Nelson's cold, clipped demand cut through the air like a blade, slicing straight into Claire's chest.

She slowly lifted her head, meeting his furious gaze head-on.

In that moment, the man standing before her felt like a stranger.

All those years-of waiting, of hoping, of trusting-suddenly seemed like a cruel self-deception.

Her voice was quiet, but steady. "Nelson. Is that really what you think of me? That I'm that kind of woman?"

He faltered.

His anger dimmed, replaced by a flicker of uncertainty.

The man tied up on the floor was bruised and gagged. Claire's clothes, though slightly disheveled, remained intact.

He opened his mouth to speak-but nothing came out.

"Nelson!" Serena's tear-filled eyes clung to him as she grabbed his sleeve. "Don't be mad at my sister. Maybe she. made a mistake. She's been overseas for so long. maybe she got lonely, and. got involved with someone she shouldn't have."

Her voice trembled with practiced vulnerability.

A few of the guests nearby let out soft sighs, their judgmental eyes falling on Claire, now tinged with pity-or disdain.

Claire's expression didn't change.

Then she laughed-soft, brief, and cold.

She straightened slowly, eyes sweeping over the crowd.

With deliberate calm, she reached into her handbag and pulled out what looked like a lipstick tube.

She pressed a hidden switch.

A faint electric buzz sparked, followed by a crisp, unmistakable recording.

First: the sound of a door slamming shut. Then-the click of a key turning.

Her own shaky breathing came next.

A man's voice barked: "Shut up and stay still! You got paid. Time to earn it."

Then Claire's measured voice: "Who sent you? I'll pay double. Just stop."

A mocking laugh followed. "You think a fake rich girl like you can afford that? Miss Thompson was clear-she wants you humiliated. Ruined. Be a good girl, do as I say, and maybe it won't hurt so bad."

Then-

A sharp scream.

A grunt of pain.

Claire's voice, low and cold: "Move again and it won't just be your nose that breaks."

Silence.

The room was frozen.

The guests-silent. Their smirks vanished.

And Nelson...

His expression, already grim, hardened into something darker.

He turned slowly to Serena, still clutching his sleeve, her face drained of color.

"No-Nelson, listen to me," she stammered. "She's lying! She's framing me! That recording-she faked it!"

Tears streamed down her face, her composure unraveling.

Just then, Elena shoved through the crowd, breathless and alarmed.

"What's going on? What happened to my Serena?"

She rushed to her daughter and pulled her close.

When she saw Serena sobbing uncontrollably, her eyes snapped to Claire-hostile, accusing.

"This is Serena's birthday, Claire. Can't you behave for once?"

Serena buried herself in Elena's arms, crying harder. "Mom, it wasn't me. Claire's blaming me for something I didn't do."

She trembled violently, as if moments from collapse.

Elena's fury only deepened.

"How could you do this to her? We raised you for twenty years, Claire! And this is how you repay us? With cruelty?"

Nelson's brows drew together as he watched Serena's meltdown.

Instinctively, his foot shifted forward-as it always had, every time Serena had one of her "episodes" these past three years.

Claire saw everything.

She remembered the day Serena returned to this house.

How Elena had rushed to reclaim the master bedroom for her "real" daughter.

How everything that had belonged to Claire was handed over-without hesitation.

For years, she'd been treated like a shadow. A servant. A placeholder.

Two decades of so-called family ties-torn in an instant.

And now, they dared to look at her like she was the one who'd betrayed them.

Claire crossed her arms, voice steady but sharp.

"Serena, you brought a crowd here hoping they'd catch me in some compromising scene. What if they had?"

Serena flinched, curled tighter into Elena's embrace, still sobbing-but said nothing.

Elena's voice rose, shaking with rage. "Claire, can't you be the bigger person? Look at what you've done-Serena can't even breathe!"

"Enough," Nelson said at last. His voice was low, cold. "Serena's not stable right now."

Claire turned to him.

She smiled.

"So every time she falls apart, I'm expected to stand down? To take the blame? Is that my role in this house?"

Nelson's jaw tightened. "Now's not the time to argue."

"No," Claire said. "You're right. Let's not argue."

She paused.

"Let's just end it."

Her eyes met his, unwavering.

"I've already signed the divorce papers."

The room fell into a brittle silence the moment her words landed.

Claire bent down, pulled a thin folder from her handbag, and stepped forward with composure.

She held it out to Nelson, her voice calm and precise. "I've already signed the divorce papers. Just waiting for your signature."

That slim stack of documents seemed to weigh more than stone.

Nelson's gaze locked onto it, a tangled mix of frustration, disbelief, and pressure rising in his chest.

"Claire." His voice was tight, each syllable laced with tension. "When did you sign this?"

He couldn't process it.

She had only just returned yesterday. This-this was technically their first real conversation since her arrival.

And yet, she already had the papers ready?

Was that why she came back?

To end it?

Claire's tone was flat, distant. "Does it matter when? The result's the same."

"It does matter!" Elena snapped, her voice sharp with irritation. "Divorce isn't something you just toss on a table. But Nelson, if she's really this determined, maybe don't make things harder than they need to be. It might be better this way-for everyone."

She didn't say Serena's name. She didn't need to.

The implication hung in the air like smoke.

