Chapter 3

Kalina's POV

After Muffin went missing, Fiona was too scared to live alone. She claimed that every time she heard a door open, she pictured Muffin running away right in front of her. She couldn't sleep at night.

So Brian let her move into Clearwater Bay.

She already had Willowbrook to herself. Now she had a room at Clearwater Bay, too.

She was like an invasive vine, spreading wherever she went until she'd claimed every place as her own.

With seven days left on my contract, Fiona decided to throw a dinner party at the house to make amends.

When I came downstairs, the living room was packed. String lights were wrapped around the staircase railing, music blared from the speakers, and several young people were gathered around Fiona, taking pictures.

She hurried over as soon as she saw me. "Ms. Lawson, you're finally here!"

"What's all this?"

"I've felt terrible ever since I lost Muffin." She offered me a glass of champagne. "Mr. Hemsworth said you're not really into parties, but spending time with friends is the best way to cheer yourself up.

"So I invited some classmates over. I thought it might make you feel better."

I looked at Brian. He sat on the couch, showing no sign of wanting to stop any of this. "Fiona spent all afternoon getting everything ready. Don't ruin it for her."

I didn't take the champagne. "I'm going back upstairs."

Fiona caught my hand. "At least come see the present I made for you."

She led me over to the dining table. A dark green table runner lay across the center of the long table, embroidered with large magnolia blossoms. The fabric looked old, but its edges had been neatly cut.

I stood there, unable to move.

It wasn't a table runner. It was the dress my mother had left me.

She'd spent months embroidering the magnolias by hand, finishing them the year before she died. She never got the chance to wear it.

I'd kept it locked in a cedar chest all these years.

Fiona didn't notice my expression. She was too busy showing off her handiwork. "Isn't this fabric gorgeous? The dress was just so outdated.

"It seemed like such a waste to leave it sitting in a chest, so I had someone turn it into a table runner. There was even enough fabric left over to make a few coasters."

Under every wineglass on the table was a small square of dark green embroidered fabric. The magnolias my mother had spent six months stitching had been cut into pieces.

I reached out and touched the table runner. Her stitches were still there. But the dress could never be put back together.

"Who gave you permission to open that chest?"

Fiona's smile slowly faded. "I was looking for something to decorate the table with. The housekeeper said the chest belonged to you and didn't want to touch it, so I asked Mr. Hemsworth."

I turned to Brian. He finally got to his feet. "I thought it was just an old dress."

"You've seen it before."

On the day of my mother's funeral, I'd sat at the cemetery until dark, clutching that dress.

Brian had stayed with me all night. He'd promised to help me take care of everything I couldn't bear to part with. Apparently, he'd forgotten.

"It's already been cut up. I'll have someone make you another one." Brian came over to me. "Or I'll get you that set of antique pearls at the auction to make up for it."

"Make up for what? The dress? Or my mother?"

His expression changed.

Fiona's eyes filled with tears as she tried to explain. "Ms. Lawson, I didn't know it was something your mother left you. I just wanted you to be able to enjoy it again. You keep everything locked away where you can't even see it. It's almost like you're letting those things go to waste."

I stared at her. She genuinely believed she'd done nothing wrong. She loved smiling, throwing parties, and taking it upon herself to make other people happy.

Everyone was expected to embrace her cheerful outlook on life. Anyone who didn't was miserable and ungrateful.

"Tell her to leave." I looked at Brian as I spoke.

Tears immediately spilled down Fiona's cheeks. "I'll leave right now."

She turned as if to go, but didn't actually take a step.

Brian caught her arm and gave me a cold look. "That's enough. She was only trying to help. I'll make this up to you, but there's no need to make such a big deal out of it."

I began carefully gathering the pieces of fabric from the table. "I just want her gone."

"Clearwater Bay is my house," Brian said firmly. "I don't need your permission to decide who stays here."

The living room fell silent. Everyone was staring at me.

They were waiting for me to cry, to scream, to throw a tantrum like some spoiled mistress who'd finally lost her place in a rich man's affections.

But all I felt was exhaustion. I wasn't even sad anymore. Arguing with him just seemed pointless.

"Understood." I gathered the remains of my mother's dress in my arms and went upstairs.

Brian called after me. "We're leaving for the auction at seven on Friday. You've had your eye on those pearls for a while. I'll buy them for you. And that'll be the end of this."

I paused for two seconds. "Okay."

Back in my room, I closed the door. Before long, the music started up again downstairs. Brian had probably managed to cheer Fiona up.

I carefully folded each piece of fabric and placed them back in the cedar chest. Then I called my lawyer.

"Is everything ready for me to leave the country?"

"Yes, everything's been taken care of. But Ms. Lawson, weren't you planning to wait until next month?"

I glanced at the calendar. In seven days, my contract would officially end.

"I'm not waiting. As soon as the final payment comes through, I'm leaving."