When Celine got home, she headed straight for the master bedroom and had the maid bring up several large cardboard boxes. She started packing up everything that belonged to her.

Steven didn't return until 10:00 pm, and he came back alone. Celine glanced over her shoulder briefly but didn't ask any questions.

Steven seemed oddly guilty and offered an explanation. "Quinn's ankle is pretty badly sprained. I left Zane there to keep her company."

"Mm."

Celine had been unusually quiet all day, and it seemed to unsettle him. For once, he kept talking.

"I know you worry about Zane, but he's at that age where kids have a lot of energy. If you showed him a little more patience, he wouldn't dislike you so much."

"Mm."

He'd made two attempts at offering her an olive branch, and both had been met with the same flat, indifferent response. Irritation flashed in Steven's eyes. He watched her pack box after box without so much as looking at him, and his tone sharpened.

"Celine, what are you trying to pull now? I didn't drive you home today because Quinn was injured and there was no room in the car."

Celine found him standing there more of an obstruction than anything else. She finally stopped and looked at him. "I'm doing some spring cleaning. Do you need something? If not, move."

Steven had never seen her that detached before. He found it completely unreasonable. He'd explained himself. Why couldn't she just be understanding for once?

Years of this comfortable life had turned her into such a nag!

Steven stormed out and slammed the door behind him.

Once Celine finished clearing out the walk-in closet, she dragged the boxes to the recycling bins at the neighborhood entrance. When she looked up, she spotted Steven across the street in the yard of another house.

She paused mid-step. Standing in front of Steven was none other than Quinn.

"That newlywed couple has such a sweet relationship. They take walks in the yard together every afternoon. Makes you jealous just watching them." A voice sighed nearby.

Celine turned. It was a neighbor from the next building over, Lydia Wilkins. They'd run into each other a few times and occasionally exchanged pleasantries.

"I remember that house has the best layout in the whole neighborhood. I heard they even paid extra to get it. Oh, youth!" Lydia's face was full of envy.

Celine didn't know what to say. She just smiled.

It really was laughable when she thought about it. She'd been married to Steven for five years, and the neighbors didn't even know what her husband looked like. The outside world had never caught a single photo of her and Steven together.

For five years, she'd been invisible. She'd taken care of everything for him, seemingly holding the title of wife, but it had all been nothing more than smoke and mirrors.

When Lydia saw that Celine wasn't going to engage, she headed back home without another word.

Celine turned back to look at the scene across the street. It made her sick that he was keeping his mistress less than 200 yards from their home. Steven really wasn't even trying to hide it anymore.

In the small yard, Steven was talking to Quinn about something. Quinn laughed and threw herself at him. They embraced, and Celine figured a kiss would come next.

She didn't want to watch any longer. She turned and left.

Steven caught Quinn as she threw herself at him, his tone helpless. "Doesn't your leg hurt anymore?"

"Just a little!" Quinn blinked up at him, her eyes soft and adoring.

"Stand properly." Steven steadied her on her feet and looked away from her gaze. When he spotted Celine's retreating figure across the street, something like panic flickered through him.

"Quinn, I just remembered something. I need to head back for a bit."

Steven let go and strode out of the yard. Celine was about to close the door when resistance pushed back against it. She turned to find Steven standing there, slightly surprised.

"I thought you weren't coming home tonight." Her expression was blank.

"Quinn didn't have anywhere to go when she came back to the country. It's dangerous for a woman to live alone. The security in our neighborhood is good, so I rented her a place here. Don't read too much into it." Steven's explanation came quickly.

Celine nodded with what seemed like genuine appreciation. "A neighbor just told me what loving newlyweds you two are. She even mentioned you paid extra to secure that house."

The lie was exposed immediately, and Steven's face darkened with embarrassment and anger.

"Celine, can't you be a little more generous? It's just a house. What's the big deal?

"Why are you being so petty about every little thing? Quinn never makes a fuss over stuff like this!"

It wasn't a big deal?

Celine let out a mocking laugh. "Right. She's virtuous, and I could never measure up. I'll never spend my life playing second fiddle to a man, wasting all my energy trying to keep him happy!"

The words had barely left her mouth when Steven's expression changed. She followed his gaze and spotted Quinn standing at the bottom of the front steps.

"I'm so sorry, Celine. This is all my fault. I've interfered with your life and caused you so much trouble. But I… I just…" Quinn looked at Steven with tears pooling in her eyes.

