As soon as they entered, the thugs rushed toward Thea, dropping to their knees. Their desperate expressions spoke volumes. "Miss Rowland," one pleaded, "we can't take the beatings anymore. You paid us; you can't just abandon us."

Thea recoiled, her brow furrowed in confusion. "What are you talking about? I don't know you."

Trying to make sense of the situation, she countered, "If I hired you, I wouldn't be stupid enough to contact you directly. That would make it too easy for you to implicate me."

The leader clenched his jaw, producing his phone. "Miss Rowland, here's the proof—calls and messages. You can't deny this." He added, "Plus, you wired $35,000 from the Rowland account to me just the other day. We can verify that at the bank." Jake, visibly furious, interjected.

Before he could speak further, Emmalie jumped in. "Mr. Hendrix," she said, "Thea only made a mistake because she's infatuated with you. I apologize to Miss Terell on her behalf. Let's put this behind us. Whatever Miss Terell needs to rectify the situation, we'll handle it." Jake's anger intensified; he glared at Thea. "So, you think you've outsmarted everyone? If I hadn't defended Madelyn, you would have manipulated her, wouldn't you?"

Suddenly, Thea burst into laughter, as if a revelation had struck her. Turning to Emmalie, she said sarcastically, "We're still in this, and you're rushing to apologize and cover for me—are you so eager to pin this on me?"

Emmalie's eyes widened; tears welled up. "Thea, I want to help you. Why would you think that of me?"

Ivy, visibly upset, shot Thea a furious look. "It's hard for Emmalie to support you when you're causing chaos at her welcome party. Do you only feel good when she's groveling and apologizing for your actions?"

Max sighed, looking helpless and weary. "Thea, just apologize if you made a mistake. We're all trying to help."

Duncan added with a frown, "Honestly, Emmalie's the only one foolish enough to constantly clean up your messes, and she's been incredibly kind to you."

Help me? By jumping to conclusions? Thea thought incredulously. Despite being accustomed to mistrust, a cold emptiness pierced her heart.

Tilting her head with a cool, dismissive air, she asked, "Am I wrong? Shouldn't we focus on finding the truth? Do you actually want me blamed for something I didn't do?" Max remained silent, his gaze fixed on Madelyn, who looked visibly shaken.

Jake intervened, his voice unfriendly. "Look, it's obvious. I understand moving on is difficult for you, but Madelyn is innocent. She's been caught up in something she has nothing to do with. Just apologize, and we can move past this. I'm still here for you, but let's not make things worse." The others looked awkward, blushing for various reasons, oblivious to Jake's continued willingness to marry Thea.

Madelyn's eyes narrowed slightly, revealing resignation.

Thea, maintaining a polite yet firm tone, replied, "Mr. Hendrix, your generosity is touching, but I won't confess to something I didn't do. And regarding the engagement"

She glanced around the room. "To clarify, my engagement to Jake is off. From now on, we'll go our separate ways. We're done." Her words were punctuated by a sharp, red-lipped smile; Jake's expression cycled through a kaleidoscope of emotions.

Darwin, standing in the doorway, chimed in, "So, Miss Rowland's really finished with Jake? She's making him look foolish. Clever." Nicolas remained quiet, a fleeting, enigmatic emotion flashing in his eyes.

A spark of hope ignited in Madelyn; she grabbed Jake's hand, pleading, "Jake, I shouldn't have interfered with Miss Rowland. I'm sorry. If she forgives me, I swear I'll leave the city." Jake, momentarily softening, reverted to his stern demeanor. With a dark look, he retorted, "Thea, want to see how your family withstands my wrath?" Max quickly interjected, "Can't you just listen, Thea? Apologize."

Jake and the Rowland family were pressuring her, betting she wouldn't abandon love or family.

I've been bending over backward, repeatedly frustrated. Not this time. Not today, Thea thought.

She produced her phone, a playful smirk playing on her lips. "If you're as innocent as you claim, let's involve the police. Luckily, I have some interesting recordings. The police can determine who's lying and ensure no innocent person is blamed."

"No!" Madelyn exclaimed sharply, panic setting in. "If this leaks, my reputation will be ruined," she added hastily.

The possibility of incriminating evidence on Thea's phone was terrifying for Madelyn.

Beside Ivy, Emmalie shook her head, unimpressed. "Isn't this damaging the Rowland family's reputation? It's wrong to let this out."

She looked at Thea with concern. "Thea, maybe we should keep this quiet. Apologize to Miss Terell and move on. Let's not antagonize the Hendrix family."

Thea smirked. "Why should I be afraid? The person pulling strings from the shadows should worry. For Miss Terell's sake, perhaps it's time the police caught the real culprit." It was clear who had framed her. A drug test would reveal any banned substances in her system. The thugs who started this hadn't mentioned jail time beforehand.

Thea remained calm, despite lacking recordings. The thugs panicked at the mention of the police but remained silent. A fleeting numbness seemed to wash over Emmalie.

Max nodded subtly to his bodyguard. "Thea's intoxicated. Let's get her downstairs. I'll apologize to Miss Terell personally."

Then, unexpectedly, Thea said, "Excuse me," and dialed the police, with everyone listening.