Filed To Story: Returning to Her Not-So-Poor Family
“Before his death, Erik gave Serena a phone,” Mirabella said, “That phone could very well hold the secrets of the person behind the curtain. Whether or not they know about the phone, with Erik gone and Martha deceased, they’d never let Serena gain enough power to seek revenge. They might let her live, but never with the chance to strike back.”
“Right now, she’s got Martin watching her back. and Martin’s a powerhouse. He’s practically Serena’s right-hand man. It makes sense that someone would want to disarm her by targeting him. The question is, how will Martin react if they try to frame him? If he takes the fall, it means he’s got something to hide, something that ties him to the mastermind.”
Kenneth and Louisa nodded in agreement, impressed by their daughter’s keen analysis.”If Martin’s guy was bribed, we just need to track who he was in touch with before calling the film studio VP, and if he’s had any hefty cash infusions. That might lead us to some fresh leads.” “Bella, you’re brilliant!” Louisa couldn’t help but exclaim. “Thank goodness for you. With this, it looks like we’ll get to the bottom of this mess sooner rather than later.”
“The mastermind behind this is quite cautious.” Kenneth muttered, unable to help himself. “He didn’t let his minions tamper with the car. Instead, he went the long way around, just to mislead us, making us chase after Martin. He’s setting Martin up as a scapegoat.”
“Actually, by doing this, isn’t he indirectly proving that we’re on the right track with our investigation?”
Mirabella continued to analyze, “If there was nothing amiss with the production company, he could have just thrown them under the bus. Why bother pushing Martin in front to silence the whispers. His actions suggest he’s afraid that following the production company’s trail will lead us to them. So, this person must have collaborated with the production company!”
Kenneth and Louisa simultaneously turned to their daughter, utterly awestruck, “Bella, you’re amazing!
You’ve made what seemed like a tangled mess crystal clear with your sharp analysis. This means we’re getting closer to the truth.”
Mirabella nodded, “Also, last time when I collaborated with the victim’s family, the victim pretended to die under my care, and the family’s wailing outside the OR was captured on video and leaked online. I looked into the person who did this; it’s another one of Martin’s men, named Algernon. It looks like the mastermind really wants to throw Martin to the wolves this time.”
“This mastermind is despicable.” Louisa couldn’t help but blurt out, “So infuriating, I wish I could drag him out and give him a piece of my mind.”
“I have a feeling he’ll show his face soon enough,” Mirabella said as she stood up, ready to continue her investigation.
“Bella, are you coming home for dinner tonight? Do you need an extra pair of hands? Your mom and I can still pull some strings if you need people.”
“No need,” Mirabella turned, a slight smile on her lips, “I’ve got people.”She had many at her disposal, working with them was more in sync, and it saved trouble.
“Just be safe, okay?” Louisa watched her daughter’s retreating figure, turning to her husband, “Bella has really grown up. She can handle anything on her own. As her parents, it seems we’re not much needed anymore.”
“The feeling of being protected by our daughter. I never knew it would be this sweet.” Kenneth was touched.
This kind of happiness was something they hadn’t experienced with Serena.
#MirabellaMiracleDocConfirmed# instantly exploded across the internet. The crowd clicked in to find out that when Mirabella was called in to save a life, she didn’t operate but directed from the sidelines, guiding the patient back from the brink.
[Yeah, I mean, most folks would’ve passed out cold at the sight of all that blood. But Mirabella, her face, her reaction, she was just too calm.]
[The thing is, no matter what complications came up during surgery, she handled them like a pro, as if it was all just child’s play to her.]
[The doctors, they treated her with so much respect. Her skills must’ve really impressed them, earned their admiration.]
[So, are you saying she’s like a miracle worker?]
[The patient was clearly cured, so why are there rumors that he died because of her? What’s the real story?]
[I can’t imagine the Collins family would just cram Mirabella with medical jargon and procedures for the sake of a title. Those doctors were in a rush to save a life, they wouldn’t just play along with a charade.
I believe in their professional integrity.]
[Then who the heck took that video of the family crying outside the OR, claiming Mirabella botched the surgery? Who’s trying to smear her name?]
It didn’t take long for netizens to dig up the identity of the filmer – a guy named Algernon.
[Algernon? Who’s that?]
[He’s not a reporter, so what’s he doing lurking around the hospital, filming stuff? Trying to hurt Mirabella?]
[Does anyone know who this guy is? He looks young, clean-cut. Could it be he’s got a thing for Mirabella and, when she didn’t reciprocate, decided to throw mud?][No way, right?]
Online, the buzz was all about figuring out who Algernon was. Some sleuths tracked the video back to Hope Hospital’s official account. Meanwhile, Dr. Pierce from Hope Hospital was cornered by a swarm of journalists, ready to take their questions head-on.
“Bella’s medical prowess is witnessed by everyone here, not just by me, the hospital director, but also by other doctors and patients.”
Dr. Pierce said leisurely, “Phillip was treated here before, so naturally, a lot of people online are concerned about his recovery. Let me clarify things.”
Reporters were jostling for a scoop, crowding around Dr. Pierce with their mics and cameras almost in his face.
“Six months ago, Phillip’s condition took a turn for the worse. We had a Dr. Hermosa who was treating him, and she, fearing the responsibility, wanted to wait for the family before taking action. She suggested we administer a sedative and a ‘peaceful passage’ concoction.””If it weren’t for Bella happening by, going against the grain, and teaming up with Dr. Caden to save Phillip, he might well have been gone by now.”
