When Victoria finally woke up, she found herself in a hospital. A nurse was adjusting the IV drip on the back of her hand.

When she saw that Victoria had woken up, the nurse said, "Ms. Calloway, you're finally awake. Your injuries are quite serious, so you'll need to be hospitalized for observation. You should also contact your family so someone can settle the medical bills."

Victoria stared blankly at the ceiling, offering no response at all.

The nurse repeated herself, "Ms. Calloway…"

"The medical bills have been taken care of," a low, achingly familiar male voice sounded from the doorway.

Victoria's head snapped toward the door. There stood Caden, impeccably dressed in a black suit.

The nurse glanced between them, then quietly excused herself and left the room.

Caden stepped inside. His gaze swept over the bandages on her body before he reached out, as though to touch her forehead.

But Victoria turned away sharply to avoid his touch. "Mr. Larkson, you are a busy man. Why trouble yourself with visiting someone who is of no importance?"

Caden's hand stilled midair.

"Would anyone else come for you if I hadn't?"

The words landed like the sharpest blade, slicing straight into the deepest wound she carried.

Who else did she have, indeed? Eunice was long gone, Hugh had always favored his new family, and Marjorie was full of pretense. That house had long ceased to be her home.

All Victoria could do was put on an arrogant and defiant front, pretending she needed no one and cared for nothing.

For three years, it had been Caden who appeared every time she was in need. He had let her grow accustomed to relying on him, letting her mistakenly believe she had found a safe harbor. And now, he was the one shoving her back into the abyss with his own hands.

Her heart was numb with pain. "Even if no one comes, I don't need you. You said it yourself—we're over! Mr. Larkson, I'm not that pathetic. Since you said that you don't have feelings for me, I'm certainly not going to throw myself at you shamelessly!"

She drew a shaky breath, clinging to the last shreds of her pride, and lashed out without thinking. "You didn't actually believe I was serious about having feelings for you, did you? I was just talking nonsense.

"You saw me as a bedmate, and I saw you as nothing more than a vibrator! Your skills were average at best! Once I'm better, there's no doubt I'll be looking for a better, younger one!"

Caden frowned almost imperceptibly, seeing Victoria pretending to be fierce, though her eyes were red-rimmed with unshed tears.

Just then, a nurse hurried in. "Mr. Larkson, Ms. Cassandra's done with her checkup. She's been asking for you."

Victoria reacted almost instantaneously, bristling at him and saying, "Go! Go to your precious first love, then! I don't need you here!"

Caden looked at her in silence for several long seconds. When he finally spoke, his tone was distant. "I came to stay with you for one reason only. You're Pam's best friend, and she's asked me to look after you."

Victoria couldn't hold back a laugh. It shook her whole body, tugging painfully at her wounds, yet it was nothing compared to the agony in her chest.

She stopped laughing, lifting her tear-streaked face, her gaze icy and shattered. "Don't you worry, Caden. I'm not so delusional as to think that you'd be here for any other reason."

Caden felt his heart clench. Something flickered in his deep gaze—something faint and fleeting, gone before she could grasp it.

This was the first time he had ever seen Victoria cry. In the past, even when he pushed her to her limits in bed, only her eyes would redden before she would bite her lip until it bled, refusing to let even a single tear fall.

Now, seeing her tear-streaked face, he couldn't help but frown even more. His Adam's apple bobbed ever so slightly, as if he was about to say something. But in the end, he said nothing. He simply turned and followed the nurse out of the room.

Watching his resolute departure, Victoria could no longer hold it in and finally collapsed back onto the bed, letting silent tears soak into the pillow.

She thought she would cry for a long time, but strangely, the tears dried up quickly. All that remained was a dead, icy stillness.

In the days that followed, she stayed alone in the hospital, managing by herself. She suffered the pain of having her bandages changed, which made her break out in a cold sweat, and she also put up with tasteless meals all alone.

Occasionally, she would overhear nurses whispering in the hallway about how fortunate Cassandra, who was in the VIP room next door, was. She heard them talking about how attentive Caden was, feeding her, accompanying her through the night, and treating her like she was his most precious treasure.

