Chapter 44

Odalys turned to Freya and said, "Let's take a walk and see if there's anything edible on the island. Maybe we can find something for dinner."

"Sounds good," Freya replied, clearly in an inexplicable state of satisfaction. Watching Sophia's current state filled Freya with a similar mood.

Selah, however, stood frozen, staring blankly at Lucian. She lifted her foot as if to approach him, but stopped a few steps away. Without another glance, she turned and strode after Odalys.

Stellan thoughtfully observed Selah's retreating figure before following.

"Odalys, we're all sick here, and you're still in the mood to wander around?" Atlas barked angrily as Odalys walked past him.

Odalys didn't even glance at him. The calmer she seemed, the more furious Atlas became. Her composed demeanor utterly enraged him. He was convinced she had come only to mock them, fueling his anger.

"Get back here! Right now! Do you have medicine? Hand it over!" Atlas clutched his aching stomach, trying to catch up. Odalys turned her head slightly, giving him a sidelong glance.

A faint smile danced in Odalys's eyes as she murmured softly, "Hey, I think I ate a bit too much earlier."

"You—" Atlas ground his teeth in frustration. He took a step forward, but the sharp pain in his stomach stopped him. Defeated, he spun around and stormed off. He wanted to take a big step forward, but the stomach pain prevented him. He could only turn and leave in a rage.

[What's going on here? I'm seriously starting to think Sophia and Atlas are losing it. Why do they keep blaming Odalys for everything?]

[Where are the paparazzi? Haven't they dug up any dirt yet? I'm so mad right now!]

[Odalys's got style. She's amazing. If she'd faked concern, I'd think she was pretentious. But not saying a single caring word? That's seriously cool.]

Viewers watched the live stream, their disdain for Atlas's shameless behavior growing. Their curiosity about Sophia and Atlas's relationship intensified. The two seemed oddly close, sometimes like family, other times like a couple, leaving everyone baffled.

At the Bennett Villa in Crownridge, Hannah had been glued to the television for the past two days, watching the live stream. Her anger consumed her; she couldn't even eat. Trembling with rage, she pointed at the screen, her finger aimed at Odalys's smug side profile.

"That bitch!" she began. "Doesn't she always carry medicine? She's been trained in survival skills since she was a kid and even learned traditional medicine from her mentor. She knows what to do, so why isn't she helping them?"

"Does she want to stand by and watch my son and daughter get poisoned to death? I never thought she could be this cruel," Hannah spat, her voice shaking with fury.

She grabbed her phone and immediately called Henry. "Henry, we can't let Odalys get away with this. When she comes back, I'll make sure she pays a heavy price," she said coldly.

As Hannah stood, a strange sensation crept over her. The air behind her felt chillingly eerie, as though something was watching her. A sudden gust of wind blew through the room, and Hannah's eyes darted upward. The crystal chandelier above her head swayed ominously.

Sensing imminent danger, she moved to run, but her pet darted across the floor, colliding with her legs. "Ah!" she cried out as she tumbled onto the carpet. Just as Hannah tried to get up, it was too late. She watched in horror as the chandelier came crashing down. Bang!

"Help! Somebody help me!" Hannah's wide eyes filled with terror.

A sharp pain shot through her leg as the chandelier pinned her down. Shards of crystal dug into her flesh, and blood gushed from the wound. She tried to crawl out, but the agony in her leg was unbearable, as if it had been crushed.

Hannah struggled to move, but her leg wouldn't budge. Blood poured from her forehead, and she reached up to touch it, only to find blood streaming down her face.

"There's so much blood," Hannah muttered in shock, realizing a shard of crystal had been flung off and embedded in her forehead. Her vision blurred, and she nearly passed out.

"Ever since Odalys came back and took the emerald pendant off my neck after she got married, my health has only gotten worse, and the Bennett family has been falling apart. Could it be a coincidence?" she wondered.

Hannah quickly dismissed the thought. "No, a simple emerald pendant couldn't be that powerful. It has to be a coincidence."

The pain made her fall to the ground. She grabbed her phone, intending to make a call, but before she could dial, the phone grew unbearably hot in her hand.

She brought the phone to her face, and with a loud bang, it exploded right in front of her eyes. Hannah stared in disbelief as the explosion left her face burning with searing pain.

Caspian, who had just rushed back inside, heard the explosion and rushed in, car keys in hand. When he saw Hannah lying in a pool of blood with the crystal chandelier crushing her leg, he froze in shock.

Hannah's face was bruised and bloodied, with a shard of crystal sticking out from her forehead. Blood oozed continuously, streaming down her cheek. If it weren't for the fact that she was still wearing her pajamas, Caspian wouldn't have recognized her. "Mom! What happened to you?" Caspian hurried to her side.

Caspian pushed the chandelier off her, revealing her leg in an unnatural position. He touched it and felt the bone was likely broken.

"Henry, something's happened," Caspian's voice was filled with panic as he quickly dialed Henry and then called for an ambulance.

At that moment, Caspian stood there, furious, his eyes darting to the live stream on the TV. Atlas and Sophia were sitting on the floor, pale-faced, their lips turning blue. They were clutching their stomachs before they turned and ran into the bushes.

"Who's behind all this trouble for the Bennett family? Is it Odalys?" Caspian clenched his fists in frustration. Ever since Odalys's marriage, it seemed like each member of the Bennett family had encountered misfortune.

Caspian was certain Odalys was behind it. Is she trying to get revenge on the Bennett family, wanting to kill us all? With that thought, he made a call.

"Officer, I want to report a crime. I suspect someone deliberately tampered with things in my house, causing the chandelier to fall and break my mother's leg. They even tampered with her phone, causing it to explode and injure her face." Caspian's tone was cold.

[To be continued] 19:05 Mon, Jan 6 BB. Chapter 44 66°

Not long after, the ambulance arrived, and the doctors were surprised to see Hannah lying on the floor. They were puzzled that she hadn't run when the chandelier fell.

"I think both her legs are broken," one of the doctors said, instructing the nurses to lift her onto the stretcher.

Caspian stood still. The police arrived just in time to see Hannah being loaded into the ambulance and immediately went to check the surveillance footage.

Forensic technicians secured the chandelier and the phone, thoroughly checking them before confirming it was all an accident. The surveillance footage showed no one had entered the house to tamper with the chandelier.

"That's impossible. How could the chandelier suddenly have fallen and landed on my mom?" Caspian clearly wasn't satisfied with the result.

Seeing his obsessive behavior, an officer kindly rewound the footage. "Is this your family's pet? It looks like it knocked your mother over, and she couldn't get up in time, causing the chandelier to fall on her. If anyone is to blame, it's probably the"

"Who's the owner of this cat?" the officer asked, looking at Caspian.