Chapter 154 An Elaborate Plo

Bella didn't dare to look up. She kept staring at the notepad and waited for Charles to let go of her. Her hand had become an unwilling participant in Charles’s devious mind games. He had took his hand into hers and guided it over his crotch. She tried to pull it away but he squeezed it tightly.

Having sensed there was something strange going on under the table, the speaker paused for a moment.

“Go on,” said Charles in a faint voice.

Trying to keep notes with one hand while Charles was rubbing the other over his erection proved too much of a challenge for Bella. The nightmarish prospect of having to perform a hand-job for Charles during the conference somehow tampered with her transcribing skills, however she managed to jot down the most important parts of the speech.

At the end of the meeting, the secretary handed out to all participants a sheet with data on the new technical product. Bella wanted to get up and help her distribute the files but Charles was still unwilling to let go of her.

Bella kept pulling harder and with one final jerk, she managed to free herself from Charles’s evil clutch. It occurred the very moment Ann was standing right above her.

Having freed herself from Charles, Bella was about to stand up. Before she had the chance to turn around, she had already crashed into Ann, sending all those files to the floor.

If that wasn’t bad enough, her injured shoulder had suffered from the impact. The sudden wave of pain that shot through her nervous system distorted her pretty features.

“Ouch!” she shouted.

For a third time in a day, her wound was under considerable strain. The pain was so extreme, her face had turned pale and cold sweat was running down her forehead.

“Bell!”

The red stain on her shirt must have alarmed Charles. He took Bella in his arms and made her sit again. He was now so affectionate and tender.

But not for everyone.

“You don’t need to come to work tomorrow,” he said to Ann. The light of madness gleaming into his eyes.

Tears swelled up into Anne’s eyes. She was going to bend over to pick up the files but halfway through, she decided against it. A low sobbing sound escaped her mouth.

“I’m so sorry,” she said.

“You can go with Mr. Whitman to the Finance Department to receive payment and benefits. Then you’re off,” said Charles in a cruel tone.

By now, Ann was crying like a little girl. Knowing that she couldn’t negotiate with Charles, she turned to Ziv.

“Mr. Whitman, I really didn't mean it. I had no idea that the lady was so sensitive.”

The way she implied that Bella was so effeminate, made some people in the room shake their heads. Some of them believed that Bella was trying to seek Charles’s attention by pretending to be hurt. They found ridiculous the notion that someone could be injured by a stash of papers.

“I think you did this on purpose with complete disregard to this lady’s condition,” said Ziv sternly. “Last night she received a bullet on the shoulder for the Lord’s sake, but today she insisted on coming to work. That’s how diligent she is! You on the other hand, having deliberately hurt her, cannot stay here any longer. Don’t worry, you will receive a bonus equal to three monthly salaries, however, if you don’t hurry up, you will be dragged out of this place by the security guards.”

Ann realized there was nothing she could do to keep her position. Her final action was to pick up the files she had dropped and put them on the table. With the enthusiasm of a convict heading to the gallows, she left the room in silence.

Equally silent were those who had attended the meeting. They were dying for a bit of gossip but that had to wait for later seeing the treatment their colleague had just received.

Until now, everyone assumed that Catherine was the Lady of the Williams Mansion but after this incident, they began to realize the real reason behinds Charles concern with Bella’s well-being.

Charles took Bella to his office and made her sit on a couch. The pain was so intense; she lacked the power to push him away. It was as if someone had stuck his finger in the wound and began twisting it around. She felt like she was being tortured.

“We need to get you home and let Elsa check your wound,” said Charles. He lifted her in his arms and walked straight to the elevator.

“Give me the car keys,” he said to Ziv.

“The driver is waiting downstairs,” reminded Ziv.

“I’m going to take her home myself,” said Charles firmly.

Ziv searched in his pocket for the keys, giving them to Charles before walking away. By this time, the elevator had arrived.

Luckily, it was empty.

“Let me down,” said Bella when they were in the elevator.

“What’s wrong with me holding you?”

“I feel better now,” she said.

Reluctantly, he let her down on her feet.

They walked side by side out of the main lobby and out to the parking lot. Bella gave a glance at the chauffeur’s car that had brought her to work and wondered by Charles insisted so much in driving her home.

“Do you want to adjust your seat?” he asked her when they were in the car.

“I feel much better now. I should better go back to work.”

Charles ignored her words and started the engine.

They didn’t speak to each other on the way back. While driving, Charles took hold of Bella’s hand and no matter how much she struggled, he didn’t want to let go of it.

“Miss Katherine will be angry if she sees us holding hands,” she said tactfully.

The trick worked and after a few seconds, Charles pulled his hand away. Bella was aware that whenever she mentioned Katherine, Charles would keep his distance.

He now had both hands on the steering wheel and looked straight ahead with his lips firmly sealed. Ella turned her head and looked out of the window.

She was smiling.

Returning to William’s Mansion, Charles directly took her to Elsa’s living quarters. The old woman was wearing glasses and a white coat.

“What happened again?” she asked when she saw them standing at her door.

Charles made Bella sit on a chair.

“Her wound is bleeding. Can’t you see?”

Meanwhile, at a location not far from the gate of Williams Group, Ann was standing on the side of the road with a paper box full of office supplies at her feet. She was pressing the screen of her mobile phone and staring at the screen.

A light flashed on the screen and she brought it to her left ear.

“Miss Katherine, it is done.”

“How did he take it?”

“He fired me.”

“More of a blessing if you ask me.”

“Have you wired the money?”

“Do not worry. The two million dollars will be transferred to your account in the next minute.”