Once, as she passed that room, the door was ajar. Through the crack, she saw Caden seated at the bedside, carefully peeling an apple while Cassandra leaned against his shoulder, smiling softly.

The sight burned in her eyes, the pain blinding. Her heart seized and twisted violently. But she did not cry.

Victoria's greatest strength had always been her ability to love fiercely and to let go of it completely when the time came. From that day on, she swore she would never shed another tear for Caden.

The first thing she did after being discharged was apply for a visa.

She couldn't bear to spend another second in this city anymore.

After securing her visa, Victoria returned home. The moment she stepped through the door, she came face-to-face with Marjorie—perfectly dolled up as always.

Marjorie launched into her usual lecture the second she saw Victoria. "Vicky, so you finally decided to come back? You've been staying out all night for days on end! What kind of behavior is that for a young lady?"

Victoria didn't even glance her way. Instead, she reached for the tall porcelain vase standing by the entryway and smashed it to the floor with all her strength. The sound was deafening, and shards flew in every direction.

Marjorie let out a shriek and stumbled back a couple of steps.

Victoria looked at her calmly, her strikingly beautiful face etched with contempt and iciness. "And who the hell do you think you are? How dare a home-wrecking mistress lecture me, the legitimate daughter? Remember this, Marjorie—as long as I'm still in this house, you will never be the lady of the house!"

Her words were sharp, each one a precise strike, leaving Marjorie pale and trembling with rage.

"Victoria! What on earth is wrong with you now?"

Hugh burst out of the study at the sound, rushing to steady Marjorie before she could collapse. He glared at Victoria with fury. "The second you walk in, you turn the whole place upside down! Can't you behave for once?"

Seeing Hugh protect Marjorie, Victoria felt nothing but disappointment and bitter irony. She sniggered. "I'm the one turning everything upside down? Fine. Just give me my share of the inheritance early, and I'll go abroad. I won't bother any of you ever again."

Hugh froze, then quickly plastered on a mask of false concern. "What nonsense are you talking about? Go abroad? What would a young lady like you do out there? Stay here. This will always be your home. We're family—"

"Family?" Victoria laughed as if she'd heard the greatest joke. "Stop the act, Hugh. You, her, and Cassandra—you're a family. My mother died, and with her, my home. Just give me my share. I want what's rightfully mine."

Hugh's expression darkened. After a long silence, he offered, feigning sincerity, "I know you're upset with the family. How about this? I'll give you five million dollars first. You can go on a trip to clear your head—"

Victoria scoffed, "Five million dollars? Hugh Calloway, everything you have today was built on the Monroe family's capital! On my mother's wedding gift! On the life she sacrificed to save yours in that crash!

"And now, you're using my mother's money to support this mistress and her bastard daughter, living in a house my mother bought, and you think five million dollars is enough to pay off her only child? Have you no shame?"

Struck in his most vulnerable spot, Hugh flushed with anger. "You! Fine! Tell me exactly how much you want. Just name it!"

Victoria had come prepared. She pulled a document from her bag and recited the figures and stock holdings with cold precision.

"You're insane! That's impossible!" Hugh exploded. "You're trying to take half of Calloway Corporation!"

Unfazed, Victoria walked to the window, looking down at the yard below, her tone deceptively light. "No? That's fine. I've planted explosives around the villa. Either you agree, sign the agreement, and hand over what's mine, or we all die here today. Your choice."

Hugh's eyes widened sharply. He pointed a trembling finger at her. "You… You lunatic!"

"Yes," she said calmly, meeting his eyes without a trace of hesitation. "A lunatic driven mad by all of you."

Hugh's expression turned ashen, and his breathing grew ragged as he stared at her, trying to gauge the truth of her words. In the end, raw fear of death won out over everything else.

He collapsed onto the couch, a cold sweat breaking out. With a shaking hand, he signed Victoria's asset division agreement.

"Now… Now go get rid of those bombs!" His voice trembled.

Victoria picked up the agreement, carefully examined the signature, and a cold, mocking smile tugged on her lips. "Relax. There are no bombs. I lied. Just like how you lied to my mother to get her to marry you. Like father, like daughter."

