A Caged Songbird's Escape: Into the Arms of a Predator novel Chapter 101

Chapter 101

Elissa arrived at the security office with two police officers. Cliff was already waiting for them.

After reviewing the footage, the officers exchanged uneasy glances. “Mrs. Atwater, if you could wait here for a moment…”

“Of course.”

As Elissa nodded, one of the officers stepped outside and made a phone call. He returned quickly and addressed her, “Mrs. Atwater, the charges have been dropped. There’s no need for us to make a copy of the surveillance footage.”

No one needed to spell out who had made that decision.

Cliff was genuinely shocked; he hadn’t expected Frank to lose his judgment this badly.

It only confirmed what their mentor had always said.

From the inside out, this man was never good enough for Elissa.

Elissa, however, didn’t look surprised at all. “Understood. By the way, am I allowed to sue Marcia for defamation?”

“Mrs. Atwater…”

The officer hesitated, clearly uncomfortable, but out of professional courtesy he explained, “It would be hard to make that charge stick.”

Elissa didn’t bother to dig into the reasons. She just smiled and nodded. “Alright. Thank you for coming all this way.”

Cliff walked the officers out, leaving Elissa alone in the security office for a few minutes. She took her time, composing herself before heading back to the clinic to change clothes for her visit to Murphy Group’s research lab.

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What she didn’t realize was that by now, news of Marcia’s affair had exploded across the entire clinic.

A small crowd of coworkers was gathered outside the exam room, waiting for her.

At the front of the group stood the same nurse Elissa had reassigned earlier that morning. The nurse looked ashamed, but as soon as she saw Elissa, she mustered up her courage. “Elissa, I’m so sorry… I really had no idea Marcia was twisting the truth this whole time, making us think you

were-”

She broke off, her face flushed with anger.

The others looked just as upset.

At that moment, Marcia strode past, her expression dark. Someone couldn’t help but throw out a biting comment: “These days, I guess as long as you’re shameless enough, even the other woman can pretend to

be the wife.”

“Elissa, we’re sorry. We misjudged you.”

It finally dawned on Elissa what was happening.

The police visit today had, by a stroke of luck, resolved both her problems

at once.

Elfreda, who had never paid any attention to the gossip, spoke up: “Don’t let yourselves be used as someone else’s weapon again. Elissa’s always done right by us.”

“That’s enough,” Elissa interrupted with a gentle smile, patting Elfreda on the shoulder. “It’s already two o’clock–let’s all get back to work.”

With that, she slipped inside to change her coat, grabbed her bag, and headed for the parking lot.

She was about to get in her car when Marcia suddenly appeared, teeth clenched in fury. “Elissa, are you happy now?”

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Elissa arched an eyebrow. “Happy about what, exactly?”

Truthfully, she wouldn’t be satisfied until she had the divorce papers in

hand.

Marcia, seeing Elissa’s calm indifference, grew even more agitated. “How can you act like none of this matters? Don’t pretend you didn’t orchestrate everything!”

Elissa’s eyes narrowed. “Am I the one scheming, or is that you?”

The words hit Marcia like a slap. She sucked in a breath, glaring. “Don’t think you’ve won. No matter what happens, Frank will always take my

side.”

“So what if you’re Mrs. Atwater?” Marcia’s tone turned triumphant, as if she’d finally figured something out.

Elissa remained unfazed. “Congratulations, then. You’re officially the most notorious homewrecker in town.”

She had no interest in continuing the conversation. With a sharp click, she shut the car door in Marcia’s face.

There was nothing Marcia said that Elissa could refute. Even knowing that Marcia was the one who hurt his own son, Frank would only rush to clean up her messes.

Hopelessly devoted.

By the time Elissa reached the lab, Lorraine was already there, arms full

of afternoon snacks.

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