Chapter 51 Were There Enough Wedding Favors?
Rachel entered the study at night to serve Justin with some tea.
At the sound of the door being opened, he instructed her without looking up, “Put it down.”
Even though she did as he asked her to, she stood there without leaving.
Finally, he looked up at her. “Did you need something else?”
Rachel hesitated for a moment before she signed. Do you have a solution for the medication formula?
While keeping his gaze on her, Justin answered, “We previously missed our chance, so it’ll be difficult for us to go back to Hudson Vineyard. We might be able to head there on the pretext of discussing the wine business, though. Why? Do you have a solution?”
She shook her head.
For now, Rachel didn’t plan on telling him that she had seen the formula.
Since the dosages weren’t listed, she was worried that even if she informed Justin about it, he would think she was hiding something from him.
Justin asked in a careless manner, “I heard Jefferey took you to the vineyard last week. What were you doing there?”
It was right after he dropped the question that Rachel’s heart raced loudly.
How could she have forgotten that he knew her whereabouts like the back of his hand?
He…
Upon seeing that she was unable to explain herself, his gaze darkened. “Did he ask you to do something else?”
As her expression tightened anxiously, she nodded. He gave me a packet of drugs.
“Drugs?” Justin frowned. “What kind of drugs?”
Rachel made a few hand gestures with slight embarrassment.
As he hadn’t learned sign language for a long time, he was completely unable to read the specialized term. Since he was close to losing his patience, he tossed a pen and a piece of paper onto the table before he instructed, “Write it down. What kind of drug was it?”
Her face reddened. Even after she had picked up the pen, she hesitated for what seemed like eternity before she finally and carefully wrote the word—LSD.
The drug Jefferey gave her was actually researched and developed by Hudson Pharmaceuticals itself. LSD was merely a similar drug that was available on the market.
After having worked in the market for many years, Justin was long accustomed to the darker side of human nature. Drugs like these were always accessories in places like nightclubs and he instantly understood Rachel’s meaning.
“Jefferey wanted you to drug me with it?”
She felt both embarrassed and terrified as she nodded again.
He snorted coldly, “And where is it now?”
Rachel pursed her lips. I threw it away.
In truth, she never even brought it back to Burton Residence as she had discarded it outside the house as a precautionary method.
“He doesn’t even consider you a person.” The mocking tone stung as it came from behind the desk and reached her ears.
Although what Justin said was the truth, Rachel neither had the wish nor the method to deny it. Yet, it was still humiliating to be ridiculed like that.
If there’s nothing else, I’m going back to my room now.
He subtly nodded.
As he watched her walk away with such fragility that a slight gust of wind could knock her over, he suddenly asked, “Were there enough wedding favors to share with your coworkers?”
A startled Rachel looked over her shoulder in confusion.
Now that he was separated from her by the length of the study and the huge desk, Justin’s severe face was softened by the soft yellow light above him, which made him suddenly look friendlier—even with that terrible scar on his face.
As she stared absent-mindedly at the scar, she suddenly returned to her senses and quickly nodded. Yes.
She was alarmed—slightly fearful and repulsed, even—to the point where her shoulders shook as she nodded, as if she was afraid he would do something harmful to her in the next second.
It was in that moment when any cordiality that Justin felt dissipated into thin air, although he himself couldn’t describe what he was expecting.
What gratitude could he have hoped for from a woman who was forced by her family to marry him and spend her life walking on eggshells by his side?
Once she returned to her room, Rachel let out the breath she had been holding.
When she recalled Justin’s sudden change in expression, she felt a tad bit of the lingering fear.
As the man’s mood easily changed from one moment to the next, she had no idea on how to read him.
However, it was likely that he asked someone to drop off the wedding favors to make it clear to her coworkers that she was married and to prevent anything untoward from happening to her.
Rachel concluded that was the most likely explanation.
The next day, she went to work as usual.
The moment she stepped off the subway, she received a text from Hans. ‘Good morning.’
‘Morning.’
‘Do you usually come to work at this hour?’
She thought, Come?
As the word flashed before her eyes, Rachel stopped in front of the library and looked up from her phone only to spot a figure with a straight posture, standing by the door and waving at her from a distance. Hans?
Her eyes brightened as she quickened her footsteps toward Hans while she clutched her phone. Yet, before she could even take two steps, a shrill voice shouted behind her, “Rachel Hudson!”
The people around Rachel who were heading into work halted in their steps and she was no exception. As she turned her head to look at the source of the voice, a loud slap descended fiercely upon her cheek.
Before Rachel could even see who the culprit was, the other woman had already caught Rachel’s shirt and unceremoniously threw Rachel to the ground before hurling her fists.
“You b*tch, you’re trying to destroy someone else’s happiness just because you’re unhappy! I’ll kill you!”
“Rachel!” Hans sprinted down from the steps and he forcefully separated the two women before warning, “I’m calling the police if you hit her again.”
“Go ahead!” The woman retorted shrilly. “Do it. I want to see whether anyone in all of Riverdale would dare to arrest me.”
However crazed the woman was acting, her arrogant tone was familiar.
While Rachel was being protected behind Hans’ back, she was shocked to discover who her visitor was—it was Tina.
“Are you okay, Rachel?” Hans asked.
At this moment, Rachel’s ears were still ringing and as she clutched the cheek that was slapped, she stared at Tina in bewilderment.
What are you doing? she signed.
What on earth had happened to cause Tina to lose her marbles when Rachel had no quarrel with her?
“I’ve really underestimated you. I can’t believe you’re still trying to act innocent! Who do you think you are? You’re just some b*tch that your family sold to my cousin. Didn’t my cousin tell you that the Burton Family matters are none of your business?” A furious Tina glared at Rachel as she continued, “I’m telling you that I’ll never forget this. You made life difficult for me and Henry, so I’m returning the favor!”
None of the barrage of accusations had made any sense to Rachel, but she understood one thing, which was Tina must have misunderstood her.
“What do you mean by the Burton Family? Your cousin? What are you talking about? Don’t be afraid, Rachel. We’ll call the police. This woman must be mad.” While he still protected Rachel, Hans pulled out his cell to call the cops.
Rachel quickly caught hold of his sleeve. You can’t call the police, she signed.
A long time ago, Justin had already warned her to mind her place and not cause any more trouble for him. Since Tina was a member of Burton Family, the only one who would be hurt was Rachel herself if she allowed the situation to escalate.
Meanwhile, the crowd around them was gossiping.
“Wasn’t it just yesterday when Rachel came to work to give out wedding favors? What’s going on here?”
“I don’t know! ‘Destroying someone else’s happiness’? Is her husband cheating on someone else with her?”
A shocked Hans looked at Rachel. “You’re married?”