Only then did Hugh realize he'd been fooled. He was so furious he could hardly catch his breath. Pointing a finger at her, he sputtered for a couple of seconds, unable to form a complete sentence, "You… You…"

Victoria had no more patience for him. She turned to go upstairs.

"Stop right there!" Hugh called out, panting, struggling to contain his rage.

"Cassandra is bringing her boyfriend home for dinner today! I don't care how you've acted before, but you will sit through this meal properly!"

He emphasized his words, a clear warning in his tone. "Her boyfriend is Caden Larkson! You know the standing of the Larkson family in Dravenia! We cannot afford to offend them! Tame that rebellious streak of yours, and don't you dare cause any trouble!"

Victoria's footsteps halted mid-step, and she went rigid.

Caden was visiting? As Cassandra's boyfriend?

The very next second, the front door opened. Cassandra walked in, arm in arm with Caden, a sweet smile gracing her lips.

"Dad, Mom, I'm home!"

Hugh and Marjorie, who had only just recovered from her earlier shock, immediately plastered on bright, welcoming smiles. They hurried forward, fussing over Cassandra with exaggerated concern while greeting and scraping toward Caden with servile respect.

Only Caden's gaze lingered on Victoria. His brows furrowed noticeably the moment he saw her. It seemed that he was only now learning that Victoria was Cassandra's sister.

At dinner, Cassandra and Caden were seated on one side of the long table, while Victoria sat alone directly across from them.

Throughout the meal, Victoria watched as Caden meticulously cut Cassandra's steak for her and refilled her glass, and when a dab of sauce stained Cassandra's lip, he naturally lifted a napkin to wipe it away.

Marjorie beamed at the display. "Cassie, darling, how did you and Mr. Larkson meet? Tell me all about it."

A delicate blush rose on Cassandra's cheeks. "It was at a charity gala. I saw a stray cat stuck in a tree and tried to help it down, but I slipped and almost fell myself. Caden caught me, and later, he asked for my contact."

She finished, casting an affectionate glance at Caden.

Victoria couldn't suppress a derisive snort.

Cassandra had always hated animals. As a child, she'd even tortured Victoria's cat to death. The idea of her voluntarily rescuing a cat was absurd. Either this was a carefully staged performance by Cassandra, or she'd actually rescued the cat only so she could torment it later.

Victoria's mocking laugh cut sharply through the quiet dining room. All eyes turned to her.

Cassandra's expression faltered slightly before she smiled. "What about you, Vicky? Have you had any boyfriends these years? When will you bring him home to meet us?"

Victoria's lips curved into a bright, dazzling smile. "Bring one home? Oh, I couldn't possibly."

Cassandra tilted her head, puzzled. "Why not?"

Victoria's grin widened, turning wild and unrestrained. Her gaze flicked meaningfully toward Caden before settling back on Cassandra's face. Her tone was deliberately light and teasing.

"Because there are just too many. Unlike you, who's apparently so… lacking in charm that it took you three whole years to bring home just one."

She drew out her words, like a carefree enchantress, "Just so you know, I've got suitors lined up from the front gate of the Calloway residence all the way to Beurreton in Avernia. Honestly, I couldn't possibly bring them all!"

"Victoria!" Hugh's face flushed with anger, and he slammed a hand on the table.

Marjorie seethed, her chest heaving. Cassandra looked wounded, and her eyes welled up as she turned a helpless gaze toward Caden.

Caden set down his cutlery and calmly wiped his hands with his napkin. Then, under everyone's watchful eyes, he reached over and took Cassandra's hand where it rested on the table.

"You have no need to compare your charm to anyone else's, Cassie," he said quietly, his voice steady and certain. "In my heart, no one comes close to you. You are the best—unrivaled."

The words landed like a final, irrevocable verdict, driving Victoria straight into an endless abyss.

Cassandra's tears transformed into a smile of triumph as she clasped his hand back, her face radiant with happiness and quiet triumph.

Victoria stared at their joined hands. Her heart felt as though it had been crushed in an instant—shattered so completely that she could barely maintain her mask of defiant arrogance.