"You didn't do anything wrong. She's just being petty."

Steven finished comforting Quinn, then turned to Celine with a command. "Apologize to Quinn."

Celine was exhausted. She'd been woken up early that morning, bruised her leg playing that stupid game at noon, and spent the entire afternoon packing. All she wanted now was to find somewhere quiet and rest.

She had no interest in another pointless fight. But clearly, peace and quiet were too much to ask for in this house.

Celine turned, grabbed her bag, and headed for the door. Steven had just helped Quinn inside when he saw Celine walking out with her bag. Her temper seemed to be getting worse by the day, and anger surged through him.

"If you leave, don't bother coming back."

Perfect! Celine scoffed and kept walking.

Quinn stood just beside the doorway, blocking a small portion of the path. Celine deliberately angled her body to slip past. She'd just gotten one foot over the threshold when Quinn screamed and fell backward.

Celine's hand shot out instinctively to catch her, but she missed. She could only watch as Quinn tumbled down the steps and hit her head hard enough to draw blood.

"Celine! What the hell is wrong with you?"

Steven's furious voice exploded in her ear. He rushed over to check on Quinn. "Where are you hurt? I'm taking you to the hospital."

Quinn swayed on her feet as if she were about to faint. She stood up, one hand covering her injury, the other pushing Steven away.

"I'm fine, Steve. As long as Celine feels better, that's all that matters. You two should work things out. I'll go home and take care of this myself."

Quinn was firm in her refusal. She insisted on drawing a clear line between them and absolutely would not go to the hospital.

Steven looked frantic. When he saw Celine standing there completely unmoved, he strode over, grabbed her arm, and dragged her in front of Quinn. This time, his grip was even more brutal as he tried to force her down.

"Apologize to Quinn!"

"Steven, if your eyes don't work, go to the hospital and get them checked. You want me to apologize? Never."

Celine wrenched herself free with all her strength. She'd just regained her balance when a sudden force at her waist sent her toppling backward.

There were still two or three steps behind her. She hit the ground and rolled down before finally coming to a stop.

Pain exploded at the base of her spine. The pain was so intense that she broke out in a cold sweat immediately. Her vision swam, and Quinn's shrill voice echoed somewhere in the distance.

"Celine, are you okay?"

"She's fine. She's just putting on a show because she doesn't want to apologize!" Steven's voice dripped with contempt.

"But she looks like she can't get up…"

"It's two or three steps. What's there to get up from? You fell down nearly eight steps, and you're still standing. Quinn, listen to me. That head wound needs to be treated right away. I'm taking you to the hospital."

"I…"

Celine couldn't hear the rest. Steven must have dragged Quinn away.

…

When Celine opened her eyes again, she found herself lying in a hospital bed. It took her a moment to piece together what had happened. She hadn't just stopped hearing them. She'd passed out.

Lydia was the one who'd brought her in. The moment she saw Celine awake, she started fussing.

"You scared me half to death! I was walking past your place on my way back from the market, and there you were, lying on the ground. You wouldn't respond no matter how much I called out to you. I thought…"

The implication was too grim to voice, so Lydia trailed off and switched gears.

"Now that you're awake, you should call your family and have them come stay with you. The doctor said you took a pretty bad fall and needed to be hospitalized for a few days. I have to get home now."

Celine thanked her softly.

Celine didn't call anyone. She hired a private nurse and planned to recover in peace.

Still, Quinn showed up at her door. A bandage was taped to her forehead, and when she looked at Celine lying in the hospital bed, all the warmth and gentleness from before had vanished. In its place was smug satisfaction and barely concealed glee at Celine's misfortune.

"Celine, if you know what's good for you, you'll leave and make room for me. Clinging to your position won't end well for you. You can't win against me!"

Celine watched her gloat and found it almost amusing.

"If you're so confident, why bother coming here to tell me all this?" she asked with genuine curiosity.

A flash of resentment crossed Quinn's eyes. The truth was, she'd noticed that while Steven treated her just as well as before, he'd been keeping a certain distance lately.

It made her uneasy. That was why she was so desperate to get rid of Celine.

"You should know him pretty well by now. He's stubborn and set in his ways once he's made up his mind. But he also hates people who are manipulative and ruthless.

"What do you think would happen if he found out everything you've done? Do you really think he'd still treat you well?"

After all these years, Celine felt she had Steven figured out completely.

