Chapter 385
Since Hayden didn't want to cause any disturbance, Gabriel knew he must keep this from Teresa, or she wouldn't be able to focus on their marriage ceremony.
After watching the video, Gabriel instructed solemnly, "Hayden must have gone to the hospital. Find out which hospital she's at and make sure both she and the baby are safe."
"Yes, Gabriel," Luke nodded, promptly getting to work.
Today was the Garcia family's most significant day. Thousands of security personnel guarded their sprawling estate, and surveillance cameras were installed in every nook to prevent mishaps.
And Michelle, bold as she was, dared to stir trouble on Gabriel's wedding day.
Hayden's level-headedness was a saving grace. If things had escalated, her well-being and the baby's would have been everyone's concern—not just for the Bennetts but also for the Garcias. With the influential crowd drawn to the wedding, any scandal could have sent shockwaves through the assembly of politicians, tycoons, and various guests.
Gabriel couldn't fathom what William saw in Michelle, a woman he not only decided to marry but also defended at every turn.
"Copy the surveillance footage to my phone," Gabriel ordered after a brief moment of contemplation.
As soon as he gave the command, he left the security room and headed upstairs.
"Yes, Gabriel," one of the bodyguards responded, promptly sending the video to his phone.
Before Gabriel could set foot on the stairwell, his phone vibrated in his pocket. Without skipping a beat, he forwarded the video to William and continued upstairs.
"Honey, where's Hayden?" Teresa asked as Gabriel entered the bedroom, noticing Hayden's absence.
"She had to leave early for an urgent matter," Gabriel replied nonchalantly.
"An urgent matter?!" Teresa asked with a furrowed brow.
Gabriel smiled helplessly, "Sweetheart, I'm not Hayden's assistant, Finley."
Teresa raised an eyebrow and had someone fetch her phone to call Hayden personally. However, it wasn't Hayden but her assistant Finley who answered.
"Unity, Hayden had to step out due to an emergency. She's currently tied up and can't take your call. I'll have her call you back as soon as she's free if that's alright?" Finley spoke politely from the other end.
"That's fine; let Hayden handle her business first."
Since Finley's story matched Gabriel's, Teresa felt reassured and ended the call after giving her instructions.
"Now, are you reassured? Can we get on with the dress fitting?" Gabriel asked, doting on her.
Teresa nodded, "Yes, let's do it."
"I'll help you."
"No need; you better leave," Teresa teased, shooing him away, "Go entertain the guests downstairs."
"Right, Gabriel, I've got this," Sophia chimed in, entering the room with a smile, "You go and attend to your matters."
"Alright, thanks, Mom," Gabriel said politely to Sophia, flashing a brief smile at Teresa before he headed out.
Meanwhile, in the emergency room of the hospital, William was beside Michelle, attending to a wound on her hand.
His phone buzzed in the pocket of his suit. Pulling it out, he saw a surveillance video sent by Gabriel, freezing on the image of Hayden. His handsome brows knit together for a moment before he turned to leave, phone in hand.
"Where are you going, William?" Michelle called out from the chair, where medical staff were tending to her injury. Seeing him about to depart, she couldn't help but ask.
Hearing her voice, William paused, looking back at Michelle with a slight smile, "Just need to make a call. I'll be right back."
With a compliant nod, Michelle replied cheerfully, "Okay."
William's lips curved up again before continuing on his way out.
Reaching a quiet area outside, he opened Gabriel's video and watched it intently. The footage revealed Michelle, who was supposed to enter the restroom, instead gave instructions to a janitor and waited outside the door. It wasn't long before the janitor brought Hayden down to Michelle. William immediately understood.
The troublemaker wasn't Hayden; it was Michelle.
The surveillance video did not have sound, but Michelle's expression changed drastically after they exchanged words—it turned from smug mockery to tenderness, and she deliberately leaned close to Hayden.
At that moment, Michelle had seen him.
This meant that Michelle deliberately provoked Hayden, wanting him to hit her, and then she pretended to stumble and fall.
After he appeared in the frame, carrying Michelle away, Hayden's eyes in the surveillance footage teared up instantly.
She looked distressed, leaning against the wall, murmuring to herself, and then, William clearly saw a shocking fluid trickle down between her legs.
Later, she called Finley, who helped her leave through the back door, unnoticed by anyone.
After the video ended, the last image frozen on the screen was Finley, supporting Hayden with all his might and struggling to make their way to the back. Sometime during the playback, a fiery red had crept into the rims of his eyes, and the hand that hung by his side was clenched into a fist. The veins stood out starkly, pulsing visibly.
The next second, with a resounding "thud," his fist brutally slammed against the wall. In an instant, the skin over his knuckles tore, and beads of blood began to seep out.
Not far away, Michelle, having just had her injuries attended to in the emergency room, stepped out and turned to see William strike the wall with a fierce punch. Her eyes widened in shock.
Regaining her composure, Michelle quickly ran over, grabbing William's fist, which was still pressed against the wall. Her voice was filled with urgent concern: "William, what's wrong? What happened?"
William turned his head, sweeping a cold and ruthless glare towards Michelle, unlike anything she'd seen before in his deep-set eyes.
Feeling the chill of his crimson gaze, Michelle shivered, and a sudden coldness rose from her feet to the crown of her head.
"William... what's wrong with you?" Her voice trembled as she spoke again.
He glared at her and jerked his hand forcefully away from hers, then coolly curled his lips and said, "Michelle, why do you think I agreed to marry you? You think the others don't know? Shouldn't you be clear about it yourself?"
"Liam... what... what's wrong with me?" Stunned, she looked at the man who, in an instant, seemed utterly unlike the warm, refined, and elegantly charming William she knew.
"Don't think that just because you are my fiancée, you can do whatever you want," William warned her with a gaze filled with icy contempt, "especially trying to pull some stunt during Teresa's wedding day. "
With those final words, William brushed past Michelle and strode away.
"William, William..." Stunned, Michelle stood there, watching him leave. By the time she snapped out of her daze and tried to chase after him, it was already too late...
...
At precisely noon, the Garcia family's grand estate was abuzz—Teresa and Gabriel's wedding ceremony was about to begin.
Linking arms with Patrick, Teresa descended the stairs gracefully, her long veil carried by four adorable page boys named Helen and accompanied by four bridesmaids. Looking every bit like an elegant and distinguished princess of this world, she walked upon the soft red carpet towards Gabriel, who was waiting at the other end.
