Chapter 7

When Celia woke again, it was already dark. She forced herself out of bed on unsteady legs and made her way out of the hospital. As she passed one of the rooms, she heard Lana's voice through the door, sugary and sweet.

"Dad, Mom, this is Roman. My boyfriend."

Celia stopped.

Through the half-open door, she could see Roman with his arm around Lana's waist. His voice was warm and reassuring. "Don't worry. I won't let Lana be mistreated ever again."

Patrice was beaming. "Good, good. Lana's so lucky to have found someone like you."

Celia stood outside the door, and a memory surfaced before she could stop it.

Years ago, Roman had stood exactly like that, with an arm around her waist as he spoke to her parents with the same sincerity. "Don't worry. I'll never let Celia be mistreated."

The same words, now spoken for another woman.

His promises, it turned out, came with a very short expiration date.

Celia bit down on her lip until she tasted blood, then turned and walked away. Once she was outside, she checked the time. There were three days until the identity erasure was finalized.

Three more days, and she and her parents would be gone for good. No matter how hard Roman searched, every trail would lead to a dead end.

Back at the villa, she packed quickly, just a few changes of clothes, her ID, and her passport. She did not want to take a single thing that belonged to this life.

The bedroom door swung open just as she was slipping her passport into her bag.

Roman stood in the doorway with Lana behind him, tears streaming down her face.

"My dad's out of danger, but at his age, this really took a toll on him..." Lana's voice hitched between sobs, the tears coming one after another.

Roman reached over and wiped her cheeks, his voice gentle. "Don't cry. I'm handling it for you right now."

He paused. "How do you want her to apologize? As long as it's not too extreme, I'll make it happen."

Lana glanced timidly at Celia and said in a small voice, "I... I want her to spend a few days in a cell."

Roman frowned immediately. "Lana, that's a bit much."

"I know you can't bear to do it." Lana tugged at his sleeve, her eyes red and swollen. "But my dad was seriously hurt. If she doesn't face some kind of consequence, she'll just keep going after us."

She bit her lip, her voice dropping even lower. "It's only a few days. Just enough so she won't dare do this again. Roman, I know Mrs. Keller is the one you truly love. I'm just a distraction. If you really can't bring yourself to do it, then... let's just end things."

Roman was quiet for a few seconds. In the end, he pulled her into his arms with a resigned sigh. "We're not ending anything. I'll do what you want."

Celia was taken to a detention center.

Roman did not spare her a second glance before he left.

Once Lana was sure he was gone, she turned back toward Celia and let a cold, thin smile spread across her face. She leaned toward one of the officers and murmured something Celia could not hear while pressing a stack of bills into his hand.