I don't even know who I am anymore

Serena wiped away imaginary tears.

"When I couldn't find you, I became so worried."

"You know that's not true."

Serena looked startled.

"What do you mean?"

"You were the last person to hand me a drink."

The room fell silent.

Vivian's expression darkened.

"Are you accusing your sister now?"

Camella looked directly into Serena's eyes.

"What was in that champagne?"

A flicker of panic crossed Serena's face before disappearing.

"I... I don't understand."

"You were smiling."

Camella whispered.

"When I started feeling dizzy... you were smiling."

Serena's eyes immediately filled with tears.

"Aunt Vivian..."

She clung to Vivian's arm.

"I only wanted to congratulate her."

"I would never hurt my own sister."

Vivian glared at Camella.

"Have you completely lost your mind?"

Richard sighed heavily.

"Camella..."

His disappointed tone broke something inside her.

"I'm not lying."

She looked desperately from one face to another.

"Please... believe me."

Instead, Vivian pointed toward the front door.

"You've embarrassed this family enough."

"What?"

"You heard me."

Vivian's voice was merciless.

"We don't have a place in this house for a woman who has stained our family's name."

Camella froze.

"Dad..."

Richard closed his eyes for a brief moment.

When he opened them again, they were filled with sadness.

"Leave for now."

Her heart shattered as though crushed by a rock.

"You... you're asking me to leave?"

"I need time to think."

Camella stumbled backward.

"I need my father."

Richard looked away.

His silence was answer enough.

Slowly, Camella nodded.

"I understand."

She turned and walked toward the door.

Halfway there, she stopped.

Without looking back, she removed the engagement ring from her finger and placed it on the small table in the foyer.

"I truly loved him," she whispered.

"And I loved this family."

No one stopped her.

No one called her back.

As the mansion doors closed behind her, Camella stood outside with nothing except the clothes she was wearing and the small handbag still hanging from her shoulder.

She looked up at the sky, trying to hold back her tears.

"I have nowhere to go..."

From the second-floor balcony, Serena watched with a satisfied smile hidden behind the curtains.

"One obstacle down," she murmured.

"But you're only beginning to lose everything, dear sister."

Far away, in the penthouse overlooking the city, Alexander Kingston finally stirred awake.

He frowned as he noticed the empty side of the bed.

Then his eyes landed on the unopened envelope still resting on the bedside table.

For the first time that morning...

Something didn't feel right.

Alexander Kingston slowly sat up, rubbing his temples.

His bedroom was unusually quiet.

The woman from last night was gone.

His eyes drifted to the bedside table.

The envelope Herald Hawthorne had prepared still lay exactly where it had been placed.

Untouched.

Alexander frowned.

"She didn't take it?"

A soft knock came from the door.

"Come in."

Herald Hawthorne entered with his usual composed expression.

"Good morning, Mr. Kingston."

Alexander picked up the envelope.

"I thought you said she'd accepted the settlement."

"I never said that, sir."

Alexander looked at him.

"Then why is the money still here?"

Herald remained silent for a moment before answering.

"She refused it."

Alexander's brows knitted together.

"Refused?"

"Yes."

"Did she ask for anything else?"

"No."

"A meeting?"

"No."

"A favor? A job? Compensation?"

Herald shook his head.

"Nothing."

Alexander leaned back against the headboard.

That was... unusual.

He had dealt with enough scandals involving influential families to know how these situations usually ended. Money, demands, threats, interviews.

But this woman...

She had walked away empty-handed.

"What exactly did she say?"

Herald adjusted his glasses.

"She said she wanted to know what had happened."

Alexander's expression hardened.

"And?"

"I informed her that the matter was over."

Alexander remained silent.

Fragments of the previous night flashed through his mind.

The young woman had stumbled into him in the hotel hallway, barely able to stand.

She had wrapped her arms around him, laughing like an innocent child.

She had called him handsome.

She had nearly collapsed in his arms.

At the time, he had assumed she was drunk.

Now...

Something about it felt different.

"Did she seem intoxicated?"

Herald hesitated.

"Not exactly."

Alexander looked up.

"What does that mean?"

"She appeared... frightened. Confused. She repeatedly claimed she couldn't remember how she got there."

Alexander's jaw tightened.

"Did anyone investigate?"

"There was no need."

"There was every need."

Herald blinked in surprise.

Alexander rarely questioned his decisions.

"I want every surveillance recording from the Grand Crest Hotel."

Herald frowned.

"The hotel has already informed us that the cameras covering the east hallway malfunctioned during the night."

Alexander's sharp eyes narrowed.

"What about the ballroom?"

"They're sending the footage."

For the first time that morning, Alexander felt an unfamiliar sense of unease.

Coincidence?

Or was someone trying to hide something?

Across town...

Camella wandered aimlessly through crowded streets with no destination in mind.

She had nowhere to go.

No family willing to open their doors.

No fiancé waiting to comfort her.

No one.

She checked her handbag.

Her phone.

A little cash.

Her identification card.

That was all she had left.

Her stomach growled.

Only then did she realize she hadn't eaten since the engagement banquet.

She found a small roadside café and used the last of her cash to buy a cup of tea and a loaf of bread.

The elderly woman serving her noticed the tears she kept trying to hide.

"My dear," the woman said gently, placing the tea before her, "whatever you're carrying... don't carry it alone."

Camella smiled faintly.

"If only it were that easy."

The woman reached across the table and squeezed her hand.

"Sometimes losing everything is the first step toward finding yourself."

Camella lowered her eyes.

"I don't even know who I am anymore."