Chapter 057 It Was All Grace's Trap
Grace heard everything Zach said, but his recent flattery was false, only meant to make her forgive Tom.
Zach truly meant the curses that he spat.
"Grace, stop!" Zach chased after her, commanding the servants, "Stop her!"
He thought, ‘I can't let Grace get away. If Grace went to sue him and Tom now, wouldn't everything be over?’
Zach now wanted to confine Grace even if it was against her will; he would rather hit her to force her to sign the forgiveness letter.
Jenny could only try to stop Grace. "Ms. Lewis, you should speak with Mr. Lewis properly."
Grace walked briskly towards the front door, with her mind firmly set on leaving. "I have nothing left to say to him," she muttered to herself. But as she swung the door open, several security guards blocked her exit.
Descending the grand staircase of the Lewis Villa, Zach confronted her, stating, "You ignored my call to return last time, and now you're not going to leave that easily." He brandished a document. "Sign this, and you can go."
The sheer audacity of Zach's demand shocked Grace; he was coercing her to sign a letter of reconciliation.
"What if I refuse to sign?" she challenged.
"Do you think you have a choice here at the Lewis Villa?" Zach’s voice carried a cold authority that the guards respected. "Grace, if I want your signature, I've got plenty of ways to get it. I could lock you up, withhold food. How long do you think you'd last before you sign?"
"That's illegal," Grace retorted.
"So what? I'm your father, and I have every right to discipline you," Zach proclaimed with unsettling conviction.
With a wave of his hand, he instructed, "Take her! She's signing it today, no matter what." It didn't seem to matter to him that such extremes, even maiming his daughter, would be considered if it meant getting that signature.
Grace felt trapped. She had willingly walked into the lion's den, into the Lewis Villa, and now there was no escape. The guards grabbed her arms and pulled her forcefully toward Zach.
"You're committing a crime by forcing my hand, you might as well be conspiring with criminals," Grace spat out.
"If you were willing to sign willingly, would I have to force you?" Zach sat casually on the sofa, knowing fully well that Grace had walked right into his plan and made his job easy.
Upstairs, Madison couldn't help but let out a chuckle at the scene. She murmured, “Grace is a fool. Does she think she’s smart? Walking right into the Lewis Villa and daring to insult her father.”
“Grace, as your father, you should just sign and let all this be forgotten. But if you don’t...” Zach left the threat hanging in the air with a meaningful pause.
“What if I don’t sign? What will you do, kill me?” Grace fired back, her eyes blazing with hatred.
The same eyes that so resembled those of her mother, and yet, nothing about Grace was reminiscent of her. Her mother had been a woman of breathtaking beauty, while Grace had always been plain, and her stubborn nature set her apart from favored ones such as Madison and Brittany.
Zach had tried in the past to show more affection towards Grace, but an inner barrier always held him back, because, in his mind, Grace was simply not...
He thought to himself with resignation, "It's my failure as a father."
"Zach, how can you live with yourself doing these things? Aren't you afraid my mother will come back to haunt you in the middle of the night?" The mere mention of Grace's mother sent shivers down Zach's spine.
"Get her to sign. Sign it!" Zach commanded.
The men grasped Grace's hand, completely unconcerned about whether they would hurt her, just intent on forcing her to sign the document.
Upstairs, Madison was laughing heartily; she was almost ready to applaud.
However, at that moment, noise from the entrance filled the room as several police officers charged in.
"Zach, we've received reports that you're suspected of illegally infringing on others' rights, forging evidence, and coercing and threatening harm to others. Please come with us to the station."
"I didn't do anything," Zach blurted out, taken aback by the arrival of the police.
He turned to Grace, who was still being held by the security guards. Her eyes were red, the very picture of a victim.
She looked toward the officers. "Officers, I believe you've seen that aside from forcing me to sign and attempting to unlawfully detain me, he's also physically assaulted me."
"Grace, don't talk nonsense!" Zach glared at her, then turned to placate the officers. "This is my daughter; she's just having a spat with me. She's young and doesn't understand. I'll educate her properly; thank you."
"He's the one talking nonsense. I have evidence," Grace said coldly, devoid of any filial affection in her eyes.
She had called the police herself.
Before entering, Grace had suspected that Zach wouldn't let her go easily, so she had made the report directly.
She knew that Zach was only ever after money. If she hadn't come by today, she wouldn't have been able to get evidence against him, and Zach might have cleared his name.
Only by facing him herself could Zach reveal his true colors.
And indeed, Zach did not disappoint her; he was even crueler than she had anticipated.
With such being the case, there was no reason for Grace to be lenient or to hold on to any notion of father-daughter affection.
"What evidence do you have?" Zach was nearly bursting with rage, feeling that Grace was being ungrateful. He wished he had snuffed her out when she was a child.
"I have a recording. Everything you just said has been recorded," Grace declared, well-prepared.
"You... I want to strangle you!" Zach had not expected all of this to be a trap set by Grace, and he thought she had walked right into his web.
Zach lunged at Grace, aiming to strike her. "You ungrateful brat! I'll end you today."
Seeing this, the police officers quickly intervened to stop Zach, but when Zach lost his temper, it took more than two men to restrain him.
The officers were left with no choice but to handcuff Zach and pin him down on the couch. Zach cursed, "Let me go, you have no right to interfere! I'm just disciplining my daughter. Grace, having the police arrest your father is outrageous."
"Aren't you afraid of karma? Grace, you'll get what's coming to you!" he yelled.
Grace merely laughed coldly when she heard the curse leveled against her own daughter. "You've done so much wrong, yet here you are, living just fine. How could I possibly die before you?" she said as she stood straight.
Grace turned to the officers and said, "Thank you, officers. I trust you'll investigate this man thoroughly. What if he's released and seeks revenge on me? I am so afraid."
"Ms. Lewis, we will conduct a thorough investigation, including into your prior issues. We've already arrested Tom, and a task force has been assembled to handle this case. Rest assured, Ms. Lewis."
Grace was puzzled by the swift and efficient police work, wondering why such a task force was necessary for an issue that seemed relatively minor compared to others.
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