Chapter 247

Heeter quickly ran downstairs to fetch the medical kit. Debra ascended the stairs in silence. Moments later, Hester entered the room with the medical kit. She said apologetically, "I'm sorry for your injury."

Debra stared at her for a while. Hester shifted uncomfortably and faltered, “Madam, why are you looking at me like…?”

“This trick can be effective if done well. If not, it can backfire,” Debra said meaningfully.

Hester stiffened. “Madam, I don’t understand what you mean.”

“Don’t you?” Debra chuckled. “Your self-staged drama was quite anticipated by me initially. However, it had too many loopholes and ended up being quite boring.”

“Madam, you misunderstand me. I…” Hester stammered.

Debra cut her off. “Firstly, only a few people know Juan’s phone number. Given the text message, the kidnapper knew your identity, but you have no relationship with Juan. Why would he kidnap you instead of me?”

“How would I know what he was thinking?” Hester argued, her eyes darting about.

Debra chuckled again. “The kidnapper was a young man, probably around your age. He clearly had no intention of kidnapping. He even accepted the check we brought, not realizing how easily it could reveal his location later.”

Hester visibly paled, her composure crumbling. “What?”

“He didn’t even verify if the check was real before taking it. Quite laughable,” Debra explained.

Her every word pierced through Hester’s defenses, leaving her exposed and vulnerable. Hester had never considered these angles.

“Madam, do you have any evidence that it was me? Without evidence…”

“Do you think Juan doesn’t know? Or perhaps you think Melody is clueless?”

Hester’s face instantly paled, her heart sinking like a stone. Debra leaned in, her voice low and steady.

“What do you think of Melody’s character? Do you think she’s naive enough to be fooled by such a clumsy kidnapping attempt? Her fondness for you is merely a facade to use you against me. She’s just pretending to be clueless, and Juan has no intention of exposing this. It’s all about saving face for you.”

Hester bit her lip, feeling a surge of humiliation. “Then why did you tell me?”

Debra’s expression was one of indifference. “I told you because I don’t want to see you resort to such clumsy tricks again. If you like Juan, that’s your prerogative. If you can snatch him away with your abilities, go ahead. Just don’t use these tactics against me. Do you understand?”

Hester was stunned. “Why? Don’t you care about Juan?”

“What I care most about is myself,” Debra replied. “Consider this a warning. If you try such methods against me ever again, I’ll shatter your dreams of entering the wealthy circle. I mean what I say.”