Love beyond the mask ( Whitney )
Chapter 966

Endora's eyes darted around in panic, her expression filled with horror as the police cuffed her and brought her into the Banyan City Police Department. With both legs broken, she lay on a stretcher, receiving treatment from a doctor dispatched by the police.

A police officer, holding a stack of documents, gazed coldly at the woman known for her numerous wrongdoings. "Endora, once we've got your legs stabilized enough for you to sit up, we'll proceed with a formal interrogation. We hope you'll cooperate for a lighter sentence. But let's get two things straight: first, six accomplices have already confessed that you masterminded the kidnap of a three-year-old girl, paying them to do the dirty work.

The girl was found last night by a Ms. Bartels. The police arrived on the scene promptly, apprehending your hired goons and bringing Ms. Bartels in for questioning."

"What?" Endora's voice was laced with disbelief. "Ms. Bartels found the girl?"

"Yes, Elaine made the call. But whether she's involved, we're investigating."

"She... Elaine... she..." A storm of thoughts raged in Endora's mind, then it hit her.

Elaine had betrayed her!

So, now she was the scapegoat for the kidnapping?

And with Elaine seeing her as no longer useful, unable to secure Parker's billion, she decided to play the good Samaritan, pushing Cherry into the spotlight to save her own skin? What a cunning, malevolent woman! Betrayal and shifting blame!

In the game of schemes, she was outplayed by this traitor, only to be double-crossed in the end.

Rage coursed through Endora, her veins bulging, her words trembling with anger, but the officer's next words deflated her completely:

"Second, don't even think your parents can pull strings to bail you out this time. Parker has stepped in, and as of this afternoon, your parents were taken into custody. According to the latest financial news, Parker, along with a team of lawyers, has descended on the Melford Group to investigate your father's takeover of Fabian's company three years ago. There's a shareholders' meeting at the Melford Group, possibly leading to a shake-up. In short, your family is on the brink of bankruptcy, and the company's on the verge of slipping through your fingers. We advise you to stay put and face the charges against you. Only with a good attitude and acceptance of your crimes can we consider leniency. But make no mistake, jail time is inevitable."

"No, listen to me, officer!" Endora's face was ashen, her head shaking in denial. "The kidnapping wasn't my idea; someone else was behind it, manipulating me! I was just... ah!"

Overwhelmed, Endora fainted, her face turning a sickly shade of blue.

The doctor rushed over, frowning. "Her hands and feet... was this personal vendetta?"

The Banyan City police, already tipped off by Parker, deliberately overlooked Endora's injuries, maintaining a "see no evil, hear no evil" stance. "Treat her for now. It's getting late. Lock her up, and we'll interrogate her alone once she's stable." At eight in the evening, Endora finally regained consciousness.

Waking up, she found herself in a detention cell!

Facing her, the cell was dimly lit, housing several other female inmates.

One of them immediately caught Endora's eye!

Elaine...?

Why was she here too?!

Endora quickly remembered the police mentioning that Ms. Bartels had been brought in for questioning.

Talk about a small world, this traitorous witch... "Elaine!"

Endora clenched her fists in fury, her eyes blazing with rage as she whispered harshly.

But with her legs injured, she could only slump helplessly on the edge of the bed, glaring at the woman in the corner.

Elaine, too, looked up from the shadows, her gaze cold and deliberate, as if she had been waiting for Endora to wake.

"Shh." Elaine gestured for silence, gracefully standing and walking towards Endora with a tone that was calm yet carried a stark warning. "Keep it down."

"You backstabber! You came to Banyan City, seeking refuge with me, and I took you in, made you my strategist. You encouraged me to poison Fabian, trap his family... and then you pushed me to kidnap Cherry. I'll tell the police everything about you tomorrow! They'll see right through you. The Bartels family deals in pharmaceuticals; I couldn't possibly have access to illegal drugs. That poison, it was you who brought it. The police will trace it back to you!

Even if you betray me, do you really think you can wash your hands clean and save yourself?

I'll drag you down with me, expose you as the mastermind behind all this, the source of every vile scheme!"

"Shut it." Elaine swiftly covered Endora's mouth, her eyes gleaming with malice as she whispered venomously, pressing down on Endora's throat. "You know why you could never win over Parker? Because you're stupid, not half as clever or strategic as me. If you rat me out tomorrow, we're both done for.

I don't care. I've lost everything, abandoned by Ludwik, the Bartels Group bankrupt. I've been a rat in the gutter for ages.

But you, you're already caught in Parker's net, every piece of evidence pointing right at you.

The question is, do you want to avoid the death penalty?"

"What do you mean?!" Endora's mind was reeling, her complexion pale, unable to grasp Elaine's implications.

She knew she was done for, brought down by Parker's revenge, facing charges for the kidnapping and conspiring with Barclay to poison Thomas, possibly facing the death penalty!

Especially since her parents had been effortlessly crushed by Parker.

No one could save her now!

Elaine watched Endora's fear take hold, knowing she had her right where she wanted.

From the moment Elaine was brought in, she had been gambling, plotting her next move.

She figured Parker's next move would be to reel in Endora and her crew.

So, she placed her bet: Would Endora end up in the same cell as her? And if not, she'd feign illness to get transferred to Endora's cell.

She had already greased the palms of the six kidnappers.

And throughout the entire kidnapping ordeal, she never showed her face, directing them to move Cherry using a voice changer.

As long as the kidnappers didn't rat her out, that left only Endora.

To keep Endora from spilling the beans, Elaine knew she'd have to sweet-talk her way through.

But she also had Endora's Achilles' heel in her grip. With Endora backed into a corner and Parker having a myriad of ways to sentence her to the gallows, all she had to do was dangle a carrot. Endora, a coward in wolf's clothing, would surely grab at the lifeline she threw...