Chapter 407


    Chapter 407


    Ste was miffed, but I refused to probe further.


    The fact that Russel and Karina were working together irked me, but it wasn’t enough to drive me up


    the wall and demand an immediate exnation.


    After Ste left my house, it wasn’t long before Russel showed up, looking a bit anxious.


    “Rena!” Upon seeing me, Russel quickened his pace towards me.


    I hadn’t expected him to arrive so quickly; he should’ve been at work at that time.


    My parents, seeing Russel return, immediately asked, “Russel, have you had lunch yet? Are you


    hungry? Should I heat up some food for you?”


    Russel looked conflicted, shaking his head, “I’m not hungry. I just came home because I needed to talk


    to Rena about something.”


    “Then you two chat.” My dad didn’t think much of it and took my two kids out for a walk.


    The nanny also left, leaving Russel and me alone in the house.


    He began to exin his work situation with the same reasoning as before; he was drawn to the hospital


    due to various factors. As for Karina, they worked in different departments, and their chances of


    meeting were slim.


    The reason Karina had his phone with her earlier was due to a general hospital meeting where they


    had happened to bump into each other, and he had identally left his phone behind, which Karina


    had picked up.


    So, when I called, Karina was the one who answered.


    It was an absolute coincidence, but the anxious concern in Russel’s eyes was real. I looked at him for a


    while and asked, “Swear to me that there’s nothing going on between you and Karina that you’re


    keeping from me and that you haven’t been in contact with her behind my back.”


    Russel paused, giving me a strange feeling that something was off.


    He then chuckled, “Are you worried that I’m having an illicit affair with her?”


    “Not at all. As you know, I wouldn’t mind if you were with another woman,” I said honestly.


    The smile on Russel’s face faded, “You know I only want to be with you.”


    “Let’s get back to the point. What’s going on between you and Karina?” I steered the conversation back


    to the main issue.


    This time, he didn’t hesitate and swore, “I swear, there’s absolutely no secret contact between us, and I


    haven’t done anything to betray you. If I lie to you, then I will


    be struck down!”


    His words were heavy. I wanted to stop him, but then I thought, “If Russel really has nothing going on


    with Karina, then what is there to be afraid of?”


    Since he had gone this far, I couldn’t press him any further. After a brief chat, I let Russel get back to


    work.


    I wasn’t sure if I could trust his words. After all, he wasn’t much better than Neil.


    Men are always good at hiding their intentions.


    But for the time being, that was all I could have done. I still held a piece of evidence against Karina,


    and if anything went wrong, I had leverage over her.


    Little did I know that I would have needed that leverage sooner than expected.


    Due to Karina’s heroic act of saving a life, the hospital was nning to hold amendation ceremony


    for her, which Russel was also supposed to attend. That ceremony would have also honored other


    outstanding medical workers. The hospital staff could have brought their families for the asion as


    well.


    Russel assumed I wouldn’t have gone and merely mentioned it in passing.


    I agreed immediately, which surprised him.


    “Neil’s parents will probably attend too,” Russel said as we drove.


    “I know. They’ll definitely go,” I replied calmly, sitting in the passenger seat.


    Karina was keen on gaining the approval of Ryan and Faith, Neil’s parents. So, for amendation


    ceremony like that, she would have surely tried to have Ryan and Faith attend and witness her moment


    of glory.


    The event was well-attended, and the lights were bright since it was an evening event. Everyone’s hair


    seemed to shimmer in the light.


    I easily spotted Neil in the crowd, holding his son, Hiram. They looked like a picture-perfect father and


    son duo, and their connection with Karina drew much attention.


    Ryan and Faith stood nearby, asionally ying with Hiram. Both wore smiles, looking happier than


    before,


    They didn’t show any resentment in such a setting. Even if they had to act, they would do it well.


    After all, Karina was Neil’s girlfriend and they even had a child together. She was likely to marry into the


    Whitmore family in the future. If they could have enhanced –her reputation before that, it would have


    been beneficial for the Whitmore family.


    “Let’s sit over there,” Russel suggested, pointing to a spot far from where Neil and his family were.


    nodded and followed him. As far as I could have told, Neil’s family hadn’t noticed me.


    Once we were seated, I started ying with my phone, waiting for the ceremony to start. Today, Karina


    was the star of the show, but she was nowhere to be seen. She was probably preparing for her big


    moment.


    Russel asionally chatted with his colleagues. Just as the ceremony was about to start, he was


    called away for an emergency patient in his department.


    He turned to me, “I have to attend to this. Are you okay here by yourself? Or do you want to head home


    first?”


    Russel didn’t want me to stay there because Neil was also present. But I had to be there because I had


    something to do.


    With a smile, I reassured him, “It’s okay, I’ll leave if I get bored. You go do your thing.”


    Hearing my response, Russel nced anxiously in Neil’s direction before nodding reluctantly and


    leaving.


    I was seated at the far left, with Neil and his family on the far right. So, they hadn’t noticed me even as


    the ceremony was about to start. That made me feel rather rxed.


    Especially when it came to Ryan and Faith. Sometimes when they tried to strike up a conversation with


    me, I didn’t know how to respond.


    “Ms. Finch, you’re here too?” To my surprise, Karina noticed me. She was dressed in a whiteb coat,


    her hair pulled back into a simple ponytail and she wore sses. She looked very professional.


    “Russel invited me,” I replied casually.


    “Really? Where is he?” Karina asked, looking around.


    –


    “He has got things to handle.” I said, not in the mood for idle chatter with Karina. My sole purpose today


    was to make sure she fell t on her face.


    Karina was oblivious to my intentions. She probably thought she had covered her tracks impably,


    with no room for errors.


    She settled into the empty seat next to me, then pointed towards where Neil was seated. “I’ve always


    thought those hospital awards ceremonies were a bit of a farce, but Neil insisted it was important to


    him. He even brought along Ryan and Faith.”


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    I gave a nomittal nce in their direction, then nodded lightly. “Yeah, good for them to witness


    your heroic acts of life-saving deeds.”