And right on cue, Serena peeked up from Elena's embrace. Her lashes were still damp, but the tiny curve of her lips betrayed a quiet satisfaction.

She sniffled delicately, then said, "Sis, please don't take it the wrong way. Nelson and I. we actually talked about this before. He said he'd give you the divorce papers after tonight."

Nelson stiffened.

It was true.

He'd had the documents drawn up weeks ago-before Claire returned. Maybe even longer.

He'd been tired of the cold war between them, the silence, the distance.

But now, watching Claire calmly push the folder toward him... it hit differently.

Harder.

His throat worked as he swallowed. ".Yeah."

As expected.

Claire let out a quiet laugh-dry, bitter, short.

So that was it.

Everyone had been waiting for this marriage to dissolve.

Everyone but her.

She was the only one foolish enough to believe there was still something worth saving.

Claire inhaled deeply, then gently nudged the folder closer. Her voice was no longer soft, no longer warm.

"Then if you would, Mr. Cooper?"

Cold. Polite. Distant.

Nelson stared at the papers, a strange tightness coiling in his chest.

He should've felt relieved.

This was what he wanted.

But instead, his mind flashed back-three years ago.

Claire in a white dress, standing at the altar. Her eyes filled with hope, with trust. With him.

He reached for the folder, and his fingers brushed against hers-just for a second.

She pulled away instantly.

That small, instinctive motion stung more than it should have.

His hand tightened around the folder, the edges digging into his skin like splinters.

He forced himself to look at her. Her eyes were calm, her expression unreadable.

"I'll sign it," he said at last. "I'll have the lawyer take care of the rest."

Claire nodded, her lips curling into a faint, almost gentle smile. "Thanks," she said lightly. "Hope it won't take too long."

Nelson didn't answer.

His brows furrowed.

That strange pressure in his chest-the one he thought would go away-was still there.

Worse, it was growing.

Claire turned her head, her voice cool and steady. "Now let's talk about you, Serena."

Serena flinched, instinctively shrinking closer to Elena like a child hiding behind her mother.

"W-What could there possibly be between us?" she stammered, voice trembling, tears glinting in her eyes. "You're the one who wanted the divorce. Nelson agreed. That's it."

"That's between me and Nelson," Claire replied sharply. "What I'm asking about-is how you paid that man to lure me upstairs, locked the door, and tried to trap me in a scandal."

Her tone didn't rise, but the chill in it made the room go still.

"I've never done anything to hurt you," she continued, "so why would you do something so vile?"

"I didn't!" Serena screamed, her face draining of color. "Sometimes I just. lose control, okay? You know how I get when I have an episode-I don't even remember what I did!"

That excuse again.

Always the same shield.

Always the same performance.

Elena pulled her daughter into her arms, her voice tight with pain. "That's enough, Claire. Serena lived outside the family for years. She's traumatized. You're fine now, aren't you? Can't you cut her some slack?"

Claire let out a hollow laugh. "You want me to forgive someone who tried to set me up to be assaulted?"

Her gaze locked onto Elena-filled with disbelief.

All she saw was worry. Not for her. For Serena.

Something twisted inside her chest.

"I don't understand," Claire said quietly. "It's been twenty years. Even if we're not blood-did I really mean so little to you? So little that you'd turn a blind eye while your 'real' daughter planned something like this?"

Elena opened her mouth, then closed it again, her expression flickering between guilt and defiance.

She looked away. "There's no point digging up the past. What matters now is Serena. She can't take any more stress."

"This is all your fault!" Serena shrieked suddenly.

She shoved Elena aside and stepped forward, her chest heaving with rage.

"So what if I did it?!" she shouted, pointing a trembling finger at Claire. "I hate you! Why do you get to wear the pretty dresses, sleep in the master bedroom, be spoiled by Mom and Dad, and even marry Nelson?!"

Claire didn't move.

"I didn't cause your pain," she said flatly. "It was the hospital's mistake. They switched us."

"I don't care!" Serena screamed, completely unhinged. "Everything you had should've been mine! Even Nelson! You knew I loved him-we were meant to be! Why did you marry him?! Why couldn't you just die?!"

The words landed like knives.

The crowd gasped audibly.

Claire closed her eyes, inhaling deeply to steady herself.

"So you knew exactly what you were doing," she said softly. "You knew what this would do to my life-to my marriage-and you still went through with it. Serena, do you even understand what you've done?"

Serena's eyes were wild, her voice cold. "But look at you. You're still standing, aren't you?"

Claire blinked, stunned by how twisted that sounded.

Serena didn't flinch. "You owe me an apology."

Silence.

Even Elena was too stunned to speak.

Claire stared at her sister, disbelief etched into her face. "Serena. nothing justifies what you did. Nothing gives you the right to hurt someone like that."

"All I want is your apology," Serena repeated, voice thin and trembling. "That's it."

"No way!" Elena blurted, finally snapping out of her haze. "Claire, please. treat this as a favor to your mother, alright? I'll apologize on her behalf. We were wrong. Just let it go-for old times' sake."

Claire slowly shook her head.

"There haven't been 'old times' between us in a long time."

Her voice was quiet, but firm.

"If she wants forgiveness." Claire's eyes didn't waver. "She'll need to say it herself."