The Manipulated Villainess

Aston and Nicole just entered Cassandra's hospital room. When Nathan informed them about the news almost an hour ago, they quickly rushed to Westview Hospital to visit the Moyan Boss.

"How can they do this to you?" Nicole uttered when she glanced down at the arms of Cassandra who was sitting on the bed. "Are they even human?!"

Cassandra Lim smiled at the reaction of the Chairwoman. "This is common in our circles but I still hope that you won't get the chance to get used to this kind of incident."

She lived in a different world. That's what Cassandra was trying to say.

"You endure well than I thought," Aston simply remarked which made the Moyan Boss rolled her eyes at him.

"I'm not that weak, Aston Kang," she said in a stern voice.

Aston smiled and tried to drop his playful nature a bit. "Did Peter Jung asked you where my sister and Leon's mother hide?"

When Cassandra shook her head, Aston raised a brow. "What did he want to know?"

Cassandra Lim hesitated a while before she finally said, "He wants to know the one behind that plan, the one who convinced me to fool him. I think he already figured out that it can't be his son."

Glancing at the change in reaction on the actor's face, Cassandra quickly said, "Don't worry. I don't tell them anything."

Aston Kang narrowed his eyes at the wounds on the Moyan Boss. Then his face turned sour. "You should just tell them the truth rather than suffer."

"It's not like I don't know the consequences. Why would I give in while I can still endure?" Cassandra simply said and this made Aston frowned.

"Your life matters more, Cassandra. How will I face Nathan like this?" He grunted and let out a sigh. "I used to thought that you're an intelligent woman."

While he was still talking, the door was opened and Nathan Woo walked inside. He just returned after having a chat with Joshua Kim.

"Don't mind me, Aston," Nathan promptly said as he overheard his friend. "This is not your fault. Peter Jung is to blame."

"I think you should be careful." It was Cassandra who spoke up this time. "Peter Jung might keep an eye on me. So, don't come here anymore. The same goes for Nicole."

Aston let out a sigh as he knows that Cassandra had a point. "What will our next move be?" he asked.

"Don't worry. Do you still remember the uncle that I talked about? My father's former right-hand man. He is willing to help us now. It is just a matter of time before the Prime Minister met his downfall. Until then, let's all be safe," Cassandra Lim replied.

After a while, Aston and Nathan walked out of the room, leaving the two women behind. They stood near the door and discussed some matters.

"Peter Jung finds out that my sister and Leon's mother is in Nicole's house. He even went there last night but they managed to move to another place through the secret door," Aston informed his friend.

"How did he find out?" Nathan quickly asked. 

"We're not sure, but Nicole suspects that Peter Jung is tracking Leon's phone. That's why we need to be more careful. He is at his wit ends and he will be dangerous than ever."

Nathan nodded. "Alright. I won't lower our guard. He might even come after Cassandra again."

"I also have one concern," Aston said. Judging from the look on his face, it was clear that the actor was troubled by something.

"What is it?" Nathan asked. It seemed like they won't have peace soon!

"Nicole pretends to work with Colin Park and Peter Jung to destroy her stepmother. Her plan is to backfire and then counter-attack but... Peter Jung is suspicious of her now," Aston explained.

"Because she hid the two women in her house?"

Aston nodded. "It seems like the two men are suspecting her but they still need her in their plan to expose Garcia Han. They believed that she won't take her stepmother's side but... do you think it would be a huge risk for them to still trust her?"

Nathan Woo gave a quick thought and nodded. "That's right. From what the two men had done so far, it's clear that they aren't fools."

"But they still need Nicole and they won't give up easily. Then what do you think they will do?" Aston asked, glancing at his friend.

Nathan concentrated on his thoughts and tried to think like Peter Jung. After a few seconds, he raised a brow. "He will surely want to test Nicole."

Aston nodded. "That's what I'm thinking too and it makes me worried." He made a deliberate paused and continued by saying, "Now that Leon's mother is rescued, they will feel a sense of urgency. They are afraid to run out of time and in my opinion, they will make a move soon and this time, the target will be Nicole. They want to test her loyalty."

"That means we need a plan too," Nathan replied.

"I already thought of many possibilities. How will they want to test her?" Aston slightly smiled when he said, "I have a plan and I think it will be effective enough."

* * *

"I don't expect to see my new house today. But now that Cassandra is rescued, I'm glad that we get to visit together."

Aston and Nicole were standing inside Aston's new house. As it was next to Nicole's house, it would become a lot easier for them to visit each other and that's what made them excited.

Nicole observed the interior of the big house. The size was pretty much the same as hers and it also had two floors.

"Come. I will show you something," Aston suddenly said and grabbed Nicole's hand. Then they walked upstairs.

They entered a room on the right which was pretty big.

"I plan to use this as my study. Do you know why?" Aston asked and pointed his chin at the small balcony. "If you come out in the balcony of your study and if I did the same, we can see each other. You often work till late at night. I think it will be a good way to keep you in check."

Nicole was quite happy about it but his last sentence made her frowned. "You are the best at killing the mood," she remarked with an annoyed face.

Aston smiled as he wrapped his arms around her body and hugged her from behind. "I only want to ensure that you don't overwork all the time. It's for your own good."

"That means I can do the same," Nicole quickly said with a satisfying smile. "I only wish for you to be safe."

Aston chuckled. "You used to say that I'm good with words but I think it's the opposite now," he remarked.

"You don't know? I learn this from you," Nicole simply said and this made Aston let out a laughter.

"We already agreed to visit the orphanage with Mr. Aris but we can't find the time. Now that our conflict with the Prime Minister is more heated than before, I don't know when our lives will be better but... I really hope that everything will be fine soon. No one should suffer again," Nicole muttered.

"I wish for that too and don't worry about Zander. I will talk with him and asked him to wait for us," Aston said and asked, "How about Leon?"

Nicole shook her head. "It's hard to reach him. Though his men participated in the search of Cassandra, he is having a hard time. I told him what happened last night and that I shift his mother and Aria to a safer place but... he won't answer my calls after that."

Aston thought about it and said, "Don't worry too much. I'm sure that Leon will soon get a hold of himself. He needs just a little more time."