Chapter 16

Chapter 16
The hotel manager arrived with a laptop and presented it to Liam. The footage played silently, showing the whole process of the situation: Stella walking through the hotel with the waitress, entering the elevator, getting off on a different floor, and being carried into a room. 

Laim pushed the laptop and raced out of the room. 

The descent of the elevator felt like it went on forever. He almost wished he had taken the stairs. His heart raced in his chest, praying and hoping she was safe.

Ding.

The doors opened, and he bolted out, the manager and a few other staff members following closely behind him.

When they reached the door, Liam kicked it hard, but it didn’t budge.

He turned to the manager, who hurriedly stepped forward and swiped a master keycard.

The door clicked open.

The door opened wide, and he stepped inside. 

The scene he saw wasn’t what he expected.

The man was on the floor groaning, clutching his head in pain. Stella stood near the bed holding the room’s bedside lamp in her hands. There were some spots og red on it. Blood.

“Stella,” Liam called out, his voice tight.

Stella turned slightly, then collapsed against the headboard.

The lamp slipped from her grasp to the floor with a dull thud.

“Get the doctor to come to my suite, immediately,” Liam ordered, as he strode forest to scoop her up gently and carried her out of the room

The doctor arrived soon after in Liam’s room. Stella lay on the bed, flushed and restless. She was trying to pull off her dress from her shoulder.

“What’s wrong with her?” Liam asked, pacing around anxiously.

“She was drugged with an aphrodisiac,” the doctor replied, checking her pulse. “Luckily she only took a small amount.”

“Can you cure her?”

“Yes, the drug hit the underground market a few months back. I had to deal with a couple of cases, so I got curious and decided to do some research. I made a breakthrough last week and found the antidote.”

“Carry on then.”

The doctor nodded and got to work.

Moments later, one of Liam’s men stepped in. “We found the waitress.”

Liam’s expression darkened. He threw one last look at Stella and left the bedroom. 

In the outer room, a young woman stood, trembling, surrounded by guards. 

He sat down slowly. “I remember telling you to take her to my suite,” his voice was low, tinged with something dangerous.

“I—I—” the woman stammered. “I took her there. I mean, I brought her here.”

“She wasn’t in my suite.”

“Maybe she ran off,” the woman averted her gaze.

“Oh,” Liam leaned forward. “Then why did you both get off on the 5th floor?”

The woman dropped to the ground on her knees. “I was forced to.”

“But you were given a card in exchange.”

“It was your finance,” the waitress blurted. 

Liam raised a brow.

“Miss Vivian Stone. She said she’s your fiancée. And— and that the other woman was trying to seduce you. She just wanted to teach her a lesson.”

Liam’s gaze went cold. “Call the police. Take her away.”

He turned to one of the men.  “Get Mr. Stone down here. Now.”

Minutes later, Mr. Stone arrived, sweating. He had been in the middle of discussing a business deal in the ballroom when the man had approached him. Why was Liam Carson calling him so late? He had already erased all the traces that could lead to him.

“Good evening, Liam,” he greeted, trying to sound confident.

“I heard your daughter is my fiancée.”

“Yes,” Mr. Stone said stiffly.

Liam laughed. It was dry with no amusement. Mr. Stone felt his hair standing on end. “When did I agree to that?”

“It was… It’s your grandfather’s intention.”

“So it has nothing to do with me.”

Mr Stone looked up, shocked. Wasn’t he very obedient to the old Chairman? How could he say something like that?

“Tonight,” Liam said sharply, “your daughter went below my bottom line. She touched one of my people. How do you think I should deal with that?”

Mr. Stone’s mouth opened, then closed. He had told her not to cause any more trouble recently. Why didn’t she listen? “I’ll give her a stern scolding. I promise, it won’t happen again.”

“Oh, it definitely won’t happen again,” Liam said.

At that moment, Vivian and Mark were dragged into the room. Mark’s face was bruised, one eye swollen shut, and his shirt torn. But Vivan was unharmed. Only her clothes and hair were in disarray.

Liam pointed at her. “She,”  then turned to Mark, “got him to purchase drugs to use on my secretary.”

He paused. 

“Then paid a waiter,” the trembling waiter was dragged into the room, “to make her drink it. And also a waitress to kidnap her and send her to someone’s bed.”

He turned to Mr. Stone. “What do you think I should do about that?”

Mr. Stone’s lips trembled. “I’ll send her abroad. To another country. Don’t worry, she won’t appear in front of you again.”

Liam’s voice was soft. “And what about my secretary?”

“We’ll compensate her. Five million dollars. Vivian will also apologise.‘

“Dad,” Vivian shouted. “Why would you make me apologize to her. She’s just a lowlife who wants to climb to the top.”

“Shut up,” he hissed under his breath. “Haven’t you caused enough trouble?”

He then turned back to Liam with a forced smile. “What do you think?”

Liam leaned back slightly. “Mr. Stone, what your daughter did tonight wasn’t a simple mistake. She committed a crime. She has to be tried according to the law.”

Vivian reached out to her father. “Dad. Dad. Help me. I don’t want to go to prison. I don’t want to. Everybody would laugh at me.”

Mr. Stone exhaled. “How–How about we privately settle? If she goes it jail, it won’t look good on the Kings Corporation.”

“What does it have to do with the Kings Corporation?”

“I’m.. I’m one of the top executives, and your grandfather values me.”

“Oh, that?”Liam said casually. “You’re not anymore.” He picked up a file from the table beside him and threw it on the floor, right at Mr. Stone’s feet. “Evidence of your financial crimes has been submitted to the police, and you have been fired.”

He stood up, smiling coldly. “I couldn’t bear to separate a loving family. You’ll be going in together.”

Vivian stepped closer to Liam. “You can’t do this to me. I’m your fiancée.”

“Would you prefer a mental health ward?” Liam asked darkly.

Vivian’s face went white, and she froze. 

Her father hurriedly pulled her back.

“Take them away,” Liam ordered.

After a pause, he asked. “Those men have they been properly dealt with?”

One of his men stepped forward. “After we beat them up, both of them were taken to the police station, along with the surveillance footage. But there’s not much that could be used to press charges on the second man. He’s only an accomplice at most.”

“They have a company, don’t they?”

“Yes, sir. A startup called FreeAi.”

“I want it to shut down before the end of today,” Liam said flatly.