Using Me as a Substitute? Did You Know Your Best Friend Calls Me Wife?

Night fell over the hospital...

Chase Lockwood had canceled all his appointments for the past few days, dedicating himself to staying at the hospital. He was taking care of her around the clock, never leaving her side.

Their relationship had grown even stronger, which made Vivian Lynch feel much better.

She had suffered so much, but in return, she had gained Chase Lockwood’s tender affection and his hatred for Mia Kane. That was enough for her.

Just then, a secretary came in and whispered a few words in Chase Lockwood’s ear.

His voice was so low that Vivian Lynch couldn’t hear. 𝕗𝐫𝚎𝗲𝘄𝐞𝕓𝐧𝕠𝘃𝕖𝐥.𝐜𝚘𝚖

"What’s wrong?"

She could clearly see his expression darken, and she couldn’t help but feel a little worried.

"It’s nothing. Something came up at the Lockwood Group that I need to handle. I’ll come back to see you later."

"You go ahead. I’ll wait for you to come back."

Vivian Lynch’s voice was as gentle as flowing water. Chase Lockwood tucked the blanket around her and stroked her head.

"Vivian..."

His voice suddenly went hoarse.

"Have you ever done anything to wrong me?"

Vivian Lynch froze.

"Have you... schemed against me?"

He asked again.

"Chase... what’s wrong? Why are you asking these things? As heaven is my witness, my heart is yours. I swear, if I have ever schemed against you or done anything to wrong you, may I suffer a horrible death!"

"Chase, is it... Is Mia Kane causing trouble again? I can handle being wronged over other things, but this was about our son... A miscarriage is an irreversible trauma for me..."

"I know."

Chase Lockwood squeezed her hand. "You just get some rest. It was just a random thought. I’m sorry for hurting you."

"I’ll be right back. Wait for me."

Chase Lockwood placed a kiss on her forehead before leaving.

As soon as he left, Vivian Lynch wiped the tears from her eyes.

She calmly lay back down and began to leisurely eat some fruit.

Chase Lockwood walked out into the hospital corridor. Only after confirming no one was around did he speak.

"Vivian’s phone records. What did you find?"

"Mrs. Lockwood did have several calls with Rosalyn Shield. We couldn’t retrieve the older records, but we found the most recent one."

Hearing this, Chase Lockwood felt his heart clench.

He didn’t know if he should keep listening.

’Since I chose to believe Vivian, I shouldn’t be doubting her over a few words from Adrian Preston, let alone stealing her phone while she slept.’

’But if Vivian is really deceiving me, I can’t allow myself to be kept in the dark.’

"Continue."

He had made his decision, and his voice turned cold.

The secretary played an audio recording.

"Rosalyn, I’m planning to go see your President Kane tomorrow. Do you know if she’ll be at the studio?"

"Tomorrow... Yes, she’ll be here. Is something wrong?"

"It’s nothing. I just have something I need to see her about."

Rosalyn Shield fell silent for a long while. "Then, do you need me to..."

"No, that’s alright. I just wanted to confirm she’d be there so I don’t make a wasted trip. She’s never liked me and has my number blocked, so it’s incredibly difficult to see her. My husband and I want to ask her to dinner, so I’m going in person to make a grand gesture. Hopefully, she’ll be willing to reconcile with us."

"Rosalyn, thank goodness you’re still willing to talk to me. Otherwise, I’d have no way of finding her."

"Sorry to bother you. I’ll hang up now."

Rosalyn Shield didn’t know what to say. After her quick speech, Vivian Lynch had simply hung up.

Chase Lockwood’s brow furrowed.

’Is this the result Adrian Preston was hoping to find?’

’Vivian is so kindhearted. She was just confirming if Mia Kane was at the studio to avoid a wasted trip.’

’So what if she’s in contact with one of Mia Kane’s subordinates? They didn’t say anything out of line.’

’Even if this recording were taken to the police, it wouldn’t prove anything.’

"Adrian Preston is just trying to drag Vivian down with him. He’ll do anything to save Mia Kane."

"I shouldn’t have doubted Vivian!"

Chase Lockwood’s heart filled with guilt, making him want to treat Vivian Lynch even better.

