Chloe, tears streaming down her face, covered her face with her hands and ran out of the room.
"Chloe!" Ella, furious, immediately jumped up to chase after her.
Just as Chloe ran out of the room, she collided with someone—it was Charles, who had rushed over. He had been out of town, but after receiving Ella’s call, he had come back immediately.
To his shock, this was the scene he walked into.
"Chloe, what’s wrong?"
"Brother!" Chloe sobbed, throwing herself into Charles’ arms like a child who had just lost a toy, crying uncontrollably.
"Don’t cry, it’s okay now, it’s okay," Charles comforted her, gently patting her back. By then, Ella and Mason had caught up.
Ella’s face was full of anxiety. Chloe was really not seeing things clearly—this was obviously Mason’s fault, it was his setup, and yet Chloe still blamed her...
Mason’s plan was to drive a wedge between her and Chloe, to purposely make things difficult for her.
"Chloe, listen to me! Mason is a bastard, and he’s doing this on purpose to create a rift between us. Don’t fall for his tricks!" Ella said breathlessly, turning to glare at Mason with pure hatred. "Mason, you scumbag, get lost! Don’t ever show your face in front of me or Chloe again!"
Mason stood there coldly, his eyes reflecting Ella’s angry face.
He sneered, "I’m just telling the truth, Ella. Who told you to keep seducing me, only to never follow through?"
Ella’s eyes widened. How shameless could Mason be, accusing her of seducing him?
"Mason, you’re beyond shameless. Now that you can’t win, you just spew lies—who would believe you?" Ella’s eyes flashed with cold anger. She had been struggling to find a way to deal with Mason, and now she knew she had to come up with something, no matter how difficult.
Mason smirked wickedly, completely ignoring Chloe’s increasingly pitiful sobs. "Oh? If you don’t like me, why are you always hanging around us? Weren’t you secretly throwing me those flirty looks?"
Ella, enraged beyond control, slapped Mason hard across the face.
The two police officers still present widened their eyes. They recognized Mason—after all, the Scott family was powerful in Country W and had plenty of business in S City as well.
Mason had even treated them to meals before.
"You disgusting scumbag!" Ella shouted, seething with anger. Beside her, Chloe was sobbing uncontrollably, clinging to Charles’ hand. "Brother, take me away... I want to go home... I want to go home!"
"Alright, stop crying. It’s okay, Ella was only trying to help," Charles said, his heart breaking. He had never approved of Chloe being with Mason in the first place.
"Why is everyone taking her side? Why?" Chloe cried, devastated. The pain of Mason choosing Ella over her had pushed her to the brink of collapse, and she was no longer thinking rationally.
Charles was shocked, unable to believe that his usually sensible sister would think this way.
"Alright, I’ll take you home first so you can calm down."
"Mr. Carter, please comfort Miss Carter. We’ll need her statement later," one of the police officers said, addressing Charles.
Charles nodded, then turned to Ella. "I’m sorry, Ella. I’ll try to talk some sense into Chloe."
Ella nodded in response, understanding that Chloe was too angry to be reasoned with right now. She could only watch as Charles led her away.
Mason stood silently on the side as Richard and the others rushed over. Seeing Ella’s pale face, Richard asked, "Ella, are you okay?"
Ella shook her head, looking slightly fatigued. "I’m fine."
Only then did Richard and the others breathe a sigh of relief. Ella had called for help earlier, but he had been out of town and couldn’t make it in time.
"Sorry, I hurried over as fast as I could. I didn’t expect..." Richard scratched his head, looking apologetic.
Ella shook her head again. It was over now, but Chloe’s heart had been hurt, and she had been frightened. It might take a long time before Chloe forgave her.
Mason spoke up calmly, "I admit it was my negligence. I didn’t anticipate... I didn’t expect to frighten Chloe like that."
Ella looked at him with scorn. "Was it really negligence? Mason, have you thought about what would’ve happened if Aaron had actually fired that gun? How would you ’fix’ that mistake?"
Mason remained silent.
"Stop pretending, and stop harassing me. I will never like you," Ella said with disgust.
Richard glanced between the two, frowning at Mason.
"Mr. Scott, don’t you know that Ella is my sister-in-law? You’d better drop whatever you’re scheming, or you won’t even know what hit you," Richard said coldly, a sneer on his face.
If Mason truly angered Eric, he wouldn’t have a good end.
"Excuse me, but I have the right to pursue love," Mason said shamelessly, casting a deep look at Ella. "You’re tired; you should go home and rest."
What a shameless jerk!
Ella thought angrily, turning her face away from him, not sparing him another glance. Just then, a large group of people hurried over.
How could she have forgotten about Carter Group? Given how dangerous the situation had just been, she couldn’t believe no one had informed the top management. And now Sean was coming—clearly, he had set her up! Despicable!
If Aaron had fired, her life would’ve been over. The Imperial Crown Club might face some backlash after a fatal incident, but after a while, business would return to normal. Sean, knowing Eric wouldn’t care too much about her, had clearly felt emboldened to act this way.
Sean and Leah arrived, leading a group of people. When Sean saw Ella, he frowned and asked, "What happened? I just walked in and heard there was a hostage situation here!"
Ella let out a cold laugh, glancing at Leah, then at Mason, suddenly realizing what was going on.
Perhaps Leah and Mason had set this whole thing up together.
Otherwise, how had Aaron known exactly where to find them? And before Ella arrived, where were the security personnel? Not a single one had shown up!
In an instant, she sneered, her gaze frosty with disgust as she turned away from them.
"Old Mr. Carter, isn’t it a bit late for you to show up now?" Richard sneered, his voice dripping with sarcasm.
Sean snorted. "I don’t work here. I just happened to be passing by and heard there was trouble, so I came to check it out. Miss Davis, are you alright?"
Sean turned his gaze to Ella.
Ella’s voice was ice-cold. "Thank you for your concern, Old Mr. Carter. I’m fine."
Leah, putting on a worried expression, gently said, "Ella, you don’t look well. Are you sure you’re alright?"