My Mute Bride

Everyone left the room when the lunch meeting ended.

While Justin spoke to some other people, Rachel waited for him by the door.

At this moment, the woman who drank on her behalf stepped out of the restroom and upon seeing Rachel there, she smiled. “Oh, you’re still here. I forgot to introduce myself. My name is Coraline Harper.”

Rachel gratefully bobbed her head before signing, Thank you for standing up for me earlier.

“Oh, it was a small matter. It’s no problem, really.”

It wasn’t until Coraline was a distance away that Rachel suddenly realized something.

It seemed that not only was Coraline not surprised about Rachel’s inability to speak, Coraline could also read sign language.

“What are you looking at?” Justin asked behind Rachel, his voice pulling her back to the present.

As she returned to her senses, she answered, Nothing. Can we leave now?

“I have some things to do. So, you should return to your room first.”

Remembering what Janice had told her, Rachel asked carefully, Can’t I go with you?

“It’s business-related. You’ll be bored, so you might as well head back to rest. I’ll return soon.” As Justin said those words, he stroked the back of her head. “Be good and do as I say.”

Rachel’s expression remained unchanged as she nodded. However, as soon as she turned away from Justin, her expression morphed into one of disgust.

Once she returned to her room, her first order of business was to yank her hair until her scalp ached, as if that was the only way to remove the loath that came with the intimate actions.

As she stood at the entryway, she carefully thought about the people at the lunch meeting.

Although Justin’s current visit to Brookville was ostensibly about Burton Group’s bid, she suspected he was actually here for other matters. After all, she hadn’t heard of a single person at the lunch meeting.

The thing was that she had worked at Burton Group for a while and with the excuse of managing the corporation’s finances, she investigated all the clients who had financial dealings with Burton Group.

Not a single one of those present at the lunch meeting was among them.

There had to be a problem somewhere.

Now that she thought about that, Rachel stepped out of the room again.

Even if she couldn’t overhear the contents of their conversation, it would perhaps be enough to snap a few photographs and send them to Janice to have her look into them.

the entrance to the second floor conference room, two bodyguards

the room exited. Then, she rapidly clicked the shutter of her cell phone camera to take several photographs

Crash!

of glass shattering suddenly rang out from the restroom at the other end of

“Who’s there?”

lacked the courage to stay even for a

floor, she was careful to stop two floors below where her actual room was. After doing so, she headed into the stairwell to

the moment Rachel entered the stairwell, she heard the sound of coughing coming from

paused and she peered through the gaps between

head, leaving her hands

Cough cough…

by the sound of the unsuppressed coughing, there was a woman at

down half a flight of stairs before looking over the banister to see a silhouette leaning against

She froze.

had noticed Rachel as well, for she looked up warily before sighing with relief when she recognized Rachel. Then, she held a finger to

spotted the blood all over Coraline’s white suit sleeve. Blood was still flowing down from her arm and dripping all over the place, staining the banisters

injured?

worry about me. You must leave

I do

right after Coraline said these words that her legs gave way, causing her to slide down the surface of the door. She looked lifeless and about to

“There’s blood here!”

“It’s going upstairs!”

voices echoing

anything else, she glanced at Coraline’s bleeding arm before quickly acting to tear off a corner of her skirt

the trail stop

must be

Don’t

close in the stairway below them, Rachel took a deep breath of cold air. It was a long while before she calmed down and hastily escorted Coraline back to her

bathroom, she attempted to undo Coraline’s coat to check on her injuries,

explain as she looked at Coraline’s wary face. However, Coraline replied, “Go… Go and

Janice.”

A terrified Rachel froze.

there was a clamor of footsteps running down the

is the only room that the surveillance monitors don’t cover, President

This is President Burton’s hotel

you’re suspicious, you can head inside to

heart loudly raced as she looked down at the bloodstains on herself before she immediately locked the bathroom