Even if she could no longer bear children, he wouldn’t divorce her.

But the Lockwood Family needed an heir, so he would just have to find a suitable woman to bear a child, who would then be given to Vivian Lynch to raise.

Just then, Chase Lockwood’s phone rang. It was Adrian Preston.

"What else do you have to say? I assume you’ve heard the contents of the call by now!"

Chase Lockwood said irritably.

"Vivian Lynch was clearly dropping hints. By making such a big scene, she ensured Rosalyn Shield would know how to respond. Naturally, she wouldn’t say anything incriminating on the phone and leave evidence."

"Adrian, you’re too biased toward Mia Kane. You have no idea what kind of person she truly is! I think you’re letting your favoritism blind you!"

"Six months ago, Rosalyn Shield’s family ran into trouble. Her younger brother was getting married, and her mother was seriously ill. They were in urgent need of money. The financial gap was filled in less than a month. The official reason was that her father was injured at work and his company paid out a few hundred thousand in compensation, which solved their immediate problem."

"And six months ago, the head of that company came to Argent and met Vivian Lynch at a reception."

"So, was there a financial transaction with Vivian? Is that company now thriving under the Lockwood Group’s protection? If we assume, as you suggest, that Vivian is behind all of this, then she must have promised them something or owed them a favor. But to this day, there’s been no action on her part, which proves it was just a chance meeting."

"But you’re determined to pin this on her and insist she’s behind everything."

On the other end of the line, Adrian Preston fell silent.

He thought he had argued Adrian into silence.

After a long moment, Adrian Preston finally spoke.

"Talking to you is like talking to a brick wall."

With that, Adrian Preston hung up.

"Adrian, what do we do now?"

Theo Thorne asked, looking at Adrian Preston nervously.

Adrian Preston rubbed the bridge of his nose. He hadn’t expected Vivian Lynch’s scheme to be so airtight. There was no sign of her repaying that company in the last six months.

’But she will definitely have to repay that favor eventually.’

’Rosalyn Shield is the key.’

"Go find Rosalyn Shield."

Adrian Preston said grimly.

「The next day」

Rosalyn Shield was at the police station again.

Her face was pale and her expression was haggard.

She was led into an interrogation room, looking somewhat dazed.

She took a sip of water before speaking.

"I want to... confess my crime. Mia Kane didn’t push her. I gave false testimony."

"Why did you give false testimony?"

"When Mrs. Lockwood first started her design firm, she was determined to poach Mia Kane’s employees. Mrs. Lockwood met with me personally and offered me a high salary—five hundred thousand a month. I was tempted, but... but out of loyalty to my old job, I didn’t accept."

"But afterward, I deeply regretted it. I thought I was a fool for turning down the money. What good was loyalty? I went back to Mrs. Lockwood, but she turned me down, saying it was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity that I had missed. After that, I did everything I could to get back in her good graces, even doing many things to hurt Mia Kane."

"I knew the two of them had bad blood, so I thought if I helped her go against Mia Kane, Mrs. Lockwood might give me that half-a-million-a-month job. Once, Mia Kane and I went to see a client. I knew the man was a pervert, so I faked a terrible stomachache, which resulted in Mia Kane nearly being assaulted."

"I frequently reported information to Mrs. Lockwood, monitoring Mia Kane’s every move."

"But I never, ever expected Mia Kane to be hiding such a huge secret from me! She’s the international designer Nona. She deliberately made that bet with Mrs. Lockwood. Mrs. Lockwood asked me about it in private, and I confidently told her that there was no way Mia Kane knew any international designers. If she did, I would’ve known."

"Mrs. Lockwood believed me, but then she lost the bet, and my half-a-million-a-month job was gone for good. In my heart, I hated Mia Kane. I felt she didn’t trust me. I’d been with her for three years, and after I refused to be poached, I missed out on that high-paying job."

"But she actually hid that from me..."

Rosalyn Shield was a mess of laughter and tears, her expression wild and unhinged.

The police had already investigated the incidents she mentioned and confirmed they had indeed happened.

This gave Rosalyn Shield a strong motive for providing false testimony.

So what about Vivian Lynch? Why was she so insistent that Mia Kane had pushed her?