Chapter 122: She Would Endure It

“Now I can relax,” Frederick said, turning to Caroline with a serious expression after giving his orders to Richard.

“Yeah… I can relax now,” Caroline replied, her face pale and twisted in discomfort, as if she had just eaten something terrible. She could only grit her teeth and nod. What other choice did she have? Frederick had made his intentions clear; if she suggested moving in with him, any conflict with Claire would only raise his suspicions. Frederick was a general in charge of Kingstown’s security and was currently campaigning for president. If anything seemed off, he would likely catch on quickly.

Fine, she would endure this for now! But next time, she would use more aggressive tactics. The pain from her self-inflicted wounds was unbearable. She had cut her wrist and still hadn’t gotten Frederick to budge on letting her move in; what else could she do to make him take action?

Once back at her apartment, Caroline called Diana in a frenzy.

“It’s over for me! Frederick might really be in love with Claire! What do I do, Diana? He must know about my troubles with Claire at the villa; otherwise, why would he be acting this way?”

Of course, Caroline exaggerated the situation for effect. She thought that since Diana was the Hawthorne family’s heiress and Frederick’s sister—having grown up together—she might have some clever ideas or strategies. But she forgot that it was usually she who stirred the pot and encouraged Diana’s schemes.

As expected, Diana replied, “Your act of self-harm just wasn’t convincing enough! You need to be more ruthless! If that doesn’t work, just make a few more cuts and say a man broke into your apartment and almost assaulted you!”

At that moment, Caroline felt a surge of anger toward Diana; how dare she suggest such drastic measures when she wasn’t the one suffering? Caroline wanted to scream back, “Why don’t you just cut yourself instead?” Yet, at this point, Caroline had no other option but to follow through with the plan. If it meant successfully moving into Halfmoon Manor, getting rid of Claire, and becoming Frederick’s woman, then all the pain would be worth it.

So, on the third night after her call with Diana, Caroline returned home shouting that someone was stalking her, sending away the guards Frederick had assigned for her protection. Once they left, she took out a knife, closed her eyes, steeled herself, and made several cuts on her own skin. To make it more convincing, she ripped a piece of fabric from the sofa and tied it tightly around her neck.

“Ah! Ah! Ah!” Her screams echoed throughout the room like a slaughtered pig. Just then, Frederick’s guards returned after hearing Caroline’s cries. There had been no one stalking Caroline; it was all a ruse. Naturally, they rushed inside upon hearing her distress.

“Cough, cough… Waaaah… Someone broke in!” Caroline sobbed dramatically.

Forty minutes later, Caroline was taken to Halfmoon Manor. Frederick listened intently as the bodyguards recounted everything that had happened. His gaze darkened as he fixed his eyes on Caroline without saying a word. Seeing Frederick like this made Caroline feel guilty; her heart raced uncontrollably. She repeated silently to herself not to panic—this was all…

“General, do you think this has anything to do with Claire?” Bailey stood nearby; having received benefits from Diana’s influence, he naturally sided with Caroline. However, Diana had been careful not to reveal everything to him; she only mentioned that once Caroline moved into the manor, he should support her more. Hearing the butler mention Claire’s name made Caroline smile inwardly; having Diana as an ally was proving advantageous. She could already imagine Frederick confronting Claire that very night.

“No way! She doesn’t have that kind of power anymore,” Frederick dismissed Bailey’s suggestion without hesitation. He was surprised at how quickly he denied any connection between Claire and Caroline’s situation. When did Claire become so powerless in his eyes? After all, four years ago, she had orchestrated Anna’s death by hiring thugs!

“Frederick, Anna…” Seeing Frederick so resolute made Caroline uneasy; she quickly interjected but was cut off by him.

“Caroline, just settle in. Richard and I will investigate further.” Frederick instructed Richard to stay with Caroline while he turned and left with Richard beside him.

“Understood.” Caroline felt helpless but maintained her composure as she watched them walk away.

Once outside Halfmoon Manor, Frederick got into the car and ordered Richard, “Take me to the hospital!”

“Yes, General.” Richard was puzzled; weren’t they supposed to investigate tonight’s incident involving Caroline? But he knew very well that when Frederick said “hospital,” he meant the one where Claire was staying.