea grow up - kind and honest since childhood, wouldn't even hurt a cat or dog, how could she harm such a sweet child like Cleo?
Besides, Thea had repeatedly mentioned wanting to help treat Cleo, which showed she really wanted Cleo to get better.
Ursa looked at Ava's cold expression and frowned, "Ava, did you make a mistake? I believe Thea wouldn't do such a thing. Thea has always loved Cleo."
"Ava, please believe me, I really didn't..."
"Cleo, come here." Ava called to Cleo, who immediately ran to Ava's side. "Cleo, tell me, how did you get those injuries on your arms?"
Cleo pressed her lips tightly together. Thea's warning gaze kept staring at her.
Cleo was torn inside. Thea had almost gotten Ava killed. If she told, and it angered Thea, what if she sent someone to kill Ava again?
The last incident was still fresh in her mind. She really didn't want Ava to get hurt again.
Ava looked at Cleo with heartache, "Cleo, don't be afraid. Finn and I are both here. No one can hurt Cleo now."
Cleo kept her head down. After much internal struggle, she still shook her head.
She grabbed paper and pen and quickly wrote: I fell!
After writing, she immediately lowered her head again, not even daring to look Ava in the eye.
She knew Ava was standing up for her. She couldn't lie, but she didn't want Ava to get hurt because of her.
Ava's brow furrowed deeply. She could tell at a glance whether her own daughter was lying or not.
Thea relaxed.
At least Cleo knew what was good for her.
Thea's attitude immediately became bolder, "Ava, it's normal for kids to bump into things when they're playing around."
Ursa thought of this too, "Right, Ava, you got it wrong. Cleo said she fell herself. That slap you gave Thea was really too much."
Thea immediately put on a wronged expression, "I'm fine, as long as the misunderstanding is cleared up."
She touched her face as she spoke.
Ursa looked at her with sympathy and couldn't help glaring at Ava, finding her more and more unreasonable.
Ava thought Ursa was really too naive sometimes.
"Cleo, is that really what happened?"
Cleo slowly nodded.
Finn also couldn't understand why Cleo would cover for Thea. His little brow kept furrowing.
"What is Cleo afraid of?" Ava looked at Cleo seriously and asked, "I gave birth to Cleo. Don't you think I can tell when Cleo is lying?"
Cleo kept her head down and said nothing.
"Ava, stop pressuring Cleo. It's normal for Cleo to fall while playing. When Hayden was little, he'd come home covered in injuries from playing outside too." Ursa said.
Thea bit her lower lip, even her eyes showing grievance, "Ava..."
"A child playing around could bruise her entire arm black and blue?" Ava asked through gritted teeth. "And a quiet, well-behaved girl like Cleo at that?"
Ava's words made everyone somewhat doubtful. Victor's gaze remained darkly fixed on the scene.
"I also believe Cleo's injuries weren't self-inflicted." Victor spoke with authority, his serious gaze sweeping over everyone present. "But Ava, how did you determine that Cleo's injuries were definitely caused by Thea?"
Finn spoke up, "Because Cleo was with me the entire day. The only time Cleo left my sight was during Thea's treatment session. Later, Mom took us home, and that's when Mom saw the injuries on Cleo's arms."
The meaning was clear - Cleo's injuries could only have been caused by Thea.
Thea immediately objected, "I was treating Cleo at that time. I was treating Cleo the entire time."
"Who can prove that?" Finn's serious gaze fixed on Thea. "You yourself?"
"I... you can ask Cleo." Thea turned to look at Cleo. "Cleo, isn't that right? Wasn't I treating you the whole time?"
"As I understand it, the method Thea used to treat Cleo last time was hypnotherapy to repair Cleo's psychological trauma, correct?"
Hypnotherapy was an effective method that advanced psychologists could use to cure many mental illnesses and psychological disorders without relying on medication.
Thea didn't know why Finn was asking her this, but she had indeed used this method, "Yes."
"And this time?"
"Also yes."
Finn nodded, "Then that's strange. This means Cleo was in a hypnotized state during that time, so how would she know what you did? What are you trying to prove by asking Cleo?"
Thea froze!
"Next, please tell us about the treatment process, Cleo's reactions during treatment, and her recovery level after treatment." Finn continued.
Thea was stunned again. She hadn't expected Finn to have such strong logic, throwing out questions one after another that left her completely defenseless.
"Go ahead and explain. I may not be a psychologist, but I've been reading some books on this subject lately and consulted with some experts. Don't worry, I'll understand."
Thea's mouth twitched.
Finn's presence was incredibly intimidating.
Thea thought for a moment. Having studied psychology for so long, she could make something up even if she had to.
Thea answered Finn's questions in an organized manner, deliberately adding a few obscure professional terms. She even felt impressed with herself and couldn't help but lift her chin proudly.
"Good." Finn nodded after listening. "You've really proven that Cleo was asleep the entire time."
"Of course." Thea smiled.
"So during that time, whatever you did to Cleo, she would have no idea. If you hit Cleo, only you would know, and only you had the opportunity, right?"
Just when Thea thought she had perfectly answered Finn's questions, the expression on her face froze like ice.
She realized he had trapped her.
