The amount of blood Lauren spat out seemed off.

“And why would a kidnapper care whether the guy paying the ransom was her husband or not?"

There could be only one answer to these questions. Lauren was orchestrating the whole thing.

Lauren was aware that she was listening, thus using those words as a way to provoke her.

The pieces of the puzzle were falling into place. For some reason, Raegan could not shake the feeling that the kidnapping was Lauren's ploy.

The more she thought about it, the more she felt something was amiss.

As her worries for Mitchel were mounting, she pressed on, “The timing is odd, don't you think? You finally decide to let Lauren leave the country today, and then she gets kidnapped? It sounds like a ploy to make you change your mind."

“Enough, Raegan!" Mitchel cut her off, seemingly exasperated.

“Are you suggesting that Lauren would risk her own life just to convince me to let her stay?"

Mitchel's defense left Raegan momentarily speechless.

But he was not done yet, and he continued, “Sure, Lauren has made mistakes. But risking her life in a scheme under the disguise of kidnapping is far-fetched."

Raegan tried to reason with him again.

"Mitchel, your judgment is clouded right now. Think about what I've said."

"I said enough!" Mitchel raised his voice and emphasized each word, “Raegan, stop being so cynical. It's bad for the baby."

Mitchel's accusation cut Raegan deep. So, in his eyes, she was some sort of villain who was eager to get rid of Lauren.

Well, if he already thought she was wicked, maybe it was time she learned from Lauren and played the villain for real.

"Listen, Mitchel, I'm telling you, you're not going to save Lauren all by yourself," Raegan firmly said, giving no room for a discussion.

But her plea merely fell on Mitchel's deaf ear, and he coldly responded, "Get out of the car. I'll have Matteo come pick you up."

His dismissive tone felt like a punch to her gut, and a sharp pain radiated from her abdomen.

Raegan clutched her abdomen and cried, “Mitchel, my stomach..."