Chapt 15. When Did She Get Out of Prison?

“Dominic… I’m coming in.”

The door creaked open, and Sophia Harrington appeared in the doorway, leaning heavily on her crutch. Her hand was still on the knob, stopped in the motion of pushing it wide, as if her urgency had overridden all sense of courtesy. The look in her eyes was desperate—she had come not to visit but to confirm a suspicion that had been clawing at her chest.

Dominic Lancaster’s brows furrowed, his sharp gaze cutting toward her. “Sophia? Why are you here? Weren’t you supposed to be doing rehab today?”

But Sophia wasn’t listening to him. Her eyes had already darted toward Isabella Crater. She stiffened when she saw her—then her gaze flicked back to Dominic, lingering on his half-unbuttoned shirt and the faint smear of blood on his lips. Even the most naive person would know what that meant. And Sophia Harrington was anything but naive.

Her delicate brows drew together, and her voice trembled as she asked, “Dominic… when did she get out of prison? And why… why are you with her?”

Instead of answering, Dominic gave a short, humorless laugh. He slowly buttoned his shirt, his eyes dark and unreadable. “You already knew, didn’t you? Clara must have told you. Otherwise, how would you know to show up here, in the middle of the night?”

“I…” Sophia’s eyes reddened as she bit her lip, forcing her expression into one of wounded innocence. “I only knew she was working at Moonlight Club. That’s why I came. But I didn’t know you’d be with her, doing this.” She faltered, lowering her voice as if she couldn’t bear to say the word. “Dominic, she’s Isabella. She tried to kill me. Have you forgotten?”

At those words, Isabella didn’t know how to react. She lowered her head, fixing her clothes in silence, then slowly stood. Her legs ached with every step, but her voice was calm when she spoke: “Would you mind moving aside?”

Sophia’s expression twisted in hurt as she raised her eyes. “Isabella, do you hate me so much? Wasn’t it enough what you did two years ago? Why do you still have to haunt us? What are you trying to achieve?”

Dominic’s eyes flickered toward Isabella, catching the slight tremor in her lashes. Before she could respond, his voice cut across Sophia’s accusations. “I was the one who brought her to Dream Club.”

Disbelief flashed across Sophia’s pale face. “Dominic… why?”

A thin smile tugged at Dominic’s lips, sharp and cold. “The Harrington siblings seem very interested in my decisions. Since when does the Lancaster family need to explain our choices to you?”

For the first time in two years, Isabella finally raised her eyes and met Sophia’s directly. The woman before her was almost unchanged—delicate, fragile, like a porcelain doll carefully preserved. Only the crutch she leaned on marked her difference from the past.

But Isabella… she was ruined. A bitter laugh slipped from her throat. “Sophia… two years ago, who hurt whom? When will you finally tell the truth?”

Sophia’s face drained of color. Her lip quivered as she forced tears into her voice. “Why are you still lying even now? Isabella, why are you so cruel? Why did you want me dead?”

Isabella didn’t bother replying. What was the point? Two years in prison, a shattered leg, and a reputation buried under lies—those were already her answers. Who would believe her now?

She adjusted the ill-fitting cleaning uniform, shoulders rising in a weary shrug. “It’s been two years. I don’t want to argue anymore. I still have work to do, so I’ll leave you two to it.”

Her words were light, but each syllable felt like a knife slicing open the suffocating air. Without waiting for a response, she moved past them and stepped out of the room, each step dragging like lead.

Dominic’s eyes lingered on her retreating figure. Something flickered in the depths of his gaze—something he couldn’t quite name, or refused to.

Sophia noticed it instantly. Panic flared in her chest. She hurried to close the distance, slipping her hand around his arm, her voice trembling with carefully measured fear. “Dominic, you have to believe me. I only came because I heard she was here. I didn’t mean anything else. But someone who once hurt you, someone who once tried to kill me… suddenly reappearing? Of course I’m terrified.”

Dominic’s voice dropped into a dangerous calm. “Terrified of what, exactly?”

Sophia lifted her eyes to him, her expression a mask of sorrowful fragility. “I’m afraid she’ll deceive you again. I’m afraid she’ll fool my brother again. Back then, if I hadn’t exposed her, you never would’ve known she was seducing Adrian while lying to you at the same time. That’s why she lost control, that night, and tried to run me down. Now she’s out of prison, and she’s back—back in both of your lives. My brother is already losing himself. He’s breaking up with Clara because of her. I’m terrified, Dominic. Terrified the nightmare will repeat itself.”

Her words hung heavy in the room. Dominic’s eyes narrowed to sharp slits. His voice, when it came, was low and dangerous, each word laced with ice.

“You’re telling me… Adrian wants to leave Clara? Because of Isabella?”