"Are you threatening me?" Quinn's expression darkened. She stared at Celine with undisguised hatred.

Celine's tone remained calm. "I'm just telling you the truth."

"Then, let's test it. Let's see who Steve believes, you or me. Just like this time, I fell down those steps on my own, but he didn't even ask questions before deciding you pushed me."

Quinn brought it up herself, probably trying to regain some confidence.

"Even your own son can't stand you. He likes me better. Celine, what do you have that could possibly beat me? You've already lost!

"I'm giving you one last chance. Leave on your own, and as a reward for being sensible, I'll let Zane visit you from time to time.

"Otherwise, I'll make sure he never acknowledges you as his mother for the rest of his life."

After Quinn left, Celine pulled out the phone she'd kept hidden beneath the blanket and stopped the recording.

Celine spent a week in the hospital. Aside from her rival's visit, Steven never once showed his face. Zane did come by once, though it was on Quinn's behalf.

He demanded that Celine apologize to Quinn. He said the wound on Quinn's forehead might scar. He called her vicious for hurting someone's appearance.

Perhaps it was all the time she'd spent lying in that hospital bed, but Celine had done a lot of thinking. She'd come to realize that compared to life and death, everything else was trivial. Hearing Zane say these things didn't hurt or enrage her the way it once would have.

She was almost curious now, so she asked, "What are you going to do if I don't apologize?"

Was he going to use violence like Steven?

Zane glared at Celine, his voice loud and firm. "If you don't apologize, I won't call you my mother anymore! I don't have such a cruel and vicious mother!"

Celine waved him off. "Bye, Zane."

Father and son really were cut from the same cloth. Both of them wanted her gone, and so did Quinn. Perfect. All of them were working toward the same goal.

"You're completely unrepentant!" Zane huffed and stormed out. He never came back after that.

Once the pain subsided, Celine checked herself out of the hospital and returned to the villa one last time. Before going back, she made sure to check the security cameras and confirm that both Steven and Zane were out.

She threw away everything she hadn't managed to get rid of the first time, grabbed her identification documents, and checked into a hotel.

Just three more days. In three days, her contract with Evelyn would expire.

Celine had planned to spend those three days resting peacefully at the hotel. Once the time was up, she'd take the passport Evelyn had prepared for her and leave. But on the final day, someone knocked on her door.

It was Steven.

"Celine, there's a limit to how long you can throw a fit." Steven tugged at his tie as he walked in, frustration simmering beneath the surface. When he saw Celine's indifferent expression, his anger flared even hotter.

"You don't answer your phone, and now you're running away from home? Have I been too easy on you all these years?"

"Sorry," Celine apologized immediately, and Steven's expression softened slightly.

But then she followed up with, "I blocked your number. That's why I didn't get your calls."

"You!" Steven's hands trembled with rage.

"Did you need something?"

The days Celine had spent in the hospital had been the most peaceful she'd had in five years. Now, seeing Steven again, she couldn't muster even a shred of patience.

"If there's nothing else, you should go. I need to rest."

"Celine, have you forgotten what tomorrow is?" Steven forced the question through gritted teeth.

Celine drew a blank. What day?

"Tomorrow is Zane's birthday. I'm throwing him a party at Fester Hotel. Be there at 6:00 pm sharp." Steven finished speaking and fixed Celine with a meaningful look.

"After the party, we need to talk."

Celine didn't hesitate. "I'm not going."

"Celine, you're his mother!" Steven's voice rose sharply.

"He doesn't see me as his mother. If I go, I'll just get dirty looks. I'm not that bored that I need to go looking for a bad time." As she spoke, Celine pushed him toward the door and shut it firmly in his face.

The hallway fell silent.

As for Steven wanting to talk? She almost laughed. When she'd wanted to talk before, had he ever given her the chance?

No. And now Celine didn't want to give him one either.

The idea that she'd once wanted a clean break, that she'd felt the need to hash everything out, seemed absolutely ridiculous now. She must've lost her mind.

No one cared then. And now, she didn't care either.

Steven must have complained to Evelyn, because that evening, Celine received a call asking her to attend Zane's birthday party.

"Celine, just think of it as the last thing you have to do under our contract." Evelyn's tone was subdued, almost pleading. "This is the first birthday party Zane's ever had. The whole family will be there. Just show your face."

Celine agreed.

Evelyn was right. It was the last day of the contract.

She could endure one more time.