Three days after the incident at the hospital, Wulan was finally allowed to go home, even though the doctor had advised her to get a full week of complete rest. But her determination to resume keeping an eye on Bella was far stronger than the pain in her head.
“Sri, are you sure you want to go back to work this soon?” Lina asked anxiously as she picked Wulan up from the hospital. “The doctor said you need complete rest, remember?”
“I can’t just sit around, Lina. The longer I wait, the deeper Adrian gets trapped,” Wulan replied as she slowly walked toward the car Lina had rented.
“But what if you pass out again over there? I don’t want yesterday’s incident to happen again.” Lina still looked worried.
“I promise I’ll be more careful this time.” Wulan gave a faint smile, trying to reassure the kindhearted girl. “Besides, I’ll only be observing from a distance. I won’t confront Bella directly.”
The next day, Wulan put on her cleaner’s uniform again, even though her movements were still slightly stiff from the pain in her head. She deliberately asked to be assigned to the area near Adrian’s office, claiming that she wanted to keep a closer eye on things without having to confront Bella directly.
That morning, while Wulan was cleaning the glass windows in the hallway near Adrian’s office, she saw Bella arrive with her usual arrogant stride and walk straight into Adrian’s office without knocking.
“Sweetheart, I brought you your favorite coffee,” Bella’s cutesy voice floated out from inside the room, whose door was slightly ajar.
“Thanks, Bel. You’re the best,” Adrian replied warmly.
Wulan slowed her wiping motions, trying to hear more clearly without looking suspicious.
“Oh, Adrian, I saw that you have a meeting with the marketing team at noon. You probably don’t need to attend it. I can represent you instead,” Bella said.
“Wait, why? It’s an important meeting about the new project.” Adrian sounded confused.
“I just don’t want you to wear yourself out, sweetheart. Besides, I understand marketing too,” Bella coaxed sweetly.
“But that’s directly my responsibility, Bel. How can I have you represent me?”
“Adrian, please. I’m your fiancée. It’s only natural that I start learning how to run the company with you.” Bella’s voice began to take on an irritated, pleading edge.
“Yeah, yeah, Bel. But I still have to attend that meeting.” Adrian tried to sound firm, though his tone remained gentle.
“Ugh, why are you being so stubborn today?” Bella huffed in annoyance. “Fine. Whatever you say.”
Listening from outside, Wulan furrowed her brow. There was a distinctly possessive note in Bella’s request—as if the woman wanted to take control of Adrian’s important decisions at the company.
A short while later, a female employee named Sinta passed by carrying documents to Adrian’s office. But before she could knock, Bella happened to come out and stopped her.
“Where do you think you’re going?” Bella asked curtly.
“I’m here to deliver some important documents to Mr. Adrian,” Sinta replied nervously.
“Give them to me. I’ll deliver them.” Bella snatched the documents from Sinta’s hands without permission. “You don’t need to go in. From now on, if you have any documents for Adrian, give them to me first. Understood?”
“Y-yes, ma’am.” Sinta obediently nodded, though her face looked confused, then hurried away.
Watching from a distance, Wulan grew even more suspicious. Why was Bella so determined to control who was allowed to approach Adrian? Was this merely the possessiveness of a future wife, or was there another motive hidden behind it?
That afternoon, during her break, Wulan deliberately sat in the back of the employee cafeteria, an area usually used by the cleaning staff and office boys. She heard two office boys talking at the next table.
“Hey, you know Bella? She’s acting like she’s the vice president now,” one of them said with a mocking laugh.
“Yeah, seriously! Yesterday I saw her chew out one of the managers for not reporting to her first before meeting Mr. Adrian,” the other replied. “It’s not like she’s anyone at this company. She’s just his fiancée.”
“That’s why a lot of people are starting to get annoyed. But what can we do? Mr. Adrian loves her so much that nobody dares to complain.”
Wulan listened to the conversation carefully, her conviction growing that what she had witnessed was not merely the product of her own suspicions. Bella was truly trying to take control, exploiting her closeness to Adrian to gain power she had no right to wield.
That evening, as she was about to leave, Wulan met Lina at the back entrance of the building.
“Sri, how did it go today? Any progress?” Lina asked curiously.
“I’m more convinced than ever, Lina,” Wulan replied seriously. “Bella isn’t just personally possessive. She’s starting to control the company’s affairs too. She’s forbidding employees from meeting Adrian directly without getting her permission first.”
“That’s really weird, Sri. Why is she so determined to control everyone’s access to Mr. Adrian?” Lina furrowed her brow.
“That’s what we need to find out, Lina.” Wulan gazed at the Sentosa Corporation building as it began to fade into the dim evening light. “I suspect that behind her spoiled, sweet act, Bella is hiding something much darker.”
“You’re going to keep investigating?” Lina asked.
“Yes. And I need your help, Lina.” Wulan looked at the girl in front of her with complete sincerity. “You’re the only person here I can trust. Will you help me uncover the truth about Bella?”
Lina fell silent for a moment, gazing back into Wulan’s determined eyes. “I’ll help you, Sri. Whatever the risk.”
Wulan smiled in relief and clasped Lina’s hand tightly in gratitude. In her heart, she became even more certain that the long journey to save Adrian had only just begun—and with Lina by her side, she no longer felt alone in facing it all.