Reclaimed By My Ex-husband-Chapter 273: Caught red-handed?

Chapter 273: Caught red-handed?
A chill sliced through Zara’s veins. "How do you know all this?"
"I overheard them," the woman replied. "They assumed I was still unconscious and kept talking. That’s when I heard everything. The first dose kept Mrs. Grant in a coma for forty-eight hours. The effect will wear off soon. You must stop them before they administer the second dose. Claire, the head nurse, is working with Riya. She knows all about the drug. Maybe she is also aware of the antidote. You need to confront her."
Zara’s heartbeat spiked. She jumped out of bed. "Where are you now?"
"I’ve already left the country," the nurse said. "I can’t reveal my location. But my conscience wouldn’t let me stay quiet. If something happens to Mrs. Grant, I’ll never forgive myself. That’s why I called. You are the only one who can save her."
"Thank you for telling me," Zara said quickly, ending the call.
Her marriage might be broken, but she couldn’t stand by while Riya destroyed the entire family. She was determined to save Gracie, no matter what.
Without wasting a second, she changed clothes, grabbed her car keys, and rushed out of the house.
By the time she reached the hospital, the sun had risen, painting the sky a vivid orange. Zara headed straight for Gracie’s ward. It was still early, and the place was quiet with only a handful of staff moving around.
When she stepped into the room, Gracie lay motionless on the bed, alone, with no one by her side.
She had expected to find Vincent or Nathaniel nearby, but neither of them was there. The empty room surprised her, though she quickly decided it worked in her favor. She could try to wake Gracie herself. Moving closer to the bed, she leaned in.
"Mom, can you hear me?" she whispered, lightly shaking her shoulder. "Please wake up. You have to. Otherwise, Riya will hurt you."
Her eyes darted to the door to make sure no one was coming. Seeing it still shut, she turned back to Gracie with growing urgency.
"You don’t know what she has done," Zara continued, her fingers turning cold. "She poisoned you and Dad. She is about to tear this whole family apart. And Nathaniel... he trusts her completely. He won’t believe anything I say. You have to wake up before everything falls apart."
"What do you think you are doing?" A sharp voice cut through the room, making Zara jump.
She whirled around to see a nurse stepping inside. ’Is she Claire, the head nurse?’ she wondered.
Claire approached with a deep scowl. "You are not allowed to be in here."
"Why not?" Zara shot back, blocking her path. "She is my mother-in-law. I have every right to be here."
"We have no record of you listed as an attendant on this patient," Claire said coldly. "I don’t know who you really are. You could be pretending to be family. This is a breach of security. I’m calling the guards."
She pulled out her phone, but before she could dial, Zara snatched it from her hand.
"What the hell?" Claire barked, reaching forward in anger. "Give me back my phone."
Zara yanked her hand behind her and snapped, "I know exactly who you are. You are working with Riya, plotting against the Grants, and trying to harm her. You are the one who poisoned my mother-in-law."
Claire froze for a second, startled. It was a secret. No one was supposed to know about it. How did this woman find out about it? Her face paled at the prospect of being exposed and losing her job, but she quickly regained her composure, believing Riya would stand by her side.
"What kind of nonsense is this? Accusing a nurse of poisoning a patient? You are questioning the entire hospital’s integrity. I can’t let this slide. I’m ing you."
She turned to walk out.
"Go on," Zara shot back. "I have evidence against you and Riya."
Fear flickered in her eyes. "What evidence?" Claire asked.
"You poisoned her," Zara said, pointing at Gracie. "That’s why she is in a coma. But she is about to wake up. And once she does, she’ll expose both of you. So you came to give her another dose to silence her forever."
Claire staggered, visibly shaken, but still refused to admit anything. "Stop spreading lies," she shouted. "I have no idea what you are talking about."
She backed away. "You are the one who wants to harm Mrs. Grant. That’s why you are making up these stories. I’m calling security—"
She ran out of the room.
"Stop," Zara yelled, sprinting after her.
On the bed, Gracie’s brows twitched and her lashes fluttered. She had heard every word and fought desperately to wake up. But her eyelids were like lead; no matter how hard she tried, they wouldn’t lift. She wanted to scream, to warn them all, but only a faint breath left her throat.
Her eyelashes trembled again, her fingers giving the slightest movement as she struggled to wake up.
