Chapter 3 – I saw you

“What?" Karen was shocked, tears brimming in her eyes. "You gave me the water to give to him," she hinted, but Tonia was wary.

Her sly ways could go unnoticed, especially when she appealed to her victim's emotions.

"Karen, you are my kid sister, and I've always loved you. I was worried about Roger because he wasn't allowed to drink, so I gave you the water to give him, but I never asked you to spike it," she said inoffensively. Their father was shocked. "What's going on here?"

"Mom, Dad, I'm sorry you have to hear this from me, but Karen has been in love with this bodyguard. I never thought she'd stoop so low," Tonia said, not accusingly but with concern in her voice, like a professional actress.

"I didn't," Karen barked, but the virtue on Tonia's face gave weight to her words as compared to Karen’s.

"Karen, if you didn't, then who did?" Tonia asked, her voice laced with care that was faked.

Karen’s knees weakened, but the worst was yet to happen. “Karen, you’ve always wanted Roger, and I regret covering up for you. I just didn’t want our parents to get hurt by how easily you threw yourself at him. What will happen to your arranged fiancé when he hears about this?”

Tonia knew that the chance of Karen becoming Hector’s special someone was already ruined, and soon enough, their parents would have no choice but to bend to her demands.

Hector had a twin brother, Hendrix, but rumors mentioned him as already having a woman, and she couldn’t tell if it was true. Those rich families hardly had anything published about them.

Karen didn’t care about the marriage arrangement as much as she cared about Roger’s thoughts of her, but when she looked at him, all she saw was pain.

“I saw you undress me. Tonia, I can’t be wrong,” he said bitterly. He so much wanted it to be her, but all he saw was how the color drained from Tonia’s face, if only for a moment.

“How can you know when you were drugged? It was probably because you were fantasizing about me, but you can check. I’m still a virgin,” she declared. Roger had never felt so vulnerable in his life. This was a mistake, but how could he correct it?

His voice shook, and his confidence wavered as he addressed Karen. "You drugged me because you couldn't get over your obsession with me, and now you've ruined everything."

Tonia put on a pitiful look. "I'm not a bad person. I could have given you a chance, but now you have to take care of my sister because of what you did to her," she pinned everything on him, igniting his rage.

Roger was so hurt that, for the first time, he couldn't control his pain and excused himself from the dining room. Before he reached the entrance, Karen yelled desperately,

"I didn't spike your water, Roger, please believe me." Roger paused and turned around. His lips quivered, as if he wanted to say something, but in the end, he shook his head in pain. No words came out of his mouth.

Someone bumped into him, causing a variety of fruits to spill all over. "I'm so sorry the dessert is late, but I found this in young madam's room when I was cleaning it this morning," the housekeeper, Clara, said.

The middle-aged woman was very respectable, having worked with the Fletchers for over two decades.

Karen could feel the heated gazes on her, making her feel exposed. The bottle was so strange to her that she wondered how it ended up in her room. "I swear, I've never seen that," she pleaded, tears streaming down her cheeks, but everyone looked away.

Helplessly, she stared at her parents, hoping they would believe her, but there was no sign of it. "The least you can do is give us some explanation, but all we get are your lies. Karen, Tonia has been more of a daughter than you ever have," her father chastised, causing Karen's hands to shake.

Tonia was the adopted child, but her parents always favored or trusted Tonia over her.

Warm hands pressed against hers. Soothing, and yet confusing. "No, Dad, I don't think Karen is bad. It's just youthful obsession, and I believe she has changed," Tonia countered, once again taking on the role of the sweet sister.

"Being an academic prodigy isn't enough. Drugging a person is not cool," her mother disagreed. Without Hector's collaboration, she would have considered disowning Karen, but now she held the key to their unity.

Who wouldn’t want to be an in-law to the second richest family in the world? Katherine attempted numerous times to divert Hector's attention to Tonia, but he remained fixated on Karen.

The room fell silent, with only Karen's sobs filling the air, though Tonia had gathered her in her arms.

Mr. and Mrs. Fletcher were broken, as Gordon Fletcher went after Roger. "I hired you to protect my elder daughter, and all this time, you were lusting after her. Look what you've done," he accused.

As a man of principle, the only way to avoid any charges against his younger daughter was to shift the blame to the bodyguard who should have known better.

Roger hung his head in shame. This was a clear violation of his contract, but there was more to the situation than met the eye.

"I deeply apologize for my unprofessional behavior. I will have the agency..." Roger began, but Gordon cut him off.

"You're fired," Gordon stated coldly before Roger could finish his sentence. Roger forced a bitter smile but said nothing more. His chances of winning Tonia's affection were already dashed by the incident.

Despite her innocent appearance, who would have thought Karen could be so cunning? Yet, no one knew how he had managed to escape with the bottle of the drug that had been used on him.

"Nothing happened between us," Karen sobbed, tears streaming down her cheeks. Her mother, however, was incensed.

"Do you expect me to believe that? Go to your room and let me handle this after speaking with your father. I'll get you some emergency pills later."

Karen's eyes sparkled with something, but hidden behind her glasses, no one noticed.

The walls of the room had borne witness to more honest conversations than even the closest of friends, and this was one of those moments when Karen felt utterly shattered.

As she flicked on the light, a sudden gasp caught in her throat as a strong hand covered her mouth.

"We need to talk," he said firmly.

Karen's heart raced like a stampede of wild horses as she met his intense gaze, his cologne lingering in the air.

She had overheard the conversation between Roger and her father, so how had he managed to find his way into her room when they had been downstairs?

"Listen, nothing happened between us, at least not that I can recall. I don't feel any different," she attempted to explain, but the doubt in his eyes told her he wasn't convinced.

"Why did you drug me?" His voice was low and dangerous, causing Karen to shake her head as a tear trickled down her cheek. Roger's towering presence made her feel small and vulnerable.

"I didn't. I only drank the water she gave me." He waved the small bottle in her face. "I had this tested, so are you still going to deny it?"

It was barely thirty minutes after Roger left when she came upstairs, so how did he get it tested?

Karen was beginning to feel there was more to him and couldn't understand why someone who looked so good could emit such a dangerous aura. Was there more to him than met the eye?

Even worse, she had never seen that bottle before. How would he believe her? "I've never seen that before. You have to believe me."

She was certain that the caring Roger who had saved her multiple times was still in there.

It wasn't just at home or parties, but even in college. At the cafeteria, she had slipped and was certain she was going to fall, but strong arms grabbed her.

They were Roger's, and it wasn't the only time she found herself in such situations. Even when bullied, he was always there for her, as if he were watching her from the shadows.

Tonia repeated her class to the point where she ended up in the same college level as Karen, and she had more friends than Karen could ever have.

Often, her colleagues would compare the sisters by appearance, and Tonia always stood out. Thanks to Karen's help, she was able to make it to the final year.

"If you are truly innocent, then why didn't you stop me? There were blood stains on the bed, and I know myself. I never lose control," he said coldly.

Karen's confusion deepened. She had also been drinking, but she was more sober than him. Her silence seemed to confirm all the accusations against her. In the next moment, he forcefully gripped her jaw, making her part her lips.

Karen struggled, but it was futile. Something was being forced into her mouth. "This is an emergency pill. I don't want to hear any excuses," Roger stated as a tear rolled down her cheek. She pushed the pill to the back of her mouth, but she didn't swallow it when she asked him,

"Have you ever felt anything for me all this time you were there for me?" Roger hurried to the window. If he had, they could possibly change the course of this situation. However, Roger's response shattered all her hopes.