Chapter 3
The next morning, the house manager showed up with half the staff to help move me out.
They walked into the courtyard like they owned the place, no trace of the respect they once had.
I sat in the garden, watching them work with cold, dry eyes.
What more could they take from me at this point?
Halfway through the chaos, a cheerful voice rang out behind me.
“Trederick, is this gonna be my new wing?” [
Lavinia
Her hand hooked into his arm, her smile all sugar a
and sunshine.
Frederick brushed her hair back, his voice soft and familiar. [
“Yeah. You like it?
Lavinia looked around, her gaze pausing at the flower beds. [
“Everything’s lovely except those ugly flowers.”
I smiled without humor and said, [
“If you don’t like them, just get rid of them.”
“They’re not worth much anyway.“]
That’s when the lovebirds finally noticed I was there.]
Frederick instinctively stepped back from Lavinia. |
His brows drew together.
“They’re not worthless. Those flowers
He didn’t finish the sentence, but we both knew. [
He planted those himself the year we got married. One by one.
I used to treasure them.
Now, they meant nothing.]
www.
me a once–over, her eyes locking on my pregnant belly.
Lavinia’s face shifted.
She gave m
“So you’re the daughter of the disgraced Hollingsworths?”
One sentence.
- 0
And every shred of pride I had left cracked
Iranembered the day my family lost everything
People we once called friends vanished overnight. ||
They looked at me like I was filth
Tinderick. NotBackthen. E
He pushed through the crowd, stood in front of me, and said,
“Serena, I believe in the Hollingsworths. I believe in your father. He wasn’t a traitor.”
I could still hear the words. ]
But the man in front of me was no longer the boy who said them.
I touched my cheek–ice cold.
Frederick’s face showed a flicker of panic. He stepped toward me.
“Serena, 1”
But Lavinia grabbed his sleeve.
He stopped.
Looked at her.
And said nothing.
I stood up slowly, heart turning to stone.
“Excuse me. I’m not feeling well.” []
I walked past them with my belly held high.
Walked past everything we once had.
From this moment on, those thre
three years were gone.
As I passed, Lavinda called out sweetly behind me,
“Serena, take care of yourself, okay?“[
“Trederick told me–once y
you have the bab
baby, you’ll hand him over to me.“[
“After all, you wouldn’t want a child growing up with a disgraced mother, would you?”
Silence fell over the courtyard.