Outside the room...
Zara hurried after the nurse and grabbed her arm, pulling her back. "Where do you think you are going? You are not leaving until you tell me what drug you used."
Claire’s eyes widened with panic. She glanced around and suddenly screamed, "Help... This woman sneaked into the ward and tried to harm the patient."
Zara froze, stunned. She drew her hand back, her mind going blank for a moment. As soon as she loosened her grip, Claire turned, shooting her a wicked, triumphant smile that made Zara’s scalp tingle with chillness.
Then Claire shouted again, louder this time, "Someone, come here. Catch her. She is trying to hurt a patient."
This time she didn’t run. Instead, she lunged at Zara and seized her arm tightly.
Zara tried to wrench herself free, but Claire’s strength shocked her. She couldn’t pull away.
The noise drew several staff members, who rushed toward them.
Seeing them approach, Zara grew alarmed. "Let go of me," she hissed, struggling harder. But her attempts only made Claire clutch her arm even tighter.
"I caught her red-handed," Claire cried, ignoring Zara entirely. "She sneaked into the room and tried to hurt the patient. Call security."
"What?" gasps rippled through the group, disbelief on every face as their attention snapped to Zara.
Zara’s panic mounted. "No—she is lying," she protested. "I didn’t do anything. I only came to check on my mother-in-law. She is twisting everything. She—"
"She is not telling the truth," Riya’s cold voice suddenly cut in before Zara could finish. "She has no relation to the Grants. My brother divorced her already because of her deceitful behavior."
A fresh wave of whispers rolled through the crowd. Faces twisted with contempt and suspicion, gazes turned hostile.
Zara’s stomach knotted. It was happening again. Riya was twisting the story, turning everyone against her just like before.
"She tried to harm my mom," Riya declared loudly. "She even paid a nurse to do it. When I caught them together, she accused me of trying to hurt my own mother. Fortunately, the nurse confessed everything and exposed her lies. That’s why my brother divorced her."
"How manipulative," someone muttered.
"She is dangerous. She belongs in jail."
"Call security. Hand her to the police."
Voices rose in a chorus of outrage.
Zara’s knees trembled. Once again, she was failing to defend herself. But she refused to surrender.
"Enough," she shouted, her voice ringing loudly through the corridor and silencing the chaos. "Stop lying. You and this woman are the ones hurting her. You poisoned Mom."
Riya’s expression darkened. She stepped closer, lowering her voice to a sharp, threatening whisper. "Leave right now if you don’t want this to get worse. Stay, and you’ll regret it."
But Zara didn’t back down. Meeting Riya’s glare, she fired back, "No... It’s you who is going to regret it. I know what you’ve done. You are trying to kill her, but I won’t let it happen. I’ll go straight to the dean and expose everything."
Riya sneered. "Still trying to challenge me? You are dumber than I thought. I was willing to let you walk away because of your past relationship with Nathaniel, but you just don’t learn. So don’t blame me for what happens next."
She stepped back and pointed accusingly at Zara. "This woman despises my mother. She has already tried to harm her once. And just now, while I stepped out for some fresh air, she slipped into the room to hurt her again. Call the police."
Zara didn’t budge. "Yes—call them. I’d love to expose the truth." Lifting her phone, she said boldly, "I have evidence that will reveal everything you’ve done."
"What evidence?" Claire suddenly appeared behind her and snatched the phone away. "You mean the fake one? Your little show ends here."
"Give it back," Zara lunged toward her, but Claire moved too quickly. She threw the phone to the floor and stomped on it until it shattered. "There. It’s finished. What can you do now?"
"My phone..." Zara whispered, stunned.
Just then, a group of guards arrived.
"Take her away," Riya ordered coldly. "Hand her over to the police."
Two guards grabbed Zara by the arms and started dragging her off.
"Let go of me," she shouted, struggling desperately. But they ignored her, tightening their grip as they pulled her through the corridor and out of the building.
She felt completely powerless. No one stepped forward. No one questioned Riya. No one defended her.
’Where are you, Nathaniel?’ she thought bitterly as she was forced outside.
"Stop," a voice cut through the tense air.
The guards paused.
Zara lifted her head. Through her tear-blurred vision, she saw the person stepping toward them.
It wasn’t Nathaniel. It was Liam.