The Billionaire Who Saved Me - Chapter 40: Chapter 40

Since Mason's family was coming to visit me soon, I figured it was the perfect time to bring out the recording. I turned to Mason and said, "I've got something you should hear."
I hit the play button. Joey's shrill, aggressive voice poured out of my phone speaker.
When it ended, Mason immediately made a copy on his own phone. I looked at him, confused. He simply said, "Just in case."
That afternoon, I was lying in bed with my eyes closed, trying to rest. Martin, Helen, and Richard arrived. Martin's attitude was completely different from earlier that morning. The aloofness was gone—he was now soft, even a little apologetic.
Helen, on the other hand, looked stiff. A flicker of malice passed through her eyes before she forced a smile, an insincere one.
Richard looked calm and composed as usual. He placed a fruit basket on the bedside table and said, "Kate, Joey was too reckless. I'm here to apologize on her behalf." Then he bowed to me, looking rather sincere.
If Mason hadn't warned me what Richard was capable of, I might've really believed his act.
I said, "Richie, please don't. I'm not mad at Joey. She was just upset on behalf of Mrs. Knight. It was a moment of—"
Before I could finish, a voice interrupted from the doorway, "Katherine, don't be so shameless. You were fine when I left. You know exactly how your leg got hurt. Don't try to frame me."
Well, it turned out Joey was lurking outside.
She stormed in, face red—and not from anger. One side of her cheek was clearly swollen, with a bright handprint on it. So, she was slapped.
I said gently, putting on my best wronged-but-kind tone, "Joey, I already told you I'm not mad. Don't be so aggressive, okay?" I knew Joey had a short fuse. I knew this tone would light it right up.
My leg was fractured, but I could still fight by arguing. If I hadn't deliberately tried to be nice, I'd have made her blood boil in the morning.
As I expected, Joey stamped her foot and shouted, "Shut up, you two-faced bitch."
I said nothing because she wasn't wrong—I was being two-faced. And so what?
Seeing me bow my head and stay quiet only made her angrier. She screamed, "Katherine, I swear I'll kill you!"
Joey lunged toward me, her hands flailing in the air. I put on a frightened look, but I wasn't worried at all. If she thought she could throw a tantrum in front of the whole family and still get away with it, then I'd admit my defeat.
But I didn't lose. Martin grabbed her arm and yanked her back. He turned to Helen and ordered, "Take her home. Lock her up. No one lets her out without my permission."
Helen tried to smooth things over. "Darling—"
"Get out," Martin snapped.
Helen didn't dare argue. She dragged Joey out of the room.
"You're biased, Dad. And every last one of you. You're all horrible," Joey screeched as she was pulled away.
"Enough. Go," Martin urged.
Finally, the room was quiet again. With an awkward smile, Martin spoke up, "Kate, I didn't discipline her properly. I'm sorry."
"Mr. Knight, please don't say that. Joey is still young. I believe she'll know what's good for her someday." I gave a thoughtful reply, but tears shimmered in my eyes.
Martin promised, "You have my word. I'll teach her a good lesson when we get home."
Richard, who had been quiet all this time, finally spoke, "Kate, we're going to be family soon. We'll meet often. It's better to clear up any misunderstandings now, don't you think?"
I looked him straight in the eye. "If you've got something to say, please go ahead. No need to beat around the bush."
"Alright then," Richard said with a stiff smile. "If I say anything out of line, please don't take it to heart."
Shooting a quick glance at me, he added, "You claim Joey pushed you, but she says she didn't. Joey may be spoiled and a bit willful, but one thing she's never done is lie. She's always owned up to her actions."
I frowned, "Oh, so you mean I'm lying?" At that moment, I realized—Richard was the most dangerous one of them all.
"Kate, don't get me wrong," Richard said. "I'm just trying to get to the bottom of what happened."
Martin's gaze toward me was suddenly full of doubt when he heard Richard's words.
I shrugged. "Well, Mase, get my phone."
Mason, who had been silent the entire time, handed me the phone without a word.
As I scrolled to the audio file, I spoke loud enough for everyone to hear, "Didn't Richard say he wanted to know what happened? Joey's outburst was caught on tape by one of the house staff. You can listen to it yourselves."
I was proud of that moment—maybe too proud. I hit play and held out the phone.
Richard reached for it with a strange smile. Before I could process what was happening, the phone slipped straight from his hand and dropped right into the glass of water on the bedside table.
Bubbles rose from the water as the phone sank to the bottom. I was stunned.
Richard's voice rose in exaggerated disbelief. "Kate, how could you? If there's no recording, just admit it. But lying like this?"
Before I could even open my mouth, he had already flipped the script. The classic villain move—strike first, blame louder.
Richard was standing in front of Martin, his face away. Martin didn't see what actually happened. All he saw was me handing Richard the phone, and then the splash.
I was furious. Richard was the absolute worst.
"It was you who dropped it. Mase saw it too," I blurted out, panicking.
Martin's face turned gloomy. "That's enough. No more of these petty tricks. Mase, come outside with me."
"Wait," Mason finally spoke. His voice was calm, almost casual. He pulled his phone from his pocket, scrolled for a second, and then hit play.
Joey's arrogant voice filled the room. Every word was more vile than they expected. Martin's face was visibly livid, his jaw clenched.
But that wasn't the worst part. The real kicker came when Joey sneered, "If it weren't for that old hag—"
Martin's face turned completely pale with rage. In one swift motion, he snatched the phone from Mason's hand and smashed it on the floor. The phone shattered instantly—screen cracked, battery flying out.
Still not satisfied, he stomped on it a few times, heel grinding against the pieces. Then, without another word, he stormed out of the room.
Richard dropped his act and snapped, "Good for you. You win this round. Don't get too cocky. We've got time." He shot me a glance with spite before walking out.
I looked at Mason. "Aren't you going after him? What if he smooth-talks his way out of it again and makes us the villains?"
I seemed to understand that Martin wasn't a bad person, but he was soft and too easily swayed, completely lacking in discernment.
Honestly, it was a miracle the family business hadn't gone down yet under his management.
"No point explaining," Mason said coolly. "It's always my fault in the end. Stuff like this happens every week. You'll get used to it."
He said it with such indifference, like he'd long since given up expecting fairness.
"I always thought the head of a powerful family would be clear-headed and discerning..." I trailed off as I noticed Mason's expression was dark. I realized my mouth said something I shouldn't have.
That was his father I was talking about, anyway.
"I mean, Mr. Knight's a good man," I added, forcing a grin. "He's just... easily misled."
I tried to save my remarks as hard as I could. The last thing I needed was to piss Mason off and have him starve me to death in this room.