Rebirth: The New Bride Wants A Divorce-Chapter 331: My husband needs me

Fiona’s knees nearly gave way as panic surged through her.

"Da- Mr.Clafford, please," she rushed out, her voice breaking as she took a shaky step toward him. "You’re misunderstanding everything. I would never try to trap you. I swear."

Her eyes darted around the room, searching for anything that could ground her, anything that could undo the way his cold stare stripped her bare.

"I was scared," she continued desperately. "You collapsed. I panicked. I didn’t know what else to do. I thought staying with you was the right thing."

Daniel did not move. He did not soften.

Instead, he lifted his hand and pointed calmly toward the bathroom door behind her.

"Enough," he said quietly. "You can stop acting now Miss Fiona"

Fiona froze. "What... what are you talking about?"

The bathroom door opened.

Her breath caught violently in her throat as Henry stepped out, adjusting his cufflinks as if he were walking out of Daniel’s office instead of a hotel bathroom.

"Boss," Henry said calmly, giving a brief nod.

Fiona’s face drained of color.

"You..." Her voice came out hoarse as she stared at him. "You were here?"

"The entire time," Daniel replied, his tone ice-cold. "From the moment you ordered the wine."

Henry then walked and handed phone to Daniel. "Everything is recorded in here" he said.

Fiona’s mind spiraled. "No... that’s not possible." she mumbled in disbelief seeing her plan crumble before her eyes.

"You never bothered to check the suite properly," Daniel continued. "You were too confident. Too busy thinking you already had me trapped."

Henry folded his arms, his expression unreadable. "The wine was switched, Miss Fiona," he added evenly. "You didn’t drug Mr. Clafford."

Fiona staggered back a step, horror flooding her features. "You planned this," she whispered.

"Yes," Daniel said without hesitation. "I needed to know exactly what you were willing to do."

Tears welled in her eyes as she shook her head. "Daniel, I can explain—"

"There’s nothing left to explain," he cut her off. "You tried to drug me use my vulnerability to your advantage. And now you failed bringing even more micery to your family"

Her lips trembled as reality crashed down on her. Every move she had made. Every calculated step. All of it had been watched.

Daniel’s gaze hardened even further. "You wanted leverage," he said coldly. "Now you’ll face the consequences instead."

Fiona stood frozen between them, her carefully built plan reduced to ashes in a single moment.

"No... no, please don’t do this," Fiona sobbed, her voice breaking as she collapsed to her knees before him. "I beg you, Daniel."

Her pride shattered completely. She did not care anymore. If it meant survival, she was ready to humiliate herself beyond recognition, ready to cling to his shoes, to beg until her throat bled.

She had never seen this coming.

Or perhaps she had simply been arrogant enough to believe she could trap a man who was always ten steps ahead.

"I gave you enough chances, Fiona," Daniel said calmly. His voice carried no anger, no raised tone. That was what terrified her the most. "You just never listened."

His eyes pierced into her, sharp and merciless. Fiona trembled under that gaze, her entire body shaking as the reality finally set in. This was not a man who acted on impulse. This was Daniel Clafford.

She wanted to promise him everything. To swear she would disappear, that she would never interfere again. That they could forget this ever happened.

But the words refused to come.

Because the man standing before her was capable of erasing someone’s existence without leaving behind a trace. No scandal. No explanation. Just silence. Oblivion.

And now, she could see that fate looming over her.

Her lips parted, closed, parted again, but no sound came out. Under his deadpan gaze, she failed utterly. Reduced to nothing more than a trembling figure on the floor.

Daniel did not say another word.

He simply turned and walked away.

As if she were nothing but a peasant.

The sound of the door closing echoed through the room, final and unforgiving, leaving Fiona on her knees, staring into the emptiness where her future had just vanished.

***

As soon as Daniel stepped into the car, his strength gave out.

He slumped back into the seat, a sharp breath leaving his chest as the delayed effects of the drug finally began to take hold. His vision blurred, the world tilting unpleasantly as a wave of nausea and dizziness crashed over him.

"Boss," Henry said urgently, panic seeping into his voice as he rounded the car and climbed into the driver’s seat. "We need to take you to the hospital."

