Chapter11 Tomorrow Night at 7 PM, Mountain View Manor

Liam replied, "Ethan, Emily drugged you and climbed into your bed to break you and Amy up. Everyone knows Brian and Lisa grew up with Emily. Emily pretended to call the police and then staged a scene with Brian to drop the charges. Emily must do that out of guilt? Because of this, Amy almost left the country to avoid you. If you hadn't plastered Emily's photos all over Horizon Peak University and threatened my sister, Amy might have left, and that would have been the beginning of her lifelong suffering. My sister would probably be abroad by now."

Emily clutched her phone, unable to believe it. So, this was the reason Ethan had plastered her photos all over Horizon Peak University.

Ethan had used her to threaten Amy. How ridiculous!

Ethan was getting real tired of waiting around. Plus, he really didn't want to go over the stuff Liam was bringing up.

"Cut to the chase!" Ethan snapped at Liam.

Even though Emily couldn't see Ethan's face, she could totally picture his annoyed, impatient look just from his tone.

Liam looked around, then leaned in closer to Ethan. "Ethan, you promised Amy nothing happened between you and Emily that night, but it's still bugging her. And let's be real, Ethan, you're not even sure yourself if anything went down that night, right?"

Ethan's eyes darkened as he thought. "So what?"

Seeing Ethan start to lower his guard, Liam's sneaky plan was about to pay off, and a sly grin spread across his face.

"Didn't Mia push you and Amy, and now she's stuck at the police station?" Liam leaned in even closer and said slowly, "Ethan, if you don't believe me, just wait. Emily's gonna call you soon, begging for Mia's release!"

Ethan glared at Liam. "And then?"

Liam let out a sinister laugh.

In the dark night, Emily heard the laugh from a distance and felt a chill run down her spine. She clenched her fists, trying to stay calm.

Liam said sinisterly, "When Emily calls, Ethan, you should ask her to meet up. Remember how she drugged you before? We'll do the same to her!"

Ethan glared at Liam.

Noticing Ethan's displeasure, Liam lowered his voice even more. "Look, Ethan, I'm not saying you have to do it yourself. Hubert's always had a thing for Emily, right? We'll get him involved. If Hubert sleeps with her and proves she's a virgin, it means nothing happened between you and Emily that night. Amy will be relieved. And even if something did happen, Hubert will be grateful to you for getting Emily. By then, Emily will have slept with Hubert; she's already divorced you; she won't have the guts to cling to you anymore. Don't you think? This way, you can completely get rid of Emily."

Seeing Ethan stay silent, Liam laughed and asked, "Ethan, don't tell me you still have feelings for Emily and can't let go?"

"Are you done?" Ethan tugged at his collar.

Liam coax, "Then just follow my plan! Remember last time you took my advice and posted Emily's photos? Amy didn't leave! If you do this again, Amy will definitely agree to marry you!"

Just as Liam finished talking, Ethan's phone rang.

Ethan pulled out his phone, glanced at it, and answered while heading towards the hospital building, speaking in the gentlest tone, "Amy, you're awake. I'm downstairs with Liam. I'll be right up!"

Then Ethan hurried off, with Liam trailing behind.

Emily stood there, feeling weak all over. Her fists were still tightly clenched, her nails digging into her skin.

At some point, it started to drizzle.

The rain wasn't heavy, just a light drizzle. But since it was winter, the raindrops felt icy on her skin.

Emily didn't have an umbrella; her down jacket had a hood. But she seemed oblivious, letting the rain fall on her head and body.

As soon as it started raining, patients and their families outside the hospital building rushed inside.

Emily just stood there, staring blankly at the hurried people in the cold winter rain.

In the hospital garden at night, she felt like she had fallen into an icy river, her teeth chattering. She slumped onto a bench, her mind blank. She had long given up the thought of catching up to Ethan to explain.

Emily deleted the long string of phone numbers she knew by heart from her phone screen, put her phone back in her down jacket pocket, and sat quietly on the bench, almost burying her entire face in her scarf. After a long time, the cold crept up from her ankles to her calves. Her clenched fists in her pockets slowly relaxed, and she finally took out her phone and dialed Ethan's number. Emily still held a glimmer of hope for Ethan's character.

Ethan answered, "What is it?"

He deliberately lowered his voice, probably in Amy's hospital room, afraid of disturbing her rest.

Emily made up her mind and spoke softly, "I went to the police station to see Mia. She was invited to Maple Valley by the 'Long Lost Family' show. Her encounter with you at the airport was purely coincidental. Mia recognized you and just wanted to talk to you, then she was pushed into the crowd and accidentally bumped into Amy. It wasn't intentional. There are surveillance cameras at the airport. If you want to check, you can find out the truth."

Ethan asked chillily, "You just want to plead for Mia, don't you?"

Emily said, "That was an accident. I just hope you—"

"That night at Hubert's party was an accident; pushing Amy down the stairs was an accident. Emily, you sure have a habit of running into accidents!" Ethan coldly interrupted her, impatiently saying, "Tomorrow night at seven, explain to me in person at Mountain View Manor. If you don't, I'll make sure Mia stays in jail for life. You know me, I mean what I say."

Listening to beep on the phone, Emily felt lost.

Did she really know Ethan? Was the Ethan who used to obey her every word and pamper her the real him, or was the one who now mocked and threatened her the real him? Or perhaps, the current Ethan was his true self.

In Maple Valley, Ethan's wild and unruly nature was well-known. But Ethan had always been good to Emily. This kindness, coupled with Emily's love for Ethan at the time, had put a thick filter on her view of him, preventing her from seeing his true nature.

Now, Emily wasn't even sure if Ethan's invitation to meet at Mountain View Manor was for an explanation or a trap set up for her. If it was the latter, should she walk herself into it?

Her phone vibrated in her palm. The caller ID showed it was Hubert.

Ethan and Liam had just conspired, mentioning that Hubert was supposed to sleep with Emily.

Emily felt conflicted and didn't know how to face Hubert.

After much hesitation, she decided to answer.

Hubert said, "Emily, I asked Melissa; Amy's condition is stable. You don't need to worry too much. As long as Amy is okay, Ethan probably won't make things too difficult for Mia."