Chapter 3

Kim's POV

I squinted. The moment I realized it was Velma Lane, my vision went black, and I passed out.

Shortly after marrying Anson, I'd found Velma wandering the streets, pitiful and alone. I'd brought her back to work as a maid. After Winona came, she claimed Velma's background was shady and had her kicked out.

When I opened my eyes again, I found myself in a cramped, dim rental apartment. Velma was wringing out a towel and watching me with concern.

"Ms. Slater, you're finally awake. Oh, right. Someone by the surname of Chapman asked if I'd seen you. I lied and said no. Do you know him?" she asked.

I shook my head. I didn't even have time to wonder how she'd found out I'd been locked in the basement, nor did I have any friends with the last name Chapman. I just hurriedly thanked her and headed straight for the hospital, where Mom was admitted.

On the way there, anxiety tangled with a mess of emotions I couldn't name. I couldn't figure out how someone who once swore he would protect me for life could now hate me, scorn me, and look at me with eyes that didn't hold a single trace of warmth.

But all of that mental chaos froze the moment I pushed open that all-too-familiar ward door. The bed was empty. Mom, who would always smile and wave at me, was gone.

I ran to the doctor's office and demanded an explanation. He was visibly taken aback when he saw me.

"Ms. Slater? We reached out five days ago for you to sign the surgery consent form. Since we never got it, we could only treat your mother conservatively.

"But her treatment funds ran out three days ago, and we couldn't reach you or Mr. Granger. She managed to hold on, but yesterday, she passed away. Her body was just taken to be cremated…"

Passed away. Cremated.

The words were simple enough, but somehow, I couldn't understand them. They were like needles piercing my eardrums and stabbing me straight in the heart.

I forced the corners of my lips up. "Is this a joke or something? Anson is a shareholder of this hospital. You're telling me his mother-in-law died here under your care?"

The doctor sighed. "We truly couldn't get through to Mr. Granger. The one time someone finally picked up, it was a woman. She said that if we called again, Mr. Granger would pull his investment.

"Not long after that, we got another call from someone who said they were authorized by you to have your mother's body taken for cremation. Ms. Slater, you didn't know any of this?"

His words were like firecrackers that went off in my head one after another, leaving me so dizzy I could hardly stand.

I clung to his arm like a fish gasping on shore, desperate to hold on to one last drop of water. "That phone number… Do you still have it?"

When I dialed the contact he gave me, a familiar, contemptuous voice came through the line. "You're only calling now, Kim? Took you long enough."

The sound of Winona's voice forced the tears back into my eyes. Every nerve in my head was stretched to breaking point as I rasped, "You arranged for Velma to rescue me on purpose, didn't you? Where's my mom?"

"You ask too many questions. Do one last thing as Mrs. Granger, and I'll tell you everything."

I never would've imagined that the last thing Winona was talking about was attending a charity gala.

By the time I rushed to the venue, the event was already in full swing. From a distance, I saw Winona at the center of everyone's attention, laughing and chatting. Meanwhile, I got stopped at the entrance.

I didn't know what she told them, but people all turned to look my way.

"Oh, goodness. Why does Mrs. Granger look like such a mess? If I didn't know better, I'd think some hick wandered in here by mistake."

"Tell me about it. I haven't seen Mr. Granger bring her out in ages. Who knows if she's still his wife?"

"Winona, you and Mr. Granger are close. Tell us what's really going on here."

Winona put on a conflicted, hesitant face. "Don't say things like that. Mrs. Granger must have her reasons for dressing like this. Why don't we see what item she brought for the charity auction instead?"

I clenched and unclenched my fists. "I didn't prepare anything. I'm here to—"

It was like a drop of water falling into a pan of hot oil. The crowd instantly crackled with outrage.

"This charity auction was organized by Will Chapman, the most influential heir in Arvonshire. Even Mr. Granger has to show him some respect, and you dare to show up empty-handed? Isn't that basically a slap to Mr. Chapman's face?"

"Exactly. You're totally disrespecting Mr. Chapman. Does Mr. Granger know his wife is out here making such a fool of herself?"

Winona feigned surprise. "Mrs. Granger, didn't I prepare something for you ahead of time?"

She turned to the others. "Everyone, don't get the wrong idea. Mrs. Granger has always been kind and generous. I'm sure she plans to make a direct cash donation instead."

After she said that, everyone looked at me expectantly, eager to see how much I could fork out. Winona smiled sweetly at me, but I saw the mockery hidden in her eyes.

Forget the fact that I'd been locked in a basement for five full days and had just escaped. Even if I'd gone back to the Granger residence and scraped together everything I owned, I still wouldn't be able to produce anything decent. After all, Winona had already sold off most of my personal belongings.

So, this had been her plan all along. She wanted me to be an utter disgrace to Anson and to turn me into a complete joke.

Even though I already knew where this was headed, I still frantically dug in every pocket I had. In the end, all I found was the ten bucks Velma had stubbornly stuffed into my hand before I left, telling me to buy some water.

The hall went dead silent, then erupted into raucous laughter. The gossip and ridicule crawled over every inch of my skin like countless ants.

I gritted my teeth, kept my head down, and stepped closer to Winona. "You got what you wanted. Now, tell me where my mom is."

Winona was beyond satisfied; she laughed so hard she was in tears. "Kim, did you know I've always loved fireworks?"

She clapped her hands, and the night sky exploded into brilliant fireworks. The shapes kept changing, and the colors were dazzling. They drew gasps of amazement from the crowd.

Winona smiled in satisfaction. "Anson arranged these just for me. Oh, you were looking for your mom, right? She's right up there."