The CEO's Mischievous Little Bride
Chapter 551 Solving the Case

"Since you're so into setting fires, I'll let you burn to your heart's content." Randall lugged the gas can, twisted off the cap, and got ready to douse the place around Abby and light it up. Abby caught a whiff of the strong smell, knowing it was the real deal.

"Molly, this is murder, you know that?" she screamed, her voice cracking with fear.

Molly squatted down, grinning wickedly at the tied-up Abby. "Isn't this your favorite game? Arson, burning yourself? I'm just helping you keep playing."

Abby watched Randall pouring gas nearby, her face going ghostly pale.

Vera took the chance to get out of the car with Theodore. She stood in front of Abby and demanded, "Why frame Molly? How did the fire start? Spill the beans, and maybe we'll let you live." Abby looked at Vera, who had just shown up and beat her so bad she couldn't fight back. She thought she recognized Vera. "Who are you?"

"Patrick's wife," Vera replied.

Abby's eyes went wide with terror.

Vera gently held Theodore and said, "I'm a mom now, not as ruthless as before. So I'm giving you a chance. Answer honestly, no funny business. There's no cameras here, no witnesses. If you die today, the cops won't have any proof to nab us, just like your arson case, no evidence."

Abby looked at Vera, sweating despite the cold winter air. Molly got impatient, "Vera, take Theodore over there. if I don't burn her to death, I'll at least burn her badly."

Vera said again, "Think it over. The three of us can do anything."

Abby hesitated, stuck between a rock and a hard place.

Randall pulled out a lighter, ready to light it when Abby quickly blurted, "I did it to kick Molly out of the Chase family."

"She isn't even a real Chase, yet she lives there and everyone loves her. What's so great about her? She can't do anything, has a bad temper, why do Ellie and Timothy like her, and why does Sebastian spoil her so much? Compared to me, she's nothing," Abby said.

Molly glared coldly at the spiteful Abby.

Since Abby started talking, she didn't hold back, "I can do way more than her. Once I get her out and move in, the Chase family will see the difference and realize I'm better than Molly, and their love for her will shift to me."

But after moving in, she tried hard to present herself well. However, the Chase family treated her like a thief, constantly watching her. Ellie was scared she'd hurt Molly again and had the servants patrol outside her bedroom door at night. Now, Ellie was pushing her into a miserable marriage.

"What's so great about Molly? She already has the Olteran family, isn't that enough? Why does the Chase family spoil her too?" Abby shouted.

Molly stepped forward impulsively and kicked Abby a few times, "Let me tell you, my parents don't need a daughter who can do laundry and cook, my grandparents don't need me to please them, and Sebastian doesn't need a scheming pursuer. I'm better than you because I don't have those dirty thoughts like you."

"Everyone has the right to chase happiness, am I wrong?" Abby still insisted.

Molly shot back, "What about the damage to the inn, was the owner wrong? What about the people hurt in the fire, were they wrong? What does your pursuit of happiness count for?"

Vera asked, "One more thing, how did the fire start?"

Abby stubbornly clammed up, glaring at Molly.

Vera glanced at the defiant Abby, shook her head, and stood up holding Theodore, "I'm out. My husband worries I'll set a bad example for Theodore. We'll step back and watch. Randall, Molly, don't hit her vital parts." In less than five minutes, Abby screamed loudly, "Molly, I'll kill you."

In less than ten minutes, Abby shouted, "I bought a second-hand electric bike."

At the police station, Vera laid it out, "Abby told us she snagged the lithium battery from a junked second-hand electric bike. She bought it without any paperwork and lived in a sketchy area with no cameras, so no one knew she had an electric bike."

"The battery wasn't bought from a store; she yanked it from the bike. No one reported a stolen battery, so even if you checked cameras or talked to neighbors, you'd come up empty. She used the battery from the junked bike she bought, which is why she never got caught," Vera continued.

When Vera finished, Sebastian frowned.

Molly chimed in, "If you don't buy it, check the junked electric bikes near the inn to see if they still have batteries. Sebastian, don't you have the power to check Abby's account transactions? See who she sent money to, and you'll know who she bought it from."

Soon, Ernest walked over. He and Sebastian exchanged a look, getting on the same page quickly.

Abby went to the hospital for a full checkup and was dragged back to the station in the afternoon, looking like a mess.

She kept her head down the whole time, not daring to look at anyone.

Around four in the afternoon, Molly, Vera, and Randall were taken to a conference room. Worried that Theodore would pick up bad habits from Molly, Vera, and Randall, Patrick had no choice but to hold Theodore and wait on the side. Except for feeding, Theodore was in Vera's arms.

At five in the afternoon, a few people entered the conference room.

Sebastian and Ernest walked in together. "Mr. Chase, we're all on the same team. How do you want to handle this?"

"Did you verify it?" Vera asked.

"Did we provide evidence?" Molly also asked.

Sebastian glanced at Patrick holding Theodore. He had just seen Abby's sorry state; she was clearly beaten black and blue, covered in bruises, but the doctor's final diagnosis was only minor injuries!

Vera's guidance on this action wasn't in vain.

Moreover, they had come to the police station to turn themselves in, which meant a lighter sentence. Plus, they provided very useful clues. Even Ernest felt embarrassed, "I've been a cop for years, solving every murder case I've come across. But with Abby's case, I was almost driven mad and couldn't crack it, and these three pointed it out for me."

Their good deeds outweighed their bad, but they still needed to be punished. The punishment couldn't be too heavy or too light.

Sebastian finally said, "A fine of $3,000 or write a self-criticism, let them choose."

They immediately chose, "Pay the fine!"

Patrick, holding the sleeping Theodore, ordered Vera, "Write the self-criticism."

Vera pouted and acted spoiled, "Honey."

Patrick emphasized again, "Handwritten, 2,000 words."

Vera fell silent.

Molly smiled and tried to butter up Sebastian. She didn't want to write a self-criticism, just wanted to pay the fine and leave, "Sebastian, I know you're the best to me." Sebastian stayed stern, "Write the self-criticism, 2,500 words."

Molly fell silent.

Randall was happy, "No one cares about me, I'll pay the fine and leave."

This time, miraculously, Patrick didn't punish Randall. In the past, he would have definitely made Randall write a self-criticism.

Vera deliberately reminded Patrick, "Honey, aren't you going to punish Randall?"

Patrick looked up at her face, "It's already enough for me to deal with you."

Vera and Molly could never have imagined that they would one day write self-criticisms together at the police station, just like in school.

"Sebastian still wants to marry me, and this is how he treats me. I'm not marrying him," Molly said sulkily, deliberately letting Sebastian hear.

Vera also complained, "I've already given Patrick a son and he still treats me like this. I'm not having a second child!"

Sebastian and Patrick, who heard everything clearly, stayed silent.