People online were stunned. [If Dr. Pierce says so, Mirabella’s skills must be legit! So she really did save Phillip. And that car crash victim, she guided the surgery verbally. Incredible.]
[My aunt’s a nurse at Hope Hospital, swore it was the real deal.]
Online, everyone was gabbing about Mirabella’s medical miracles.
Meanwhile, Eunice caused quite the stir with three videos she leaked online.
One video showed Serena at the Style Plaza, shamelessly tussling with Mirabella over a dress.
Another caught Serena throwing a fit outside a chic boutique after they refused to sell her their goods, hurling insults at the staff from the sidewalk.
And the third? A doozy where Serena, aiming to drug Mirabella, bungled it and drugged herself instead.
The result? A spectacle at her aunt’s house.
In that video, Serena was hugging a tree, convinced it was Romeo, pouring her heart out. The servants tried to clue her in, telling her it’s just a tree, but she wouldn’t let go, even slapped one for their trouble.
She ranted to that tree, spewing venom about Mirabella, dreaming aloud about marrying Romeo and having kids.
Once those videos hit the internet, Serena’s reputation tanked.
The court of public opinion was ruthless, slinging mud at Serena for her shamelessness.
[So that’s what Serena’s really like behind closed doors? Mirabella put up with her for half a year.]
[Seriously, Mirabella’s got the patience of a saint. If that was me, I couldn’t stand a day! Mirabella comes back home, doesn’t kick Serena out, lets her live it up like before. Such a big-hearted, kind, friendly person, and Serena does her dirty?][Look at the timestamps on those videos – all this before Serena got the boot. She drugged Mirabella, lusted after her fiancé, got violent, and the Collins family? They just grounded her, gave her a chance to shape up. That was generous!]
[So everything Louisa said was true. They gave Serena chance after chance. It’s her own dang fault she didn’t shape up.]
[Serena’s a real piece of work!]
[Alma did a good job!]
[How did she not knock some sense into her?] Alma knew this was her moment. She waltzed into the public eye and, sure enough, the lurking reporters swarmed her.
“We were just hoping she’d be a bit nicer to Bella, you know? But she was so full of herself, it was too much. She even threatened to leak the security footage from the stairwell. But, honestly, in that stairwell, me and my girls didn’t lay a finger on her. We were just talking to her, real polite-like, asking her to consider the eighteen years of love and care the Collins family had shown her and to go easy on Bella with her sharp tongue. But she…”
Alma sounded so pitifully innocent, “She played dirty, making herself out to look like the victim and even calling the paramedics. We watched the surveillance video online, and we were speechless.
She’s so wicked, playing all her followers for fools, swaying public opinion her way.”
Alma sounded somewhat helpless, “As for why I didn’t come forward earlier to clear things up for me and my girls, it’s because we didn’t want to give her any more attention.”
On the other hand.
Serena saw the trending hashtags #MirabellaMiracleDocConfirmed, #AlmaDidntHitAnyone, and #SerenaGetOffThePlanet and was fuming.
She never expected Mirabella and Alma to turn the tables like this!
And she certainly didn’t foresee that damned Eunice coming at her again and again, releasing three damning videos.
Meanwhile, Eunice was being her usual stunning, ice-queen self during a media interview.
“To spare my fellow onlookers any more ugliness, I only released a snippet of the video. The things Serena has done, what you’ve seen is just the tip of the iceberg.”
Her words were like a nail in Serena’s coffin, followed by a few vicious stomps for good measure.Serena was shaking with rage. She thought, “That wretched woman! This was domestic turf, not her foreign playing field! How dare she.”
“Also, I know Serena is watching this live stream, and I’d like to tell her: put away those delusions of grandeur, live your life, and stop messing around behind the scenes. I have evidence of every little thing you’ve done to Bella. I just don’t want to continue wasting public resources, so I hope you take this opportunity to turn over a new leaf.”
That left Serena grinding her teeth in anger.
Elsewhere.
Martin caught wind of the trending topics and dialed up one of his associates, Channing.
“Did you, or did you not, make a seven-minute call to the vice president of the film company four days ago?”
He had just learned that right after Channing’s call to the vice president, the film exec had reached out to Esther, the head of a clothing company, and the next day, Esther had sabotaged a prize car.
“Mr. Martin.” Channing sounded frightened and remorseful on the phone, “I had no choice.”
“What did you talk about with the vice president?” Martin’s voice was tinged with the displeasure of betrayal. He’d trusted Channing for three years, never expecting a stab in the back.
“Nothing. The mystery person just told me to make the call as a front. Even though we talked for seven minutes, we didn’t exchange a word.”
Martin’s expression darkened, and he fell silent.”Mr. Martin, I’m sorry. I know I work for you. After I made this call, everyone would mistakenly think that you sent me to do bad things. But I really can’t help it.” Channing said this, his voice choked.
“Why didn’t you tell me?”
The words hung heavily in the air, a testament to the complex web of loyalty and betrayal that had ensnared them all.
“What are you up to?” Martin suddenly had a sinking feeling as the sound of rushing wind came through the phone, “Channing? Channing??”
A loud crash echoed through the speaker.