Return of the Crowned Heiress

Chapter 153

Kayla's eyes turned red, and she dug her nails deep into her palms as she suppressed the almost frenzied and twisted emotions threatening to erupt. She managed to hold back her anger, though just barely. "Arnie, my foot hurts. Can you carry me over there?" she asked, her voice laced with vulnerability.

The car had broken down, and the driver needed to stay behind to arrange repairs. Moreover, Kayla had traveled such a long way to get here; it was impossible for her to be sent away now. For this reason, Kayla would have to stay in Alverton by Arnold's side for a while.

Arnold felt a sense of helplessness but ultimately did not refuse. He examined her foot and found nothing wrong with it, yet Kayla insisted that she had injured it in the accident and couldn't walk. "Arnie, I really can't walk anymore..." she whined.

Having already cried once and after being terrified all night, her face was pale and pitiful. It made it hard for Arnold to turn her down.

He bent down, offering, "Get on my back. I'll carry you."

"You're the best, Arnie!" Kayla beamed, her joy evident as she jumped onto his back. She wrapped her arms tightly around his neck.

Amidst numerous gazes, Arnold carried Kayla back to Alverton.

It was no big deal for the villagers since they didn't know them, but the students participating in the training program couldn't help but make a few teasing remarks about their apparent intimacy. Kayla giggled, occasionally blushing shyly.

Upon returning to the village, Arnold originally intended to have the village head find another family for Kayla to stay with. However, with all the other families' houses already full and Kayla stubbornly refusing to be separated from him, he had no choice but to take her back to the farm where he was staying.

Unfortunately, there was only one empty room in that house.

"Alright, you rest well," Arnold said after the college doctor checked Kayla's foot and confirmed it wasn't serious. Feeling relieved, he placed her on the bed and turned to leave.

en

Kayla hurriedly grabbed his arm, "Arnie, where are you going? Are you really going to leave me here alone? I'm not familiar with this place, and I'm scared..." Arnold had been planning to find a separate place to stay. After all, it would be scandalous for them to share a room. He had to consider her reputation.

But Kayla wouldn't let it go, presenting a pitiful facade as her shoulders trembled and her eyes glistened with unshed tears.

Seeing her like this made Arnold's heart soften, but he still insisted, "You get some rest. I'll be in the living room. If you need anything, just call me." With that, he stepped out of the room.

Tears finally fell from Kayla's eyes, giving way to a burgeoning anger that threatened to explode! "Felicia!" she hissed through gritted teeth, her sense of crisis and jealousy amplifying tenfold.

She was determined to eliminate Felicia, the thorn in her side, at all costs!

With a cold expression, her brows furrowed in fierce determination. She called Shawn, her voice low as she snapped, "Why haven't you arrived yet? It's been two days! Have you gotten everything prepared? Don't you want the rest of the money?"

Shawn's voice sounded distant on the other end as if he were driving. "It's all set! I'll be at Alverton in no more than 20 minutes!"

Hearing this, Kayla felt a sense of

reluctant Satisfaction. After all, the money she had invested was considerable. As long as Shawn's actions bore fruit, it would alDbe worth it!

Chapter 152

The early morning chaos came to an end, and Felicia didn't bother to find out who would tow the Fuller family's car away after she left.

It wasn't until after she had left that Kayla finally snapped back to reality from the shock of the night before. Clinging tightly to Arnold's waist, she looked up at him with teary eyes and said, "Arnie, I rushed over to see you and almost didn't make it..."

Arnold opened his mouth, intending to say, "This slope isn't high; it's not as dangerous as you think." However, the words were caught in his throat, and he ultimately swallowed them. Instead, he said, "It's alright now. Don't cry."

Last night's events must have scared Kayla terribly-just like when he first arrived at the scene panic-stricken. It was only after Felicia scolded him that he realized his concern was causing him to lose focus. The terrain looked frightening, but there was no real deadly cliff here.

However, it was too late to say such things.

Kayla clung tightly to Arnold, fearing that if she let go, he would disappear. Her pitiful appearance made it difficult for him to reject her.

Just then, a group of students who had heard about the incident rushed over to see the commotion and caught sight of Arnold and Kayla in an embrace.

Someone remarked, "Kayla arrived pretty quickly, didn't she? She must have rushed over in the middle of the night. Talk about dedication!"

Kayla had been practically absent from college for a long time and wasn't on the list for this training program. She had only gotten wind of the situation because her good friend, Olivia, had informed her to come quickly to assert her claim and ensure that the man she was infatuated with, Arnold, wouldn't be taken away by Felicia.

Seeing this, Olivia couldn't help but smirk. Although she felt some resentment toward Kayla after yesterday's events, her hatred for Felicia was even stronger.

Anyone who could make Felicia's life miserable was welcome in her book.

So, Olivia stepped forward without hesitation and said, "Kayla, what terrible duck you had, getting into a car accident. Thankfully, you're okay. Otherwise, wouldn't Mr. Lawson feel guilty for a lifetime?"

Her words were laced with sarcasm, and Arnold could clearly hear it. He shot her a glance, but Olivia merely scoffed and turned away, strutting off.

