Chapter 114 She Is Innocent
"Because... I wanted to see you again, Miss Jones." Cynthia smiled brightly. She stood up and took Joanna's hand, placing it on her belly.
"Calling you Miss Jones sounds so formal. Can I just call you Joanna? Help me pick a name for mine and Chris's baby. Nicole has been asking me to find out if it's a boy or a girl, but it's still too early. So I want to prepare a few names. Joanna, you must have imagined having a baby with Chris back then, right? What names did you have in mind? Maybe I could borrow one?"
Cynthia's words hit Joanna like a sharp pain in her chest.
She had imagined it. Having a child with Chris.
Chris had a strong appetite, and they'd spent plenty of time in bed together.
But she never had Cynthia's luck — getting pregnant on the first try.
Three whole years, and nothing happened. Under the disapproving looks from the Coopers, she had nothing to hold her head up about.
Cynthia smiled and said, "Oh, I almost forgot — actually, I found something interesting when I was going through things at Hillside Villa. Joanna, take a look. What do you make of this?"
She placed a box of special contraceptive pills on the table, along with photos taken when she found them.
They had been in the bedroom she shared with Chris.
Joanna didn't let herself think too hard about what it meant. She looked away. "Maybe he brought a woman to the villa and gave her the pills afterward."
Cynthia raised an eyebrow. "Joanna, you don't have to deflect. I already asked the housekeeper. Those pills were for you. Remember how every time you and Chris were done, he'd tell the housekeeper to make you porridge in the morning?"
Joanna remembered.
And she finally understood what Cynthia was getting at.
So the reason she couldn't get pregnant for three years was that Chris never wanted her to. He had been slipping her the pills after every time they were together.
And she was a doctor. It was almost funny — she'd never even noticed what was happening to her own body.
Joanna smiled bitterly. No, that wasn't quite right. She had noticed.
She just hadn't wanted to face it.
Those three years of marriage, she had kept herself numb with the idea of a happy life together. After years of depending on Chris and being worn down by him, she hadn't dared to pick a fight.
She'd been afraid that if she exposed it, Chris would cut her off — and drag the Jones family into court.
So she had spent all that time pretending not to know.
And now Cynthia had brought it all out into the open, forcing her to admit the truth: she never got pregnant because Chris didn't think she deserved to.
Cynthia watched her calm expression and felt a flicker of frustration. "Looks like you already knew, Joanna. I guess I was sticking my nose where it didn't belong. I had no idea Chris treated you so badly before. He's nothing but sweet and caring with me — he can't stand the thought of me going through any discomfort because of the pregnancy."
Cynthia stretched out her hand, showing off the ruby ring on her finger, making it clear just how well her husband treated her.
Joanna felt nothing. Just numbness.
In the end, she couldn't take any more. She got up to leave. "If that's all you wanted to say, I'm not interested. Please bring me the divorce papers, or I'll contact the housekeeper myself."
She turned to go.
Cynthia panicked and rushed to grab her hand — but she knocked the coffee cup, letting out a startled scream.
She twisted her ankle, lost her balance, and went crashing to the floor.
Joanna's expression shifted and she instinctively reached out to catch her.
But it was too late.
Cynthia's stomach hit a shard of ceramic on the floor. Blood spread quickly across a wide patch of ground.
Joanna's mind went blank.
She hadn't touched Cynthia. She hadn't pulled away from her. Cynthia had lost her footing on her own.
Her first instinct was to look around for a security camera.
But the café had just opened. There were no cameras installed yet.
Joanna felt her heart slowly sinking.
The café erupted into chaos. Someone called for an ambulance.
Joanna was pushed aside. A few staff members grabbed her and wouldn't let her leave.
"It was this woman — she's the one who pushed the pregnant lady! How horrible. Hurting a pregnant woman like that — if anything happens to that baby, it's on you!"
Joanna's mind went blank.
It was only when she saw the blood on the floor that she managed to pull herself together.
Fighting back the sick feeling rising inside her, she said, "I'm a doctor. Let me give her some basic first aid. Stand back."
But the well-meaning bystanders blocked her even more firmly. "If you're so concerned, why did you push her in the first place? I think you're trying to finish the job and make sure she loses the baby! You're not going anywhere, and you're not getting near her. Stay right here and wait for her family to show up!"
Left with no choice, Joanna was held in the corner, waiting for Chris and the ambulance to arrive.
Fortunately, Matthew had been nearby on an errand and got there quickly to handle the situation.
Joanna was bundled onto the ambulance by the bystanders.
She and Matthew looked at each other.
"Miss Jones, you know how much Nicole cares about this child. How could you do something like this?"
Joanna explained helplessly, "I didn't do anything. Cynthia was the one who asked me to meet her here — and then lied about not having the divorce papers with her."
Matthew said nothing.
But deep down, he wanted to believe her.
He had been the only one who had truly seen everything she quietly gave during those three years.
At the hospital, Cynthia was rushed into the emergency room. Chris arrived soon after — together with Nicole.
Nicole didn't say a word. She walked straight up and slapped Joanna across the face. "You shameless woman. You just can't stand to see our family doing well, can you? What did Chris ever do wrong by you? He gave money to your father, paid for your mother's medical treatment, and supported you — and you couldn't even give the Coopers a child. But that wasn't enough for you? You had to go after Cynthia's baby too?"
Joanna didn't react in time. The slap landed before she could move away.
She stepped back, but the wall was right behind her. She took the full force of the blow. The right side of her face swelled and reddened quickly.
"I didn't push her!" Joanna pressed her hand to her face and said firmly, "We met at the café. She lost her balance and fell. I didn't do anything."
Nicole glared at her with pure hatred. "There were plenty of people in that café who saw what happened. They all saw you push her. If you didn't do it, where's your proof? Chris, go pull the security footage!"
Chris was about to do just that when Joanna said quietly, "The café... doesn't have any cameras yet."
Nicole let out a cold laugh. "Of course. That's exactly why you picked that place. Joanna, if anything happens to Cynthia's baby, I will make you pay."
Joanna's eyes filled with tears. She knew she hadn't hurt Cynthia. But with everything that had happened and all those witnesses in the café, no one was going to believe her.
She didn't know what she was feeling — only helplessness — as she looked over at Chris.
Chris looked back at her with barely concealed impatience. "Joanna, I understand if you have resentment toward me. But I'm the one who wronged you, not Cynthia. You shouldn't have taken it out on her and hurt her child. She has nothing to do with any of this."