Daniel tugged at his tie with shaking fingers and yanked it loose, tossing it aside before shrugging out of his suit jacket and letting it fall onto the seat beside him. His breathing was uneven now, his jaw clenched tightly as he fought the haze creeping into his mind.

They had lied to Fiona about the wine. Made her believe she had failed completely.

But the truth was far more dangerous.

The wine had never been switched.

Daniel had never expected Fiona to go that far, not until she dragged him into the hotel room. By then, the drug had already begun to work through his system. It was only Henry’s quick reflexes that had saved the situation. The moment Daniel realized what was happening, Henry had slipped into the suite and hidden himself, forcing his body to endure the effects while staying alert enough to intervene.

Now that control was slipping.

"No," Daniel said hoarsely, shaking his head despite the way it worsened the dizziness. "I don’t need a doctor."

Henry glanced at him through the rearview mirror, alarm flashing across his face. "Boss, you’re not well—"

"I need my wife," Daniel cut in firmly, his voice low but unwavering. "I need Anna. Right now."

Henry did not hesitate.

He nodded frantically and grabbed his phone, dialing Anna’s number with trembling fingers as he pulled the car away from the curb. The call rang once. Twice.

No answer.

"Come on," Henry muttered under his breath, glancing back at Daniel, whose eyes were now closed, his face pale and drawn.

Henry tried again and this time, the call connected.

"Lady boss," Henry said the moment she picked up, relief flooding his voice. "Thank God. Boss needs you. Something went wrong."

***

Meanwhile, Anna stood outside the interrogation room with her phone pressed tightly to her ear. Henry’s voice poured through the line in a rush of frantic words, but her eyes remained fixed on the one-way glass before her.

Inside sat Collin Fort.

Silent. Still. Unbothered.

She heard everything Henry said. About Daniel. About the drug finally taking effect. About how they were on their way. And yet, her focus never wavered from the man seated inside the room, his calmness more unsettling than any outburst could have been.

When the call ended, Anna slowly lowered the phone.

Collin Fort.

The same man whose photographs she had once seen hidden away in her father’s study. The same man whose shadow had crept back into her life under a different name. And now, he was here. Detained. Yet refusing to say a single word.

The lack of cooperation made her blood simmer.

"You think we should push for a harsher approach?" Kathrine’s voice cut through her thoughts. "Put some real pressure on him and make him talk."

Anna frowned, finally tearing her gaze away from the glass to look at her sister. Kathrine’s jaw was tight, irritation written clearly across her face.

"And what makes you think that would work?" Anna asked calmly, though there was steel beneath her tone. "Do you really think someone like him would break that easily?"

Kathrine scoffed but did not argue.

After Shawn’s warning, Anna had not taken any chances. She had come prepared, with backup ready, half-expecting Collin to react violently or attempt to flee the moment he realized the net was closing around him.

But he had done neither.

Instead, he had walked in on his own.

No resistance. No threats. No panic.

He had simply handed himself over to the police as if he had been waiting for this moment all along.

And that, more than anything, unsettled her.

A guilty man who surrendered so easily was rarely out of moves. More often than not, it meant he was playing a longer game. One where silence was his weapon.

"That’s exactly why we shouldn’t be harsh," Anna said quietly, her eyes drifting back to the room. "If we corner him now, he’ll shut down completely."

Kathrine crossed her arms. "So we just wait?"

"Yes," Anna replied without hesitation. "Give him time. Let him think he’s in control."

Her gaze sharpened as she watched Collin through the glass, his expression unreadable.

"I’m sure he’ll speak," Anna added softly. "When he does, it won’t be because we forced him. It’ll be because he chose to."

Anna let out a slow, weary sigh and finally turned away from the glass to face Kathrine.

"I need to leave," she said quietly. "My husband needs me."

The moment the words left her mouth, Kathrine’s expression shifted. The irritation faded, replaced by concern and something unspoken that flickered briefly in her eyes.

"Anna—" she started.

But Anna did not stay to explain.

She gave her sister one last look, firm and resolved, then turned on her heel and walked away, her footsteps echoing down the corridor as she left the interrogation room behind.