Rich Radiant and Over Him (Alicia and Vincent) novel Chapter 13

Henry straightened up, touching the back of his head. His hand came away slick with blood. Stunned, he stared at Alicia, as if he couldn't quite believe she'd actually hit him.

And it was clear Alicia hadn't held back.

"Henry!" Mina screamed, rushing to his side. She shouted for Mira and the others to call an ambulance.

The room erupted into chaos, the commotion loud enough to drag Vincent out of his office.

"Call the police! She assaulted him on purpose—call the police!" Cecilia shouted angrily, intent on seeing Alicia behind bars.

Vincent approached with a steely expression, surveying Henry's condition.

Mina, eyes red and brimming with tears, looked pleadingly at Vincent. "Henry just came to apologize to her, and now she's hurt him. Cecilia wants to call the police."

Vincent turned to Alicia, his tone sharp. "Did you do this?"

Alicia stared at him blankly, blood streaming uncontrollably from her nose. She looked battered and pitiful. "Yeah…"

"Mr. Lawson, are you really going to defend this woman? You'll break Mina's heart," Cecilia pressed, her words laced with venom.

Mina fixed Vincent with an unwavering gaze.

He hesitated, glancing away. "Fine. Call the police."

Alicia gave a faint, bitter smile, wiping the blood from her hands as she waited for the officers to arrive.

"You crazy bitch, you really hit me?" Henry finally found his voice, raising a fist as if to strike back.

Vincent frowned and grabbed Henry's arm. "Don't move. You've lost a lot of blood—want to bleed out right here?"

Henry paled, suddenly frozen in place.

Cecilia was already on the phone. When the police arrived and took Alicia away, she didn't utter a word in her own defense.

Mina, ever the peacemaker, tried to intervene. "They're just young people, roughhousing. There's no need to make this a police matter…" She turned to Vincent, her expression softening. "Why don't you have your assistant apologize to my brother, and we'll let this go?"

Vincent immediately looked at Alicia. "Apologize to Henry."

Without a backward glance at Vincent, Alicia followed the officers out.

Four years of love, worth less than dirt.

As the police led Alicia toward the elevator, Vincent finally looked rattled. "Go with her. Make sure she's okay," he ordered his assistant, voice tight.

He was hoping the officers would just give her a stern talking-to and let her go after the formalities.

"Mr. Lawson, the meeting's about to start," his secretary reminded him.

Vincent rubbed his forehead in frustration and followed the secretary down the hall.

The moment he was gone, Mina fixed her gaze on Liam. "Henry's my brother—Mr. Lawson's future brother-in-law. You understand what's expected of you, right?"

Liam paused, then nodded in understanding.

Alicia had struck the future brother-in-law of Mr. Lawson's fiancée—a serious breach of etiquette. Henry had only suffered a minor injury, so normally a warning would've sufficed, but if they decided to press charges, Alicia could easily end up in a holding cell.