75 75. Behind Her Iron Face

Paula walked out of the room, seeing a janitor who was on the phone in the elevator. The janitor smiled kindly at Paula as he put his cell phone in his pocket. He also held the elevator door open to allow Paula to use the same elevator.

Paula quickly got into the elevator because she was in a hurry. “Thank you!” said Paula, returning the man’s smile with the same friendliness. She then quickly pressed the number fifteen button. However, it turns out that the elevator was heading downwards.

“Oh my gosh!” Paula laughed at her clumsiness. She looked at the janitor and laughed together.

“It is going down,” the man said, pointing down with his left finger. He was afraid that Paula wouldn’t understand Japanese.

Paula graciously nodded with a smile, indicating that she understood the man’s language.

“Do you want to go to the fifteenth floor?” the man asked again. “Strange. People rarely go there.”

People don’t usually ask about other people’s business. However, Paula tried to understand because the man was probably just an old man who wanted to know about other people’s business.

“I have something to do with ...,” Paula replied, pausing because she didn’t know what to say. “I made an appointment with a friend.” She forced a light smile on her lips.

After reaching the first floor, Paula exited the elevator for a while to allow the janitor to freely move the cleaning equipment. She kindly held the open button for him. She then quickly reentered the elevator and pressed the fifteenth button, the highest floor in the building.

.....

As the elevator went up, Paula’s heart skipped a beat, imagining what she was going to do in the next few minutes. Her heart clenched, as she recalled the memories of the past few days she spent with Miyuki.

The elevator stopped on the fifteenth floor. Paula waited for the elevator door to fully open before stepping out of the elevator. On the side of the glass window, she saw a shoulder-length black-haired young woman waiting for her.

“Am I late?” Paula asked, making the girl turn around. Paula’s voice was normal, not as lowered as usual. Of course, this time she didn’t need to lower her voice because everything was exposed. There was nothing she had to hide from anyone.

“No. How could you be late?” Miyuki smiled widely, admiring Paula’s graceful moves. “I was the one who got here too early. Fifteen minutes ahead of our appointment.”

Paula returned Miyuki’s smile and sighed softly. She looked at Miyuki with an unreadable expression. She observed Miyuki with her signature simple-and-unfashionable appearance.

“You look very happy. Something good happened?” She commented on Miyuki’s more enthusiastic attitude than usual.

“Of course, I’m happy because this weekend we can go strawberry picking without any burdens on our shoulders.” Miyuki smiled widely, baring her crooked teeth, making her look even cuter.

In the past, Paula liked Miyuki’s smile. A very rare smile because Miyuki often wore an expressionless iron face.

“Are you tired? Or sick?” asked Miyuki who saw Paula’s unenthusiasm. Paula’s face was too stiff for someone to come out as a victor. “On the third floor of this building, near the dentist’s office, there is a doctor’s clinic. Do you want me to accompany you?”

Paula shook her head slowly, leaning her back against the glass window. She smiled bitterly at Miyuki. “I’m just disappointed,” she replied as she stared at Miyuki intently.

“To whom?” Miyuki asked curiously, her smile was fading away, revealing the usual Miyuki. She noticed Paula’s strange behavior. “Anything else?”

“I’m disappointed in you,” Paula replied flatly, looking deeply into Miyuki’s jet-black eyes with her dark-blue eyes.

Miyuki’s face suddenly turned pale. She just stared at Paula for a few moments and didn’t say anything. Paula only received one signal from Miyuki’s response. The woman she trusted was indeed guilty.

“What did I do wrong? Didn’t I do all the tasks properly? I’ve even shown you proof that Kato was behind all of this,” Miyuki demanded an answer from Paula. Her trembling hands held the galvalume frame on the glass window by the stairs.

“You were trying to blame Ken for all this, weren’t you?” Paula asked in a very cynical tone. “You were the one who said that Ken and Akane were dating and even arranged for their meeting to have dinner at the same place as Samuel and I were that night.”

Miyuki was furious and trembling at the same time. She was still trying to defend herself. “Wasn’t Kato the one who did it? It was Kato who framed Ken.”

