The CEO's Amazing Ex-Wife Is Back (Thalassa and Kris)

Karen's heart thumped inside her chest, each beat growing louder as she stared at her mother. "Mum, what do you mean you have the bag? You had no right to take it from where it was locked!"

Rita descended the stairs slowly, her eyes never leaving Karen. Her calmness only made Karen's panic worse.

"Why are you so upset?" Rita asked, her voice soft but tinged with disappointment. "Didn't you tell me last time you had nothing to do with hiding the evidence against Linda?"noveldrama

Karen swallowed hard as her mother stopped right in front of her. Her face was lined with bitterness, her eyes cold as she continued.

"When you came here and I asked if you were involved, you tried to guilt me into dropping the subject. But it left me even more suspicious." Rita's lips curled into a bitter smile. "So today, when Bridget mentioned the bag you brought in that day, I knew instantly what it was."

Karen's head whipped around, eyes narrowing as she hissed at the maid. "You fucking gossip!" "Don't you dare talk to Bridget like that!" Rita warned, her voice stern. "It's not her fault you're trying to protect a criminal."

Karen turned back to her mother, her frustration boiling over. "Give me the bag, mother! Please." she demanded, her voice trembling with anger. "Where is it?"

Rita's hand moved so fast Karen didn't see it coming. The slap echoed through the room, and for a moment, all Karen could hear was the ringing in her ears. She held her cheek, eyes wide in shock. "You will not speak to me that way," Rita said, her voice dangerously low. "Maybe I wasn't strict enough with you. Maybe that's why you've become this... insensitive person."

She took a step closer, her eyes filled with disappointment. "How could you try to protect Linda Miller after everything she's done? Didn't you say she threatened you the day you were arrested so that you would retract your accusations?"

Rita shook her head sadly. "I believed you, Karen. When you told me Linda manipulated you into doing those terrible things to Thalassa years ago, I believed you."

Her voice cracked. "But now, I see it wasn't just Linda. You did those things because you've always been jealous of Thalassa."

Karen's stomach dropped. Her mother's words stung, but she bit back her retort.

"You've always had more than Thalassa," Rita continued. "You grew up in better circumstances, but that wasn't enough, was it? You've always been envious of her."

Karen's fists clenched at her sides. "You've always preferred Thalassa over," she accused bitterly. "Even though I'm your daughter, not her."

Rita's eyes softened, her anger giving way to sadness. "That's not true," she said quietly. "I love Thalassa like a daughter, yes, but it can never surpass my love for you. You're my child."

Karen's throat tightened. "Then why do you always support her? Why do you always take her side?"

"Because Thalassa hasn't done

anything to ruin your life." Rita's voice was firm, but her eyes were filled with sadness. "Unlike what you've done to her. Even now, you're still trying to derail Thalassa's plans. That's why you've decided to help Linda by hiding the incriminating evidence, isn't it?"

"Mum, you don't understand!" Karen groaned, feeling more desperate with every second.

"Then help me understand," Rita said softly. "Please. I want to believe my daughter isn't a monster who protects vile people like Linda Miller."

Karen stayed silent, her heart racing. as her mother stepped closer, her expression pleading now. "Is Linda threatening you again? Is that why you're protecting her?"

Karen's lip trembled. Her mother was close now, her hand reaching out to gently touch her arm.

"If Linda's threatening you, you don't have to worry," Rita whispered. “Once I give the evidence to the police, she won't have a way out. She will be in jail and won't be able to harm you or anyone."

"No!" Karen cried out in panic. "You can't give the evidence to the police, mum. You can't. You don't understand."

Rita's face fell, her brow furrowing in confusion. "Why not? What aren't you telling me, Karen?"

Tears welled up in Karen's eyes, her frustration mounting as she bit her lip. She was cornered. Her mother wasn't going to let this go.

"Tell me where the bag is," she pleaded again.

When her mother didn't answer, she attempted to bypass her and go to her bedroom if need be, but her mother's voice stopped her.

"You can go to my room if you want, but you won't find it. It's not there."

Karen spun around in exasperation. "Where is it, mum? Please give it to me."

11

"I won't," Rita said firmly. "Not until you explain why you want to protect Linda so badly."

Karen's mind raced. What was she going to do? She couldn't let her mother hand the evidence over. If she did, everything would come crashing down.

But maybe... Maybe if she told her mother the truth, she'd understand. She wouldn't hand the evidence over if she knew the secret Karen wanted to protect.

With trembling hands, she wiped her tears and looked at her mother. "If you give that evidence to the police," she said slowly, "Linda will tell Kris the truth."

Rita's eyes narrowed. "What truth?"

Karen hesitated, her heart hammering in her chest. "That... that Tessa isn't Kris's daughter,"