Chapter 146

Before the police could show up, the group had already vanished, slipping away with astonishing speed and leaving no trace behind.

With no other option, the officers prioritized checking on the victims first and quickly requested emergency assistance.

At Shoildon Primary Hospital, as she slowly regained her consciousness, Katelyn could barely make out two men speaking nearby.

"Doctor, what's the patient's condition right now?"

"Officer, her injuries are not serious. She only suffered a mild concussion. She'll stay unconscious for a bit,but after some rest, she'll be alright."

"Understood. I appreciate your efforts."

Offering a humble reply, the doctor acknowledged the thanks before a nurse summoned him away.

Nearby, the shuffle of paper filled Katelyn's ears. She tried to force her eyes open, frowning in her struggle,but her eyelids refused to move.

Out of nowhere, memories of being surrounded by cars played in her mind. Panic washed over her, and she fought hard to break free from the nightmare. She finally forced her eyes open.

A white ceiling was the first thing to greet her gaze.

She kept her eyes fixed above, sweat gathering on her brow while her lips lost their color.

Noticing the slight stir, the officer glanced at Katelyn and asked, "You're awake?" Do you feel well enough to talk? Could you answer a few questions?"

Katelyn shifted her gaze toward the officer and said, "Could I make a quick phone call first, officer? "Here you go." The officer grabbed the phone from the nightstand and passed it to her. "This belongs to you,right?"

After accepting it, Katelyn nodded in thanks.

She went straight to her contacts and dialed Danica right away.

The officer stepped out without a word and took position right outside the door.

As soon as the call connected, Katelyn's voice shook with tears. "Mrs. Bennett."

Danica heard the trembling in her voice and quickly asked, "Katelyn, what's the matter?"

With a shaky breath, Katelyn replied, her words tight with fear, "Mrs. Bennett, some people tried to kill me with cars. Please, I need your help."

Danica's heart skipped a beat as she took in what Katelyn had just said.

Realizing how shaken Katelyn sounded, Danica spoke in a gentle voice. "Try to calm yourself,sweetheart.

Explaining everything over the phone is tough. Just tell me where you are, and I'll come get you."

Right away, Katelyn told her that she was at Shoildon Primary Hospital.

Danica heard Katelyn's cries and, understood she was calling from the hospital. Even though worry gnawed at her, she kept her composure and promised Katelyn that she would be there soon and that there was no reason to be scared.

The officer came back into the room just as the call wrapped up.

"Was that a family member you were talking to?" he asked.

With eyes still swollen from tears, Katelyn gave a nod. "Yes. She's coming here soon."

The officer reached for a chair, sat down, and opened his notebook, ready with a pen. "Now that you're awake, I'd like to ask you a few things."

In a quiet voice, Katelyn replied, "Officer, I'm ready to answer. Please, go ahead." She spoke so softly and respectfully that the officer saw in her a young woman who had clearly been raised well.

A look of confusion crossed his face as he tried to understand how someone so gentle and lovely could find herself the target of such cruel intentions.

A wave of sympathy came over him, but hequickly reminded himself to focus on his duty.

"Your name?"

"Katelyn Fuller."

"How old are you?"

"Twenty-six."

"And your occupation..."

Once the officer had noted down her basic information, he began to ask more about what had happened that day, wanting to get every detail about the cause, how it all unfolded, and how it ended.

"Then none of those people seemed familiar to you?" the officer asked.

"At that moment..."

"Katelyn!"

Before Katelyn could continue, Danica flung the hospital room door open and rushed in.

Katelyn and the officer turned their eyes to her, and Danica froze for a moment, caught off guard by the officer's presence.

Once she noticed the badge on his chest, she understood he was handling official business. She nodded politely and said, "I'm sorry for stepping in, officer."

Without making a sound, Danica took a seat on the sofa.

The officer wasn't fazed at all. He simply looked back at Katelyn. "Miss Fuller, please go on." A small nod from Katelyn signaled she was ready to speak. "At the time, I was sitting in the car and felt too scared to get out. More than ten vehicles surrounded mine, and every single window was rolled up tight, so there was no way to see anyone inside. After my car flipped over, I saw someone get out to check if I was still alive. By then, blood had already blurred my vision, and I couldn't make out any faces. I heard sirens,and right after that, all the cars sped away."

