9. You have to be mine

Bruno and Natalie looked at Neel Dixon, silently urging him not to say anything. However, Neel Dixon avoided their gaze and instead looked directly at Sara Owen.

"I checked all the CCTV cameras. No stranger came into the house. To get to the pool, one has to enter through the main door. The housekeeper didn't see anyone leaving the pool. So, it looks like nothing happened."

"Neel, chill. It's okay," Natalie tried to calm him down.

Sara Owen interrupted, “Do you mean I lied?”

"I'm not saying you're making this up, but it's suspicious that you've been attacked twice and nothing has been found both times!" Neel exclaimed.

Sara frowned, "Either you can't find the culprit, or you don't want to find him.”

"So, let's say someone is really attacking you," said Neel. "Can you answer my questions? The first time, you were attacked in your bedroom. The only way in or out is through the door, but you had locked it from the inside. So how did the attacker get in?"

“He must have come from the balcony.” Sara argued.

“There is no footage of anyone coming from the balcony or leaving the room in the camera.”

“I was attacked that night.” Sara Owen’s eyes turned red.

“So… if that attacker did not come out from the balcony, then he must have come out from the door. The door is inside the house. But no one was found in the house.”

Bruno Dixon attempted to stop his son after noticing Sara Owen's flushed face, “Neel…”

"Wait a sec, Dad. Let me handle this," Neel Dixon interjected. Turning to Sara Owen, he asked, "Can you tell me what happened? Yesterday, you were by the pool and then you jumped in, right? So, if someone tried to pull you in, he must have come in and out of the pool. Did anyone see anybody? Did you get a look at the person?"

Sara Owen just stared at him, tears welling up in her eyes.

“Answer me. Do you think what you said is understandable? If there is a murderer, where is he? Did he vanish in the air?” Neel Dixon asked rudely.

Sara Owen wiped her tears and hurried to her bedroom. Natalie smacked Neel Dixon on the shoulder.

“We had decided that we won’t say these things to her. She started crying.”

“I'm just trying to make sense of all this," Neel defended himself.

Natalie gave Neel Dixon a stern look. "You owe her a proper apology.”

“Mom, I talked to the doctor. Due to the trauma of uncle’s kidnapping, her mental condition has started deteriorating.”

“No. No. She is a very intelligent child. I have seen that she had many injuries in the first attack.”

“Mom, the patient harms himself in such cases.”

Natalie started crying placing her head on Bruno’s shoulder.

“I can't tolerate it anymore. Bring me Ricky from anywhere. This house can never be happy without him.”

Bruno comforted his wife by patting her shoulder gently, but he couldn't help but glance at the closed door of Sara Owen's bedroom.

The chilly air didn't carry the scent of flowers that normally filled the room.

Sara Owen stood motionless near the French window, her dry eyes fixated on the overcast sky. As Neel Dixon entered the room, he saw her slender figure by the window and took a deep breath before approaching her. He followed her gaze as he walked up behind her.

"What do you want, Neel? You wanna make me sound like a lunatic?"

Neel looked at her, feeling guilty.

"I know I said some stuff earlier, but that's not what I meant. I just think that maybe you're not seeing things clearly."

Sara turned to face Neel and her voice trembled with hurt. "I can't believe you'd say something like that to me," she said.

She took a step to leave, not wanting to explain herself anymore. All she knew was that she had been attacked twice.

“Sara…” Neel held her wrist as she tried to leave. She shot him a cold look at his grip.

“I'm sorry,” he apologized.

Sara Owen held back her wrist, looking down.

Neel Dixon continued speaking, "Everyone's just so stressed after what happened to my uncle. Sara... I... if you stay so sad and traumatized, it's going to bring everyone else down, too."

Sara looked up at him with tears in her eyes, and Neel Dixon frowned, holding her shoulders.

"I hate seeing you cry," he said.

Sara's response was direct, "Then bring my husband back."

Hearing her pleading tone, Neel Dixon helplessly held her in his embrace and she couldn’t help but cried.

“Don’t cry, Sara. Please…”

“Bring him back. I feel like I’m gonna die.”

“Sara… You married my uncle, but that doesn't mean I forgot those college days. Even today, I have feelings for you. And you know that after my uncle, I can keep you happy.”

Sara Owen stiffened, “No…”

“Stop it, Neel!” Sara Owen pushed him away, her eyes full of anger and disgust.

“What the hell is wrong with you? My husband is missing and you're making moves on me? That's sick!” She fought, but Neel Dixon crushed his lips against her neck and buried his face in her hair.

“You broke up with me and married to my uncle. You decided to go to office, you took the power of Dixon Group... I accepted your every decision because I want to see you happy.”

He held her small face in his palms and stared at her deeply.

“You know uncle, don’t you? We cannot imagine how many dangerous enemies he had made. If he becomes a victim of someone's enmity, then I will not let you spoil your life. You have to be mine.”

“Let me go.” She pushed him using all her strength. Neel Dixon used all his strength to strangle her in his arms.

“This is not right. Let me go.”

“I'm not forcing you. I just want to remind you that we both studied in the same university and we used to like each other. But YOU broke up suddenly and married to him. If uncle does not come back then you will not be able to stop me to make you mine.”

Sara Owen's body stiffened as she saw Neel Dixon's intense gaze.