Kayla finally regained her senses after initially feeling scared. She began to pick up on the indifference on Arnold's face, and her heart sank.

No one knew Arnold better than she did, and it was clear that something had happened over the past few days. Otherwise, he wouldn't be so distant and lost in thought in front of her

Feeling a wave of unease, she followed Arnold's gaze and was taken aback to find that he was consistently looking in Felicia's direction!

"Arnie, you haven't been paying attention to me these past few days. You even hung up on me yesterday. Do you know I almost died? I was wondering if I'd ever see you again..."

As she spoke, Arnold seemed to tune her out completely.

Finally, she managed a pained smile and asked, "Arnie, who are you thinking about? Is it Felicia?"

This seemingly casual question drew an unexpected reaction from Arnold. He immediately denied it, his voice filled with resistance as he replied, "Don't talk nonsense. How could be thinking about Felicia?"

His clear disdain was unmasked. While Kayla initially wanted to laugh, the smile slowly faded from her face.

A man's excessive attention toward a woman, even if he verbally claimed not to like her, often indicated that he had begun to develop feelings.

Chapter 151

she asked, "Ruben, what

was one of the Fuller family's dedicated drivers. He was always on standby and had years of driving experience, so it was unusual

Yesterday, Ms. Kayla urged me to drive her to Alverton. I wasn't familiar with the

had also taken out her frustration on him

and his attention had been distracted by her kicking him. Fatigued from driving all day, he lost focus for just a moment, causing the car to veer off the road and get stuck on the edge of the slope. From their perspective inside the vehicle, it felt like they were hanging over a precipice,

he became. If it hadn't been for Kayla

fit to be a driver for the Fuller family and that she would make sure he was fired as soon as they got out, putting an end

for his reason, he would have wanted to take

reflected on this, he tightened his

contained recordings from the dashcam. If Kayla pushed him too far,

Felicia didn't pry further.

villagers felt relieved and

scolded by Arnold earlier, tried to leave

She walked

to Arnold and saw

up to

he was tightly

was crying. He comforted

they had just endured

separation. Unable to hold back, she spoke up, "Sorry

Kayla and turned his attention to Felicia.

even more impatient. Her tone was cold as she stated, "You should apologize to

and gently tugged at Felicia's sleeve.

she let it

Felicia stood her ground.

had a daughter around Felicia's age who was studying in another city. Any daughter would be upset if she

apology; it wasn't like she was asking for a piece of Arnold's flesh. An apology was absolutely

Arnold had regained his composure. Regardless of

upbringing compelled him to apologize to Cody, "I'm sorry, Mr. Gibbs. I

Felicia turned

onto the little truck as it started moving

Chapter 150

car that

the person trapped inside

she heard Kayla's terrified

was also in a state of

that Kayla had come to Alverton, and he felt an overwhelming

on a mission from Matthew and had been growing increasingly frustrated with Kayla's nearly suffocating presence. She

and impatience during their phone call. Kayla, emotional as she was, started crying

by her cries,

he asked around, but

only to be shocked by the news that she had been in a car

the rescue team and urged them to come

and formed a small group to help. They proposed a simple yet effective solution. First, they'd move the rocks to stabilize the vehicle. Then, they'd open the doors and let the

approach wouldn't work and furrowed his brows in concern. He feared that the villagers' methods, while well-meaning, could be foolish and might endanger Kayla's life

she overheard Arnold sharply reprimanding one of the villagers who had suggested the plan, saying, "Can you guarantee the safety of the people in the car? Can you assure me that this method has no risks?

an older man

to help others, felt embarrassed and flustered under Arnold's harsh words.

stepped forward with a cold laugh. "Arnold,

usually softened his tone in the

couple of small rocks and brace them under the front of

Romeo immediately complied.

furious and nearly exploded, angrily accusing Felicia, "Kayla is a member of the Fuller family! Are you trying

terror inside the car, "Don't come over! Don't move! You

shouted, the car swayed a little but quickly steadied again as Romeo and the others placed stones to

and annoyance. She tilted her head and sarcastically said, "Do you see that, Mr. Lawson? It's solid ground beneath. The

it not fall, but the dense trees below would act as

wasn't a cliff at all-just

yanked Kayla out, who

first instinct was to

wrapped his arms around her, gently patting her back to soothe her. "It's okay. Don't

Kayla was

driver, emerged from

filled with a mix of

Chapter 149

"Yes, Mr. Russell."

details, his subordinate promptly acknowledged from the other end of the

the village. He absentmindedly stroked the puppy's head while adding, "The scenery

...

massaging her neck as she entered. The commotion earlier hadn't been

into her room.

Where did it go?

had taken the

month old. Macey mentioned that it was one of the pups from the neighbor's dog,

with its mother during the day, but at night, it would obediently return when Macey called. It was

it saw Felicia, it knew to wag its tail at

not anticipated running into Stephan tonight, nor that he

in the morning and whether she

in mind,

had nearly exposed her secrets multiple times. After tossing and turning, she could only hope that whatever she told Stephan that night hadn't raised any suspicions on

for about half an hour,

the mountains, and the village was filled with the crowing of roosters. It marked a peaceful and serene