End It (Part 1)
"Is that so?" Alexander appeared, leaning on a cane. "So you killed Maxim, didn't you?"
His voice made Cassandra shudder.
"I didn't. I truly didn't kill Maxim.” She immediately denied it.
"Then what about Manager Foster and Yana?" Jack demanded, pulling Alison out from behind the tree.
"It wasn't me, truly." Cassandra shook her head frantically.
"Not you?” Jack pulled a photograph from his pocket. "Then who is the woman in this photo?"
It showed Manager Foster and Cassandra seated across from each other at a table.
"No, it wasn't me. You made this with AI to frame me." Cassandra snatched the photo and tore it into shreds.
"Hey, how did you recognize Manager Foster in the photo at a glance? Were you two close?"
“No, I wasn't familiar with Manager Foster,” Cassandra hastily defended herself.
"If you weren't close, how could you recognize her? You know better than anyone how she got that HR position.” Rock said.
“Did you think that once my father disappeared, no one would ever find out about you and Manager Foster? But you didn't know she left this photo behind."
"No!" Cassandra felt a wave of panic wash over her and began to back away. "I didn't kill her. I swear.”
Just then, police sirens wailed in the courtyard. All eyes turned toward the approaching patrol car.
“How could this happen?” Cassandra's face turned pale instantly.
The police car door swung open.
Stephanie strode out and marched straight toward Cassandra. She struck Cassandra across the face with a sharp slap.
"Cassandra, I never imagined you'd frame me like this. Disguising yourself as me to commit murder and walking backward into the elevator so that surveillance only captured your back—clever. But your plan failed. Confess!" She snapped.
“What proof do you have it was me?” Cassandra held her head high.
"Recognize this?" Officer James stepped forward and handed her a photograph.
Seeing the hairpin in the photo, Cassandra instantly panicked. "This... Did you find this near the scene?"
"Where else would you expect us to find it?" Officer James countered.
"Isn't it from here?" Cassandra asked.
"No, this was found at Manager Foster's murder scene. When she was killed, she pulled this hairpin from your hair and held onto it until her last breath." Officer James closed in on Cassandra step by step, his expression stern. "And Yana regained consciousness and identified you as her killer.”
“You're framing me!" Cassandra shouted, growing increasingly frantic.
"Would you like to hear Yana's statement?" Officer James asked, activating the recording on his phone. "Ma'am, I—"
"No! Stop it!" Cassandra lunged forward to stop him from playing the recording.
"Cassandra, this is your final chance. Hand over Maxim, or you're dead." Officer James warned.
“Mom, tell me! Where is Dad?" Aidan pressed anxiously.
"You lied to me! Yana was already dead, wasn't she? Whose voice was that on your phone? How did you fool me so easily?" Cassandra collapsed into hysterical laughter.
"Does it matter? Everything you just said proves that Manager Foster's and Yana's deaths are connected to you. You won't escape justice," Officer James replied, his expression unflinching.
Cassandra burst into laughter, staggering backward. A knife appeared in her hand, its blade pressed against her chest.
“Everyone back up! Now! Or you'll never find Maxim and Daphne. If I die, you won't even find their bodies." she growled.
"Mom, put down the knife. Tell me where Dad is!" Aidan tried to approach.
"No, I won't tell you. Even in death, I'll make sure that shameless pair of bastards goes first." With that, she plunged the dagger in her hand into her chest.
“Quick! Everyone, back up!" Cassandra declared resolutely.
Her blood gushed out instantly.
Everyone froze in their tracks.
"Auntie Cassandra, who was that woman you mentioned just now?" Alison asked calmly, taking a step forward.
"Alison, you're finally showing some sense. That woman is your mother, Daphne. Ha! Isn't that splendid? Maxim's son and daughter got married and had kids—the greatest incest in the world! Now that you all know, I'll make it public tomorrow. The Winston family's reputation will plummet!" Cassandra roared with laughter.
"Enough, Mom! Am I not a Winston? You knew all along, yet you never stopped me from pursuing Alison. Did you ever treat me like your son? You only saw me as a pawn to satisfy your own selfish desires!" Aidan shouted furiously.
"Aidan, I schemed relentlessly to secure your position as YD's CEO. Maxim wasn't satisfied with me, Isabella, or Stephanie. He wanted a fourth to legitimize that whore! He and Daphne both deserve to die!” As she spoke, Cassandra quietly approached the open doors of the arriving police car.
She spun around suddenly, the knife still pressed against her chest.
The others charged toward her, but she had already climbed into the driver's seat.