He had both proven that Cleo wasn't injured before entering the room with her, and proven that Cleo saying she fell was because she was unaware of everything during hypnosis and mistakenly believed that.
Thea lost the leverage of assuming Cleo didn't dare speak up, and all the suspicion circled back to herself.
Thea looked at Finn in disbelief.
What kind of monster had Ava given birth to?
"I... really didn't..." Thea lowered her head and gritted her teeth hard. Even so, she couldn't admit it.
"Who can prove it?"
Thea was so angry her chest hurt. "...No one can prove it!"
"So you want to clear yourself with just your word?"
Finn didn't say suspicion, but guilt.
Victor's sharp, heavy gaze fell directly on Thea. "Thea!"
Thea jumped in fright. "Grandpa... I!"
"When Cleo was in my hands before I gave her to you, there were no injuries on her arms."
Thea fell to her knees in fear. "Grandpa, it really wasn't me, it really wasn't me. I didn't hit Cleo."
Victor let out a deep sigh. Whether she did it or not, he already knew in his heart. "Thea! From now on, you are not allowed to step foot in the Thomas Villa again. Don't call me grandpa anymore either. I can't bear it."
"Grandpa, please don't. I really didn't. Grandpa."
"Get out of the Thomas Villa!"
"No, please don't, Grandpa, I'm begging you to believe me..."
"Drag her out."
At Victor's command, bodyguards hidden in the Thomas Villa immediately appeared, each grabbing one of Thea's arms. No matter how much Thea struggled, they dragged her out and threw her out of the Thomas Villa.
The next day, news of this incident inevitably reached Joshua's ears.
The oppressive atmosphere in the office made Samuel keep his head down nervously.
"Cancel all cooperation with the Ellis family."
Samuel looked up in shock. "Mr. Thomas, the Ellis family is one of our biggest partners. Many projects are ongoing. If we cancel the cooperation, our losses will be huge too."
Joshua said nothing more.
Samuel knew that once Joshua made a decision, it couldn't be changed, but the losses from this matter would indeed be enormous, and the Ellis family definitely wouldn't let it go.
Victor was certainly angry about last night's incident too, but he only kicked Thea out of the Thomas Villa and forbade her from entering. He didn't mean to break ties with the Ellis family, because Victor knew the cooperation between the Ellis family and the Thomas family was too close - breaking up wouldn't benefit anyone.
Joshua understood this too, but he still wanted the entire Ellis family to pay the price for Thea, which showed how much Joshua valued Ava and the others.
And there was what Ava did at the Howard family yesterday. When Will was found this morning, he was apparently half-dead.
His leg was already crippled, and now it seemed he was paralyzed from the waist down.
Samuel was truly shocked. These two were absolutely ruthless when teaching lessons on each other's behalf, and their methods specifically targeted people's weak spots - they really held grudges.
The Howard family and the Ellis family wouldn't let this go either. A storm was definitely coming.
Joshua was angry right now. Samuel thought it would be better to call Ava over to keep Joshua company.
After all, one thing conquers another.
Samuel went out to call Ava and saw several secretaries in the hallway trying their best to block some aggressive-looking people.
Samuel's expression turned cold.
They're here.
"Mr. Howard, Mr. Thomas is busy and can't see you. Please leave."
"Get lost. What are you to dare block me?"
The Howard family, as a great family that had stood for a hundred years, had always been arrogant.
Samuel walked forward and expressionlessly raised his hand to block Aiden Howard.
Aiden pushed aside the nearby secretary, lifted his chin, looked down his nose at Samuel, and snorted coldly. "Samuel, where's Joshua? Tell him to come out and see me."
Samuel smiled without warmth. "Mr. Howard, this is the Thomas Group!"
Not a place where he could throw his weight around.
Having been by Joshua's side for so long, Samuel's presence was definitely not weak.
Aiden stared at Samuel. "I'm here to get an explanation from Mr. Thomas. If he can't control his woman, hand her over and the Howard family will discipline her for him."
"Mr. Howard, what makes you think you're qualified to discipline Mrs. Thomas?"
"I don't believe the Thomas family would turn against the Howard family over a woman."
Samuel let out a cold laugh. "Don't the Thomas family and the Howard family already have bad blood?"
"How dare a mere assistant be so arrogant!"
"Let him in." A low voice came from inside the office.
Only then did Samuel step aside and made a gesture of invitation with neither humility nor arrogance.
Aiden gave Samuel a cold look and swaggered into the office.
As soon as he stepped into Joshua's office, Aiden unconsciously held his breath.
Whether it was the cold or something else, Aiden pulled at his open suit jacket and stood in front of Joshua's desk.
Joshua had his head slightly lowered, handling documents.
"Mr. Thomas."
Knowing he had entered, Joshua didn't even look up. This made Aiden, who was used to being superior, feel disrespected, and he snorted coldly.
Joshua didn't stop what he was doing.
"Joshua!"
After waiting ten minutes, Aiden slammed his fist heavily on the desk. "Your woman put my son in the hospital where he's still lying. You must give me an explanation for this."
Joshua said, "You should be grateful she was the one who did it. Otherwise, he'd be a pile of bones by now."
"You! Absolutely outrageous!" Aiden glared in anger.