Danica's worry deepened as she listened, her brows drawing closer together in concern.

When she first heard Katelyn on the phone, she assumed it was just an ordinary accident; maybe Katelyn's fear had made her overthink it.

But hearing that a dozen cars boxed Katelyn in and flipped her vehicle stunned her.

That hadn't been an accident at all; someone had intentionally tried to kill her.

Meanwhile, the officer made sure to record every word Katelyn said in his notebook.

"Miss Fuller, your description points to a planned attack carried out by a group. There has to be someone coordinating this. Otherwise, the cameras at that intersection wouldn't have just stopped working right when it happened."

He hesitated for a moment, and then said, "Miss Fuller, take a moment to think. Have you upset anyone lately?"

Danica kept her eyes on Katelyn, waiting to hear what she would say.

Katelyn longed to find out who had tried to kill her, but she also recognized this as the perfect chance to take Verena down.

She had no intention of letting this chance slip through her fingers.

Later, she planned to have her team look into who was responsible for orchestrating the attack.

But right now, framing Verena was what matered most.

Drawing in a breath, Katelyn shook her head. "Officer, I've only just come back from abroad. There's no way I could've made any enemies here yet." The officer wasn't fully convinced. "Just because you've only recently returned, doesn't mean you're safe from trouble. Try to remember if you've crossed anyone's path since you got back. Sometimes even small arguments can become dangerous situations."

Katelyn narrowed her eyes and gave a confused nod. "Alright. I'll try to recall if anything happened."

She made it look like she was thinking hard.

A heavy silence filled the room, and after a moment, her eyes suddenly went wide and she drew in a sharp breath.

Noticing her reaction, the officer immediately asked, "Did something just come to mind?"

A moment of uncertainty crossed Katelyn's face as she glanced at Danica, her expression heavy with worry.Turning to the officer, she said, "Officer, not long ago, I argued with someone. This is Mrs. Bennett sitting on the sofa; she's like a family to me. Her son Isaac and I grew up together as close friends.Life took a hard turn for him after acar accident left him using a wheelchair. I came back from overseas after studying medicine, hoping I could perform surgery for him. But his wife, who is also a doctor, never felt comfortable about my friendship with Isaac. No matter how much I tried to explain, she keptrefusing to let me operate.My biggest reason for comingback was to help him walk again, and I didn't want to let this chance slip by. In the middle of our talk, I ended up arguing with his wife. If you're asking about people I've fallen out with,she's honestly the only one. Officer, could it be that she hired someone to have me killed just to keep me away from lsaac?"

Katelyn's voice quivered with fear, and she clutched herself tightly, her shaking frame making her appear completely defenseless.

Danica moved closer to Katelyn before the officer had a chance to reply. "Katelyn, Verena would never do something like that," she said.

Even as she spoke, doubt crept in.

Catching the uncertainty in Danica's eyes, Katelyn's voice cracked as she pleaded, "Mrs. Bennett, Verena probably thinks you'd take my side. She's scared I'll come between her and Isaac. Please, don't let her fool you." Danica paused, torn and overwhelmed, but shook her head. "No. That can't be true. Verena isn't capable of something like that."

The officer watched the exchange and decided to step in. "Let's all take a breath and calm ourselves for a moment."

Looking at Danica, he continued, "We are still working through all the suspects. Until we learn the truth,nothing is certain yet."

With a nod, Danica realized she'd lost her composure and drew in a steadying breath. "Thank you, sir."

She faced Katelyn next and said, "Katelyn, after everything that's happened, I understand how you feel. Get some rest, and I'll come back to see you soon."

...

Drifting through the hospital hallway, Danica found her mind tanged in worry, unable to shake off Verena's words or the sight of Katelyn's pain and fear.

Each of them had a different story, making it impossible for Danica to tell who was telling the truth.

Passing by another wing of the hospital, she caught bits of conversation between uniformed officers who seemed deep in discussion.