Footsteps approached. The voices outside abruptly fell silent.
A moment later, the door creaked open.
Yeri lifted her gaze, but before she could make out who stood before her, a deafening slap cracked across her face.
Her head snapped to the side. Pain exploded along her cheek as Carpet barked wildly, thrashing against his restraints.
"Hahaha—!"
A shrill, aged laugh echoed in the room. "You little bitch! You're so good at hiding, and now you've finally fallen into my hands!"
The voice was familiar.
Yeri slowly turned her head back.
Her gaze narrowed the moment she recognized the woman standing before her.
"What?" Madam Nafplion sneered, eyes bulging. "What are you glaring at, huh? It's because of you! Because of you my son is dead!"
She grabbed a fistful of Yeri's hair and yanked hard. "It all started because of you! I lost everything because of you! Do you really think I'll let you get away?!"
Yeri inhaled sharply through the pain, forcing her voice to remain steady.
"Madam Nafplion, how does your son's death have anything to do with me?"
Another slap landed harder than the first.
Madam Nafplion's expression twisted further, her face contorting as if she truly wanted to devour her alive. She pointed a trembling finger at Yeri, voice rising into hysteria.
"You little bitch! If it wasn't you, who else could have caused my son to die so miserably?!" she screamed. "Even after death, he's scorned and hated, unable to find peace! If you had obediently gotten engaged to him, he wouldn't have relapsed and been sent back to rehab!"
Her voice grew sharper, more frenzied.
"Just when he finally got out of rehab and attended the Lin family's banquet, he had to meet a jinx like you! You damned bringer of death! It wasn't enough to humiliate him, you had to ruin him completely!" Her eyes were bloodshot. "You little bitch! I'm going to kill you today!"
Yeri stared at her.
Just one look at Madam Nafplion's disheveled appearance and deranged expression told her everything, this woman had already gone mad.
The accusation was absurd.
She hadn't even known about the so-called engagement until recently. She'd met Leo Nafplion no more than three times in her life.
More importantly, he had brought his fate upon himself.
Seeing Yeri's silence, Madam Nafplion grew even more enraged. She yanked her hair again, her other hand clamping onto Yeri's jaw with crushing force.
"Still hoping someone will come save you?" she hissed. "That demon, Shin Keir? Was he the one you asked to kill my son?! How did you seduce him, huh?"
Her gaze raked over Yeri with vicious contempt. "So young, yet already so scheming and slutty. You must have thought I wouldn't find out."
"I didn't," Yeri said through clenched teeth.
"Stay away from her!"
Nina's furious shout cut through the room.
"What nonsense are you spouting? Don't you of all people know what kind of person your son was?!"
Unlike Yeri, Nina's condition was noticeably better. The earlier collision had struck Yeri's side of the car, cushioning Nina from the worst of it. Aside from the injury on her forehead, she looked far steadier than both Yeri and the driver.
Her glare burned with unrestrained fury as she struggled against the ropes.
Madam Nafplion burst into laughter, sharp and unhinged.
"You're protecting this little bitch?" she screeched. "What kind of medicine did she feed you? This slut is very good at making people bend their knees and obey her will!"
She jabbed a finger at Yeri, eyes blazing.
"Of course I know my son! I know he loved this little bitch, otherwise why would he insist on marrying no one else but her? Because of her, my son offended that demon! Because of her, I lost everything! I lost my husband!"
Her voice cracked, then rose again in fury.
"How could I let this little bitch get away after destroying my family?!"
Nina stared at the old woman, utterly dumbfounded by her incoherent rambling.
She didn't believe a single word.
Putting Shin Keir aside, if Yeri truly wanted to seduce someone, why would she ever choose a scoundrel like Leo Nafplion? There were countless handsome, wealthy, and decent boys at school openly courting Yeri. Leo wasn't even worth standing in line.
"Enough!" Nina shouted, worry etched deeply on her face as she glanced at Yeri's battered state. "What you're doing is a crime! With your status, you could've cooperated with the police to investigate your husband's and son's deaths instead of committing another crime!"
Instead of calming down, Madam Nafplion laughed even harder.
A slap landed across Yeri's face, so forceful that blood seeped from the corner of her mouth.
"Do you think I didn't?!" Madam Nafplion screamed at the top of her lungs. She rummaged through her bag and violently flung several documents onto the floor.
Yeri's dizzy gaze sharpened the moment she caught sight of one particular page.
Private investigator notes:
They stated that the person who led Leo Nafplion into the alley where he was found dead was Shin Keir.
That the individuals who infiltrated the Nafplion residence and murdered Master Nafplion were Hexion members under Shin Keir's command.
Yeri's expression tightened.
