Hatred seared through Lise’s eyes. She had planned to retaliate after Delmar’s previous slap, but for now, she forced herself to stay calm.

Taking a deep breath, she said in a controlled, almost pleading tone, “Mr. Guerrero, please give me a chance to explain. Katelyn concocted this malicious scheme to cause all this chaos. Once I meet with Tricia, we’ll piece together what really happened and find out who’s behind all of this.”

Delmar’s eyes were bloodshot as he lifted his hand. “What more can be said? I witnessed you disconnect my daughter’s oxygen tube with my own eyes. You even pushed her toward suicide. Tricia is my only child, and if anything happens to her, I will make sure your entire family pays the price.”

Lise’s voice rose, edged with desperation. “Why won’t you just give me a chance to clear things up? It was an unfortunate accident. Do you really want our families to fight to the bitter end and both be ruined? Katelyn will come out on top if we let this division continue. Please, calm yourself and think about what I’m saying.”

Delmar remained unmoved. Seizing the moment, Lise shouted through the closed door of the ward, “Tricia, I know you can hear me! Please, think this through. Katelyn has been playing us from the start. We used to be friends—why are we fighting each other now? Please, consider what I’m saying.”

Delmar, his face flushed with fury, gripped Lise’s arm with a bruising force. “Get out!” he barked. “Or don’t blame me if I get rough.”

Just a faint voice drifted from inside the ward, steady but weary. “Dad, let her in.”

It was Tricia. She had pushed herself through the press conference but was later drained and bedridden, finally beginning to recover after a day on an IV drip.

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Lise seized the chance, pulled her arm free from Delmar’s grasp, and pushed the door open, stepping resolutely into the ward.

Tricia slumped weakly against the head of the bed, each cough wracking her frail frame. She lifted her tired eyes to Lise, her gaze steely despite her exhaustion.

“What exactly are you trying to say?” she rasped. “Be direct.”

Lise’s face hardened with resolve as she spoke. “I’m saying that Katelyn set both you and me up. Her plan was to…”

“Think it through. Why would I suddenly pull out your oxygen tube? Why would I cause you harm?”

Delmar’s anger boiled over, his voice seething with fury. “How dare you bring this up!”

Tricia’s lips twisted into a bitter smile as she looked at Lise with sharp eyes. “You were afraid I’d survive and tell everyone you talked me into committing suicide, then shifted the blame to Katelyn. Your best option to keep me quiet was to kill me, thinking it would also ruin Katelyn’s reputation.”

Tricia’s accusation landed with cutting precision. Lise’s jaw clenched as frustration flared inside her. Her mind raced, clear on her mission: to stop the escalating feud. If she didn’t succeed, both the Bailey and Guerrero families would be left in ruin. Her goal was to persuade Tricia—whom she considered easily swayed—to join her in opposing Katelyn.

“This is just the beginning,” she said firmly. “If our families keep fighting, who benefits the most from our destruction?”

Tricia showed confusion, her thoughts clearly in turmoil. She hadn’t considered this perspective before. Unable to immediately identify who stood to gain, Tricia remained silent.

Seeing this, Lise put on a serious expression. “The real winner is Katelyn, but more precisely, it’s Vincent. Katelyn orchestrated all of this to gain his support.”

Tricia’s eyes widened in disbelief as she absorbed Lise’s words. Her mind raced, trying to grasp why Lise had come to see her and what her real motives were in telling her these things.

Under the blanket, her hands tightened into fists, frustration etched on her face as she struggled to make sense of Lise’s words. Unable to fully understand or respond, she remained silent, only fueling Lise’s irritation.

Lise took a deep breath, her frustration palpable as she continued. “Katelyn is powerless and broke. There’s no way she could have nearly bankrupted the family on her own. It’s Vincent who’s orchestrated this.”

Tricia’s eyes widened in surprise, while Delmar’s expression shifted to one of disbelief.

Lise leaned in, her voice low and urgent. “Katelyn and Vincent have been in league for a long time. If we keep fighting, the Adams family will take advantage of our division, merging our companies with minimal effort and strengthening their position.”

Lise’s eyes drilled into Tricia’s face, searching for any sign that her argument was landing. This was the most she could offer.

Delmar, his eyes sharp with scrutiny, remained silent, but his intense gaze was fixed on Tricia. He silently hoped she would piece things together and figure out a way to resolve the situation.

Tricia, caught off guard, took a moment to process before responding. “That doesn’t make sense. How could Katelyn be working with Vincent? And if the Adams family wanted to ruin us, they could do it with a single command. Why go through all these elaborate schemes?”

Lise’s frustration flared as she stared at Tricia, her grip tightening into fists. She was astonished and irritated that Tricia, whom she had always believed to be naive, now seemed to grasp the situation with unexpected clarity.

“I’ll show you the proof,” she snapped, barely containing her irritation.

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