Paula shook her head. “When you realized that I wasn’t sure Ken was the traitor, you then leaked Kato’s actions and made him bear the sin by showing this evidence to me.” Paula showed the electronic message that Miyuki gave to Paula. “You don’t want to get your hands dirty, so from the start, you must have asked Akane to persuade Kato for betraying my father.”

Akane shook her head. “Don’t accuse me carelessly, Paula!”

Paula smiled weakly, “You still want to dodge it, huh?” She then opened her handbag and picked up the envelope, taking out a photo showing Miyuki and Akane meeting at a nightclub in the suburbs. Akane and Miyuki were at a lesbian nightclub. They were a couple.

Miyuki’s hands were shaking violently. Her eyes popped out, staring at the photo in Paula’s hand in disbelief. “Where did you get that photo from?”

“It doesn’t matter,” Paula said, squinting. “It’s you and Akane!”

“I’m doing this to get information from Akane! You shouldn’t just believe false information that-”

“This photo was taken a year ago. Long before this scandal happened. Long before Akane opened her business. What information would you like to get from her? Who asked you to do that?” Paula smiled mockingly. “A dog that bites the person who feeds it. Is that for you?”

“Paula I don’t-”

historical

Paula played the audio on her cell phone showing Miyuki’s betrayal. It was Miyuki who had been bringing the company’s detailed designs to Akane. She stole from the design team by taking advantage of their carelessness.

“Do you still want to deny it? These proofs were too obvious to anyone, Miyuki. You are a traitor!”

Miyuki lowered her head, her hands clenched in hatred. She didn’t think that her plan would be ruined. She was a confidant of Robert and Paula. She should have escaped suspicion.

“Miyuki .... You even take advantage of this for personal gain. You want to buy useless products for a third of the price, don’t you? You are selling them in Dubai under your brand.”

Miyuki’s face, which had been looking down, then looked up at Paula in disbelief. “What do you mean?”

“Are you surprised? Who doesn’t know it’s you? I found it strange from the start that Salwa didn’t mind the product whose designs had been stolen. Without hesitation, she wanted to add her brand printed on the products. Funny, no? Why wasn’t she afraid of being sued? This means, you guys are working together,” Paula said angrily and disgustedly to Miyuki. “How dare you betray our trust!”

Only silence was around them. Neither Miyuki nor Paula were throwing words at each other.

“It’s all thanks to Robert!” “He’s the one who bankrupted my family, forcing my father to commit suicide,” Miyuki raged.

“What do you mean? Wasn’t my father the one who helped you?”

“Help? Buying our company at a low price, do you call that help?” Miyuki raged.

“Miyuki. In this world, business is business. All transactions are carried out with the consent of both parties!”

“Nonsense!”

“Miyuki! Be aware! I don’t want to tell you this! But it was your father who asked my father for help. He offered the low price because my father was not rich back then. Your father needed the money to cover unpaid salaries for his employees. In addition, my father sent money for your family’s monthly expenses and paid for the education of you and your younger siblings even though your father refused,” Paula shouted, revealing what she should have kept secret so Miyuki wouldn’t feel embarrassed.

“You’re lying!” Miyuki shook her head. Tears rolled down her cheeks.

Paula shook her head, she also had tears in her eyes, feeling guilty for saying that to Miyuki.

“I don’t want you to end up in prison. However, I had no choice. The law must be upheld,” Paula said as she put the envelope back in her bag.

Unfortunately, Miyuki did not accept Paula’s treatment. She ran to Paula, trying to snatch the evidence away.

“You can’t imprison me! My mother and sister must not know about this!” Miyuki pulled Paula’s handbag with full force.

However, Miyuki pulled too hard. Paula was holding on to her bag strongly. There was a strong tug of war near the stairs. Unfortunately, due to Paula’s tug, Miyuki was about to fall because she was leaning back too much. Paula, who knew it, immediately grabbed Miyuki’s hand to keep her from falling down the stairs.

However, Paula’s leg sprained, and she couldn’t keep her balance. Thanks to that, she was about to fall.

“No! My baby!”