"Did you verify the authenticity of this information?" she asked calmly. "What if it's fabricated?"
The notion itself was ridiculous.
Someone like Shin Keir wouldn't waste time dealing with Leo Nafplion.
With Leo's criminal record and his father's disownment, his fate was already sealed. Prison would have been inevitable even without outside interference. If Yeri could see this, Shin Keir would have known it long ago.
Dealing with Leo or his father was completely unnecessary.
Madam Nafplion's face twisted grotesquely.
"Fabricated? So what?!" she shrieked. "You little bitch dragged my son into infamy, to be condemned by everyone while your family reaped the benefits! No matter what I will get justice for my son today!"
Her eyes glinted with madness.
"Since my son loved you so much, I'll send you to hell to keep him company!"
Yeri finally understood.
Madam Nafplion didn't want the truth. She just needed someone to blame.
Whether Yeri was responsible or not didn't matter, she was already the culprit in the old woman's eyes.
"Old hag," Nina sneered coldly, "if your son were still alive, he'd probably kill you himself for being such a useless mother. No wonder that scoundrel turned out worthless, with a mother like you, it's not surprising at all."
"Nina!" Yeri's eyes widened.
She knew immediately what Nina was doing.
Sure enough, Madam Nafplion's bloodshot eyes snapped toward Nina. She stormed over and slapped her viciously.
"Madam Nafplion," Yeri shot back instantly, struggling against her restraints, her gaze fierce as she sent Nina a warning look not to provoke the unhinged woman anymore.
"You're also a woman. How can you condone your son's actions and still think he died unjustly?" Yeri said sharply. "If anything, you should be relieved, celebrating that the world is free of such an evil person!"
Dragging Nina into this was already unbearable. How could she allow anything to happened to Nina before help arrived.
Nina, however, was just as determined.
She continued provoking Madam Nafplion, deliberately drawing her fury, while Yeri followed suit, both of them doing everything they could to keep the woman's attention divided.
The already unhinged Madam Nafplion snapped completely, charging back and forth, striking them again and again in blind rage.
Eventually, exhaustion caught up with her.
Panting heavily, she staggered toward Yeri and grabbed her hair with both hands, no longer paying Nina any heed.
"It's all your fault!" she screamed hoarsely. "All because of you! Using that seductive face of yours to tempt my son! If you hadn't provoked him at that party, would he have caused so much trouble?!"
Her grip tightened painfully.
"Who knows what lies you fed Shin Keir to make him kill my son and my husband!" she shrieked. "You vicious bitch! I'm going to kill you today!"
Pain exploded across Yeri's body, especially her face.
This was the first time in her life she had been beaten badly that darkness repeatedly crept into her vision, her consciousness wavering on the edge of collapse.
Earlier, when she failed to contact anyone in the car, hope had slipped through her fingers. Now, the only thing she could cling to was Loki. She prayed that he had realized something was wrong and had already gone for help.
Meanwhile, Carpet barked incessantly.
His loud, frantic barking echoed through the space, sharp and piercing. Instead of stopping, it only made Madam Nafplion more agitated. Her face twisted as she clutched her ears, eyes bloodshot.
"Shut up!" she snarled. "Why the hell is there a dog here?!"
She finally released Yeri and began scanning the area, her gaze landing on something nearby.
Yeri's heart dropped as she called out for Carpet to stop barking.
Whether he sensed she's unwell or instinctively knew the old woman meant harm, Carpet barked even louder, struggling against the rope around his neck.
Nina saw it too.
Madam Nafplion bent down and picked up a discarded wooden rod.
"Madam Nafplion, your son deserved to die! Even without me, how many people wanted his life? He would've died sooner or later!" Yeri shouted, her voice breaking
But between Carpet's frantic barking and her own spiraling madness, Madam Nafplion didn't even turn around.
She raised the rod.
Yeri's breath caught in her throat.
She screamed, struggling violently, but the heavy chair tipped over with her. She crashed to the floor, pain exploding through her body as she fell.
Carpet howled in terror, whimpering as he tried to dodge the blows. He struggled desperately against the rope, but his injured leg betrayed him, slowing his movements.
"Stop!" Nina screamed hoarsely. "You old hag! You coward, fight me instead!"
Yeri's cries were heart-wrenching.
She watched helplessly as Carpet struggled, her chest tightening painfully, her body trembling uncontrollably. Her heart felt like it was being torn apart piece by piece.
She had nearly been killed by mercenaries chasing Shin Keir. She had stared into the eyes of a suicide bomber wearing a twisted grin. She had faced a mafia thug in the hospital who wanted her dead. But never, never had she felt overwhelming fear and helpless like this.