Chapter 281: The Dead End You Chose Yourself
The cries for help brought a floor attendant, who saw Eve with disheveled hair, tears streaming down her faceand wearing only her underwear on top. She quickly took Eve to the break room and draped a piece of clothing over her.
During this time, Eve kept repeating one sentence, "Mr. Wipere tried to rape me... he tried to rape me..."
The attendant's eyes widened in shock, and she hurried out to contact Lily. "Ms. Martin, can you come to the fourth-floor break room? It's urgent."
Hearing it was the fourth floor, Lily hung up and stepped into the elevator.
At that moment, Leopold checked his watch, stood up unhurriedly, and walked out of the conference room. At the door, he ran right into Lily coming out of the elevator.
Seeing him, Lily said: "The attendant asked me to come up."
Leopold said casually, "Let's go watch the show together."
As soon as Lily pushed open the break room door, she heard Eve sobbing non-stop, and crying, then she said, "He took me in there and started hugging me, pressed me against the table, and tore my clothes..."
Hearing the door open, Eve turned her head and saw Lily and Leopold walking in. She sobbed to the person on her phone, quickly giving the hotel address and floor number, then said timidly, "Please come quickly, I'm so scared."
Lily asked alertly, "Who are you calling?"
Eve put away her phone, wiped the tears from her face, and said, "I called the police."
Lily asked, "Why call the police?"
"He tried to rape meand she's a witness." Eve pointed first at Leopold, then at the attendant. The named attendant was somewhat surprised—objectively speaking, she hadn't actually seen what happened.
Lily said, "Ms. Lorne, calling the police seems extreme. Maybe it's just a misunderstanding."
"I'm the one who got hurt, and you're making light of it! We're all women here, you can't protect him just because he's your boss." Eve became more and more upset, tears rolling out of her eyes, saying with a sob, "When the police comes, someone will give me justice."
Leopold stood at the door in silence. Only after Eve finished her outburst did he ask coldly, "Eve, have you thought about the consequences of filing a false police report?"
Eve was certain he had no evidence and said confidently, "You know what you did."
Leopold nodded calmly, "I do know, and so do you. Just don't regret it."
Eve recalled the situation, confirmed there were no active surveillance cameras in the conference room, and became even more stubborn. "Don't think that just because this is your hotel, no one can do anything. This is a society ruled by law. When the police come—"
Before she could finish, Leopold interrupted, "When the police comes, don't cry."
After saying this, he locked the door. "Now, no one in this room leaves. We'll wait for the police." He then said to Lily, "Get two security guards to lock down the conference room. No one goes in."
Lily quickly called security to go over. In Eve's eyes, whatever they did was futile.
The police car stopped in front of the hotel, attracting many onlookers. Gabriel and Evan were already waiting in the lobby. To avoid alarming guests, they took the officers directly to the elevator.
Gabriel knocked on the break room door and invited the officers in. Because the case involved harm to a woman, they had also sent along a female officer, April Percy. The moment Eve saw the police, she burst into tears, got up and rushed toward April while saying she'd been assaulted, pointing at Leopold, "He's the one who tried to rape me. I was so scared just now..."
April quickly comforted Eve, "We're here, don't be afraid."
Eve, who had been calm one second, was crying heartbrokenly the next. Her speed at changing faces was truly impressive.
Officer Megan Lewis looked at Leopold. The two had met once before—hotels needed to register at the local police station before opening. He said to his fellow officer, "Take him next door to get his statement."
The officer said to Leopold, "Come with me."
Leopold left the break room with the two officers. Lily and the attendant listened as Eve described the assault process—it was as fakeas it could be.
But when Megan questioned the attendant, she honestly stated that she had only seen Eve running out of the conference room disheveled, and wearing only her underwear. Lily also just told the officer what really happened.
Based on the current witness and physical evidence, things did look bad for Leopold.
For Eve's case, after responding to the call, the police needed to make a preliminary judgment about whether it was really a rape case.
Megan said to April, "Contact the hospital. We'll need to take the victim to collect physical evidence. I'm going to check the scene."
Lily volunteered, "I can take you there."
The two left the break room. Megan called over other officers to conduct a preliminary examination of the scene.
As they walked, Lily explained, "After the incident, I had security seal off the conference room. No one's been in or out."
Megan said, "If the scene hasn't been contaminated, that helps with evidence collection."
Opening the conference room door, Lily stood at the entrance while the officers entered the scene. Two pieces of women's clothing lay on the floor. Besides these two items, according to Eve's description of intense physical struggle and collision, the tables and chairs were neatly arranged, with only two chairs moved aside.
The two officers exchanged glances. Based on past experience, the scene didn't match the characteristics of a violent crime.
Megan looked around and pointed at a surveillance camera in the corner, asking Lily, "Is it on?"
"No."Just as Megan thought the case would be difficult to prove, Lily added, "That kind of surveillance has been discontinued. But last month, the conference room's surveillance equipment was upgraded."
The break room door opened again, and Megan and Leopold entered one after the other. Seeing Leopold appear, Eve acted terrified again, hiding behind April. "Officer, I'm scared..."
April said, "It's okay, we're all here, don't be afraid."
Leopold's hawk-like eyes fixed on Eve as he asked, "Eve, are you sure you want to accuse me?"
Eve didn't dare meet his gaze, looking to April for help. April said, "Don't be afraid, just tell it like it is."
She nodded timidly, "Yes."
Megan said, "Eve, if a false police report is verified, you'll be held accountable. In serious cases, you could go to jail."
Eve's eyes darted around, saying pointedly, "I know the person I'm facing has money and power, but I just want justice for myself. Are the police going to protect him?"
Megan shook her head, speechless.
Leopold stood there. Even without speaking, his imposing presence was enough to intimidate Eve. His expression was cold as he quietly watched the person across from him, his gaze as lofty as ever, like a deity, while Eve read contempt in his eyes, as if she were an insignificant ant. "I didn't want to make a big deal of this because you're young. I gave you a way out, but you refused. Since that's the case, you chose this dead end yourself. I won't be soft-hearted, and don't cry with regret later."
Eve blinked, suddenly feeling uncertain.
Leopold said to Megan, "Mr. Lewis, let's go through legal procedures."
Eve looked at Megan and asked suspiciously, "What does that mean?"