Since marrying Cassian, Scarlett had hidden her true self away, dutifully playing the role of a proper Blackthorne wife.
She was exhausted and didn't want to continue.
Cassian let out a cold laugh. "You think you can use divorce as leverage against me? It won't work."
"I'm serious..." Before Scarlett could finish, Cassian's phone rang.
He answered, and his expression changed abruptly. "I understand. I'll head over right away."
He left Scarlett standing halfway up the stairs. Her voice was soft as she finished her sentence. "I'm serious about the divorce. It's not a tactic to keep you here."
But Cassian had already taken the call and left. He couldn't hear her anymore.
Back in her room, that exchange, hardly even an argument, had left Scarlett unable to sleep. She thought to herself that even after the divorce, if the Wycliffe family refused to take her back, she could stay temporarily with her friend Verity Hale.
So she packed a few belongings, pulled her suitcase downstairs, and prepared to leave.
As she passed Ryan's room, the door was slightly ajar. The little boy was sprawled on his bed, fast asleep, his blanket kicked to one side.
Scarlett stood in the doorway and watched him for a long time. In the end, she couldn't bring herself to leave him like that. She tiptoed over and tucked the blanket around him.
But just as she was about to pull away, the little boy suddenly grabbed her arm.
Ryan mumbled something incoherent in his sleep. Scarlett couldn't make out the words, but she was certain they weren't kind. She lowered her eyes and slowly extracted her arm from her son's hold.
"Don't worry," she whispered. "Your wish will come true soon enough."
She didn't linger, pulling her suitcase toward the door and leaving without a word. The wheels rolled across the cold marble floor, their sound resolute and strangely light.
Verity had just finished a livestream when Scarlett called. She was a beauty influencer with a large following, and she came downstairs to meet her.
When Verity heard what had happened, she was furious on Scarlett's behalf. "Cassian held the wedding you planned with his first love, and he still remembers he has a wife? And Ryan, does he even know who his real mother is?"
"It doesn't matter anymore. We're getting divorced anyway." Scarlett had already accepted the reality. "I haven't slept all night. I need to rest."
To avoid disrupting Verity's work, Scarlett went to sleep in the guest room.
When she woke, it was already four in the afternoon. Verity's second livestream of the day had just ended.
Scarlett's phone was full of work messages. She opened the most recent one, sent by her assistant.
Assistant: Ms. Vale, you need to get here now! Mr. Blackthorne is planning to replace you with Elowen as the lead on the Hearthlight Project for neurological rare disease support!
That project had taken her half a year to secure. After learning about Elowen's illness six months ago, Scarlett had worked through the night compiling research materials and spent months visiting over a hundred families affected by ALS. The initiative was meant to raise funds to help patients in need.
She could hand the project over to anyone. Anyone except Elowen.
By the time Scarlett reached the office, it was after hours, yet nearly half the staff were still there.
She pushed open the door to Cassian's office and spoke directly. "I've been in charge of the rare disease support project from the start, from the initial research to securing partnerships. I made it all happen. If you want to give it to someone else, you need to give me a proper reason."
"Scarlett, please don't blame Cassian." From the corner of the room, Elowen's voice rang out. She stood behind Cassian, her eyes red-rimmed, her voice trembling as if on the verge of tears. "I just feel like I don't have much time left, and I wanted to help patients like me. That's why I begged Cassian to find something for me to do."
How noble she sounded, yet she had no qualms about stealing someone else's hard work.
Scarlett's tone was cold. "It's good that you have that intention. But don't you think it's a little disingenuous?"
"I didn't. I really didn't." Elowen swayed slightly, as if she might collapse at any moment.
Cassian immediately steadied her, then turned a look of disgust toward Scarlett. "You've gone too far."
"Compared to you taking my project without even informing me, I'm not sure who's gone further." Scarlett's tone was firm, but her gaze fell on Cassian's hand, still holding Elowen tightly, and she looked away.
"Scarlett, please don't fight with Cassian. It's all my fault. I'm sick, and my energy is so low now. I should have done everything myself, but instead I had to ask Cassian for help." Elowen clung to Cassian's arm, her posture humble and apologetic.
By contrast, Scarlett, standing her ground and defending what was rightfully hers, looked overbearing.
"Scarlett, just let me have this project. You're healthy and you'll have countless opportunities in the future, but I..." Elowen bit her lower lip, the picture of wounded innocence.
Scarlett let out a soft, bitter laugh. The absurdity of it all struck her. "This support project will cover over a thousand families. There are elderly parents trying to save their children, older brothers who've dropped out of school to keep their sisters alive. This affects thousands of lives. Can you shoulder that responsibility?"
Aksara