Chapter 224
Eloise’s heart ached at the sight of Willow’s pitiful state. She stepped forward and wrapped her arms around the trembling Willow. Turning to Nicolas, she said, “I raised Willow myself! Don’t you think I know her better than anyone? She wouldn’t hurt a fly; she can’t even stand the sight of a chicken being killed, let alone harm someone! How could you suspect Willow based on nothing but baseless accusations?”
Elise’s brows furrowed deeply. She ached for Willow, yet simmered with frustration at Athena. “She’s my own flesh and blood. How could my daughter be so at odds with her family?” The thought weighed heavily on her.
“This is my fault–I failed as a mother,” she admitted to herself, guilt washing over her. Eloise didn’t even need to say anything–Nicolas was already drowning in guilt, unable to lift his head.
“What was I thinking?” he berated himself. “How could I have doubted Willow just because of a few words from Athena?”
His hatred for Athena only deepened. Nicolas gently stroked Willow’s head. “It’s my fault,” he said softly. “Get some rest.” Nicolas gently stroked Willow’s head. “It’s my fault,” he said softly. “Get some rest.”
Inside the room, Athena found her grandmother lying on the bed, her face ghostly pale. Athena rushed forward in quick strides and dropped to her knees by the bed. “Grandma,” she whispered urgently, “Grandma, please wake up.”
The woman on the bed, Margaret, remained still. It felt as if a knife had sliced through Athena’s heart. The pain was so sharp it left her gasping for breath. Athena quickly checked Margaret’s pulse, a look of shock spreading across her face. “Who would… who would poison Grandma?” she gasped in horror. Margaret wasn’t critically ill. She had been poisoned.
Athena turned to Gwen. “Did Grandma eat anything unusual?”
Gwen thought for a moment before replying hastily, “Yesterday, the kitchen sent over some mushrooms. Her Ladyship found them so fresh and tasty that she ended up eating more than usual.”
“Are the mushrooms still here?” Athena asked urgently.
“Yes, they’re still here,” Gwen replied quickly.
Gwen hastily retrieved the remaining mushrooms. Athena leaned in for a look, her eyes widening as she spotted quite a few white death caps still in the large bowl.
Now that she knew exactly what kind of mushroom poison it was, Athena felt a sense of calm settle over her. She immediately began administering acupuncture to her grandmother, then quickly wrote out a prescription and handed it to Gwen. “Hurry, take this prescription and prepare the medicine!” she urged.
Gwen took it, acknowledged, and hurried out. She thought to herself, “I wouldn’t dare entrust the preparation of the medicine to anyone else.”
Thirty minutes later, Athena carefully removed the acupuncture needles from her grandma’s body. Margaret, who had been unconscious for a long time, suddenly coughed up a mouthful of dark brown blood. Athena swiftly grabbed a spittoon to catch it, then gently wiped her grandma’s mouth with a cloth.
All her efforts finally paid off. Before long, Margaret’s eyes slowly fluttered open.
When Margaret finally recognized the person in front of her as Athena, she managed a faint, weak smile and whispered, “Athena…is that really you?”
Athena let out a breath she’d been holding, her eyes welling with tears as she nodded. “Yes, Grandma, it’s me.”
“Don’t cry,” Margaret whispered weakly, struggling to lift her hand to gently wipe away Athena’s tears.
Athena immediately grasped her hand and said softly, “Grandma, you’ve just woken up. Please rest now.” Athena took an antidote pill from her embroidered pouch and gently fed it to Grandma.
Margaret willingly opened her mouth and swallowed the pill.
Just then, Gwen came in with the freshly brewed medicine. The moment she saw Margaret awake, Gwen burst into tears. “My Lady, you scared this servant to death! Thank heavens Lady Athena’s masterful medical skills brought you back.”
