Chapter 160 The Police
MELISSA'S POV
My phone beeped again.
That had to be the fifth time now.
I leaned back slightly in the Uber seat, staring at the screen for a second before unlocking it. I already knew who it was. Isabel had been blowing up my phone ever since I left the ceremony.
I opened the message and read it.
“Melissa!!!!!!”
I could almost hear her voice in my head, screaming my name with that crazy excitement she always had whenever something went exactly the way she wanted.
“You did an amazing job.”
Of course I did.
I smirked a little as I continued reading.
“That brat Anna and her family has seen the video, and just like we planned, she’s shocked to the very core, still finding it hard to believe that her baby boo family was behind her getting separated from her family from the beginning, you should have seen the shocked look on their faces, when I get back I’ll give you the full gist.”
I stared at the message for a moment before locking my phone again.
There was really no need to reply.
Isabel would probably send another ten messages if I did anyway.
Besides, the important thing was already clear.
The plan worked.
I slowly leaned my head back against the seat and let out a quiet breath.
All that embarrassment…
It wasn’t for nothing.
Standing there at the entrance of that ceremony, arguing with security, raising my voice, slapping that guard and making a whole scene in front of people I couldn’t stand… it had taken a lot of self-control not to walk away.
I hated being embarrassed.
Everyone who knew me knew that.
But I had swallowed my pride for one reason.
The reward at the end of it all.
I smiled faintly to myself.
My first step toward becoming the MD of Quinn’s Group.
Just thinking about it made everything feel worth it.
If this plan hadn’t worked, I would have been furious. There was no way I would have allowed myself to go through all that humiliation for nothing.
Especially in front of Anna.
That girl always had this calm, controlled look like she was better than everyone else.
Seeing her confused earlier had actually felt satisfying.
I let out another small sigh and glanced out the window of the car as the Uber continued driving through the quiet road.
But as the excitement from Isabel’s message slowly faded, something else crept into my mind.
Eric.
My brows tightened slightly.
Over the past few days, he had been acting strangely.
And I didn’t like it.
When we first started our little games together, Eric had been completely different. I could still remember how desperate he used to be around me.
The way he would practically kneel if I asked him to.
How he would constantly call and text, telling me how much he wanted me, how he wished I would leave James and stay with him instead.
At first, it was amusing.
Then it became useful.
But now…
Now he wasn’t acting like that anymore.
He wasn’t calling as much.
His texts had reduced.
Even when we talked, he didn’t sound as clingy as he used to be.
He had started acting… calm.
Nonchalant.
Like he wasn’t chasing me anymore.
My lips pressed together slightly.
Honestly, I didn’t even know why it was bothering me.
All I wanted from him was his money, right?
That was always the plan.
Use what he had.
Enjoy the benefits.
Move on when I was done.
So why was I thinking about it this much?
Why did it feel like something was off?
I shook my head lightly, trying to push the thought away.
It didn’t matter.
Right now, the important thing was what had just happened tonight.
Everything was moving in the direction I wanted.
The car finally slowed down, and I looked ahead as we approached my gate.
But before the driver could even honk for the gate man to open it, something immediately caught my attention.
Something was different.
I sat up slightly.
Flashing lights.
Blue and red.
My brows pulled together in confusion.
The gate was already open, so the driver just drove in without stopping.
The lights became clearer as we moved closer.
Police cars.
Several of them.
“What…?” I muttered under my breath.
The car finally came to a stop, and I immediately opened the door and stepped out.
Confusion and curiosity filled my face as I looked around the compound.
The police?
Why were they here?
Who were they arresting?
My mind quickly began running through possibilities, but none of them made any sense.
Before I could even take another step toward the house…
The door suddenly burst open.
The sound made me freeze where I stood.
Then I saw what was happening.
James.
He was pushed out of the house roughly, stumbling slightly as two officers dragged him forward.
His hands were cuffed behind his back.
My eyes widened instantly.
What?
I never expected something like this.
James looked furious, struggling slightly as they held him.
“Let go of me!” he snapped angrily.
But the officers didn’t even react to his tone.
They pushed him forward again.
“Move,” one of the officers said sharply, pointing a gun toward him.
I felt my heart jump slightly.
This whole thing didn’t make any sense.
“What the hell is going on?” I blurted out, stepping forward.
No one answered me immediately.
James finally noticed me standing there.
His expression changed the moment he saw me.
It wasn’t anger this time.
It was something else.
Shock.
Then frustration.
“Melissa?” he said, clearly not expecting me to show up right now.
I looked between him and the officers.
“What did you do?” I asked.
One of the officers turned to look at me.
“Ma’am, please stay where you are,” he said firmly.
That only made me more confused.
“Why are you arresting him?” I asked again.
James let out a bitter laugh.
“You should be asking them that,” he muttered.
Another officer stepped out of the house behind them, holding something that looked like documents.
“We have a warrant,” he said calmly.
“For fraud, financial misconduct, and multiple illegal transfers connected to offshore accounts.”
My brows furrowed deeply.
Fraud?
Illegal transfers?
I slowly looked back at James.
For the first time since I met him, he didn’t look confident.
He looked… cornered.
“What are they talking about?” I asked him quietly.
James didn’t answer immediately.
Instead, he just shook his head slightly, like he was trying to process everything happening.
“This is ridiculous,” he said finally. “Someone set me up.”
One of the officers scoffed.
“We’ve heard that before.”
They began leading him toward one of the police vehicles.
I stood there, completely stunned, watching everything unfold.
None of this was supposed to happen tonight.
Tonight was supposed to be perfect.
The plan had just worked.
Anna had just been humiliated.
Everything was moving forward.
So why did it suddenly feel like things were starting to fall apart somewhere else?