Chapter 295 Destroy Her Thoroughly

Chapter 295 Destroy Her Thoroughly
Vera's POV

"Vera, what's going on here?" Bill asked anxiously.

I didn't answer him directly. Instead, I turned to Ruby. "I'm giving you one last chance. If you come clean now, I might consider letting you off."

Ruby looked panicked, stammering, "I... I don't know what you're talking about."

I looked at the old woman collapsed on the floor. "Then you tell me. What happened?"

"If you don't want me dead, you better talk!" Ruby glared at her viciously.

Tears streamed down the woman's worn face. "Ruby, this is all my fault... Kill me if you want, just please let Ruby go!"

I demanded coldly, "I can let her go, but you need to tell me what happened back then! How did my mother die!"

The old woman flinched, her lips trembling. "Back then, I worked as a janitor at the Grant family hospital. Mrs. Grant was kind to me, let me deliver at the hospital for free. But I envied her happiness while my husband only gambled and beat me."

"After I gave birth to Ruby, I was terrified of what awaited her. That's when I saw another newborn girl in the next bed. I... I switched them."

She looked at me with tear-filled eyes. "That's the truth. Please let Ruby go. She's a victim too!"

Desolation swept through me. My eyes reddened. "Ruby did nothing wrong? What about me? I was supposed to have loving parents, a happy family, but because of your selfishness, everything was destroyed!"

Atlas pulled me into his arms.

Bill's face turned ashen with rage. "You wicked woman! My poor granddaughter suffered all these years!"

The woman kowtowed, crying. "I'm sorry! I'll give my life to atone! Just please spare Ruby!"

I pulled away from Atlas's embrace, wiping my tears. "What you just said is only part of the truth. What about my mother's death? Did you kill her!"

The woman looked up in terror, lowering her head guiltily. "I... I don't know. I only heard that Mrs. Grant fell and died."

"Don't know?" I scoffed. "Since you won't tell the truth, then I don't need to go easy on Ruby. She stole company secrets—that's good for three years in prison."

Ruby's body stiffened, her eyes full of fear. "You're talking nonsense!"

My eyes were ice-cold. "Whether I'm talking nonsense or not, we'll find out once they investigate."

Ruby completely panicked, kneeling before Bill. "Grandpa, don't believe her! I can't go to prison!"

Nathan looked disappointed. "Are you still the Ruby I used to know?"

Ruby grabbed Nathan's hand desperately. "No, Nathan, it's not like she said!"

Nathan pulled his hand free forcefully. "Don't touch me!"

Her mother crawled over, pulling Ruby into her arms, then lifted bloodshot eyes to me. "If I tell you the truth about how Mrs. Grant died, will you let Ruby go?"

I looked down coldly. "Tell me first, and I'll consider it."

She closed her eyes as if making a final decision. "Mrs. Grant was killed by me!"

Bill staggered and almost fell. Nathan quickly steadied him.

Moisture welled up in my eyes. "Talk. What happened?"

The woman began trembling. "That night, after I switched the babies, I couldn't bear for the switched child to suffer with me, so I decided to take her outside. But Mrs. Grant suddenly appeared at the nursery door."

"She looked at the baby in my arms in shock and demanded what I was doing. I tried to explain, but she lunged at me to grab the baby. I wasn't paying attention and pushed her hard. She hit her head on the baby bed and fell down. I checked her breathing—she wasn't breathing anymore. I was terrified, so I just ran."

"Foolish!" Bill glared at the woman. "Don't you know my daughter-in-law wasn't dead yet? If you'd called for a doctor right away, they could have saved her! You let her miss the critical rescue time!"

My eyes filled with tears. "My mother showed you kindness, and you repaid her by throwing away her child and causing her death!"

Unable to hold back my grief, I buried myself in Atlas's arms and cried.

The woman sobbed, "I know I deserve death. All these years I've had nightmares every night."

I looked down at her, then glanced at Ruby's empty eyes. "You wanted to turn yourself in, but your daughter Ruby wouldn't let you. She locked you up, right? So Ruby knew in her teens that she wasn't really a Grant, and she destroyed all the records that could prove her identity!"

Bill was shocked again. He glared at Ruby. "On your fifteenth birthday, you wanted that hospital as a gift. So you already knew about your identity—it was all premeditated! How could you be so vicious!"

Ruby sat dazed on the floor, not daring to speak.

Her mother grabbed my hand, crying. "Miss Green, you promised me! You said you'd let Ruby go!"

I yanked my hand away, a murderous look flashing in my eyes. "So what if I promised you? Why should I keep my word? I'm telling you, Ruby is finished!"

The woman turned to Bill. "Mr. Grant, Ruby has been your beloved granddaughter for over twenty years. Please spare her life!"

Bill's eyes were even colder than mine. "If I could go back in time, I'd strangle her with my own hands!" Then he looked at me. "Don't show any mercy!"

"Grandpa!" Ruby let out a desperate, anguished scream.