“Well, I’m not dead yet, am I?” Margaret gave a self-deprecating chuckle, her heart heavy with bitterness. “Living like this, barely clinging to life. Death would be more peaceful. At least then I wouldn’t be holding Athena back.” When Margaret saw Athena standing by her bedside, an indescribable mix of emotions filled her.
Tears slipped down her cheeks as an icy chill settled within her. Never once had her meals gone wrong before. Yet this time, they almost claimed her life.
“The children I devoted my life to protecting are now using me as a weapon against Athena,” Margaret thought bitterly, her heart heavy with disappointment.
Margaret reached out and clutched Athena’s hand, struggling to whisper, “I’m alright, Athena, you must leave…” A wave of dizziness and nausea washed over her, making every word a struggle. But she absolutely couldn’t let them succeed.
Athena firmly clasped the old lady’s hand in return and said with a gentle smile, “All these years, Grandma, you’ve been the one protecting me. Today, let me protect you. Just rest. I’ll go prepare some herbs in the outer room.”
Margaret tried to speak, but having just woken up, she was too weak. Not a single word could escape her lips.
Gwen carefully brought the medicinal brew and fed it to the elderly woman. After taking the medicine, she drifted back into sleep. Athena stepped out of the room, her entire being seething with cold fury.
Athena slowly swept her gaze across the courtyard, her eyes landing on the maids attending to Margaret. In a low, dangerous voice, she demanded, “Who brought that mushroom soup?” The maids, terrified, instantly dropped to their knees across the courtyard, but not a single one dared utter a word.
They exchanged nervous glances, each eyeing the others, but none dared to confess. Athena pointed a commanding finger at the head maid. “You. Speak up.”
Terrified, the maid scrambled forward on her knees, her face twisted in fear. “Please, My Lady, have mercy! This old servant merely followed orders. I brought it from the kitchen as instructed.”
“Madam’s meals have always been prepared separately in the kitchen,” she added hastily, her voice trembling.
Athena nodded and ordered, “Bring the cook here.” The guards acknowledged the order and started towards the door.
Nicolas stormed in at that moment and bellowed, “Who dares?” His house guards immediately barricaded the courtyard gate, cutting off all escape.
Nicolas glared at Athena, his face dark with anger. “This is the duke’s estate, it’s not your place as an outsider to throw your weight around. Letting you see Grandma was already a special favor. Do you really think you can call the shots in this household?”
Athena glared at Nicolas’s sanctimonious face. Just looking at him made her stomach churn with disgust.
In the duke’s estate, Nicolas calls all the shots. Surely, even the food served here has to get his approval. Athena refused to believe a cook would make such a rookie mistake as letting a poisonous mushroom slip into the ingredients.
There was only one explanation: someone had ordered it. Otherwise, why was only Margaret poisoned while everyone else was unharmed? Athena seethed with hatred, “How could they be so ruthless?” she thought. “Just to get what they want, they’d even harm their own grandmother!”
“It’s not your call, or mine. But what about the Federal Bureau? If we can’t get to the bottom of this, let them handle it!” Athena shot back, her voice unwavering, not yielding an inch. She’s dead set on protecting her grandmother.
Athena said coldly. “If we can’t pin down the killer, we’ll interrogate them one by one. Under brutal pressure, someone’s bound to crack and spill the truth.”
Nicolas’s face drained of color as he stared at Athena in utter disbelief. “This is absurd theatrics! It was merely an accidental case of food poisoning why drag the Federal Bureau into this? Do you think it’s your personal fiefdom? Is such a trivial matter really worth involving the authorities?”
“What are you scared of?” Athena sneered coldly.
Nicolas’s heart skipped a beat, but he forced a composed look onto his face. “My conscience is clear. What do I have to fear? But you, an outsider, trying to meddle in my Monson family’s affairs? That’s utterly laughable.”
Les’s booming voice rang out from outside the courtyard, “If Athena can’t meddle in the family matters of the Monson, then what about us, the Elders?”
A moment later, Les, Toby, and several other senior family elders stepped inside, their presence instantly shifting the atmosphere.