Victor's furious roar echoed through the hall.

His words hit Isabella hard, like a punch to the gut, knocking the last bit of strength out of her. Her knees buckled, and she dropped to the ground, unable to hold herself up.

Her nails dug into her palms as she clenched her fists, the sharp edges embedding into her skin, but the sting barely registered.

All these years, she had worked herself to the bone, mastering every skill a proper lady from a prestigious family should have, just to shrug off the shadow of her past. She wasn't some broke girl to be looked down on anymore-she was Isabella, the praised daughter of the Kaisers!

Taking a shaky breath, she forced herself to look up at Victor. "You said you didn't mind that I cared about Alexander. You promised to take care of me for the rest of our lives. That's why I agreed to marry you."

"And now you're just throwing me away like this? It's all my fault... I loved Alexander too deeply..."

She covered her face, started sobbing quietly, her frame quivering.

A few seconds later, she turned toward Mrs. Prescott, tears clinging to her lashes, looking utterly pitiful.

Mrs. Prescott was known for being gentle-maybe she'd pity her and let her pursue Alexander.

But instead, Mrs. Prescott just chuckled coldly, giving her a look full of disdain. "Wow, you're really something. Just told everyone how much you love Victor, and now suddenly Alexander's your true love? What a manipulative little act."

"Shameless. Don't worry though-you're not marrying into the Lane family, and definitely not into ours."

"Mrs. Prescott, you've got it wrong! I only said I loved Victor to save face. My heart's always belonged to Alexander!" Isabella cried, sobs tearing from her throat. Her voice was desperate.

But this time, no one bought it.

Everyone's patience wore thin-now it was just annoyance filling the room.

"Hey, everyone knows the Prescotts run Capitol City. Alexander's a genius in business and the future head of their empire. Even a real Kaiser heiress might not be good enough-let alone a fraud like her."

"Ugh, so fake. I actually complimented her earlier. Gross."

Sneers and gossipy whispers came from all sides, each word like ice water dumped over Isabella's head. Cold sweat drenched her back.

Elizabeth stepped up to her, leaned down just a little and gently patted her shoulder, whispering in her ear, "Charlotte, do you remember what you told me ten years ago?"

"Well, let me remind you. What's mine will always be mine. You? You're not worthy."

With a smirk, she subtly waved her phone in front of her. Her eyes glinted with irony.

"You!" Isabella's eyes widened, then twisted into an angry glare. "You recorded me?"

"All this... just to get back at me? You really stooped this low?"

Elizabeth chuckled. "Sweetheart, don't flatter yourself. You're not worth the effort."

She didn't stick around for a response. With her head high, she turned and left.

Reputation in shambles, Isabella was done in the Capitol's elite circle-and Elizabeth had just ticked off a personal win she'd planned for a while.

Now all she could think of was heading home to see Gabriel Kaiser and Grandma. After all these years, she just hoped they were okay.

...

Meanwhile, at Prescott Group's headquarters.

Right in the heart of Capitol City's financial district, the Prescott family owned the prime real estate.

Inside the CEO office, Oliver Watts rushed in.

"Mr. Prescott, I've finally got something on that woman you asked me to look into."

Alexander, who had been flipping through a file, immediately looked up.

"Talk." He kept it short and sharp.

Being a Prescott meant digging up information was usually a breeze-but this time, after days of chasing leads, even her name remained elusive.

That only made him more intrigued than ever.

"That girl earlier? She totally shut down the engagement party between the Lanes and the Kaisers. Wrecked the whole thing on the spot." Oliver clapped in admiration. "Man, she's fearless."

"But she used to be the rightful heiress of the Kaiser family, Victor's original fiancée. No clue what happened ten years ago-just dropped off the radar," he added.

The moment Oliver said "fiancée," Alexander's expression darkened a bit, a flicker of annoyance flashing in his eyes.

Oliver didn't notice a thing. He kept going. "She didn't just crash the party-she came to call off the engagement herself. And get this-she even wished them well. I mean, gutsy, right?"

"Oh? So how exactly did the whole thing fall apart?" Alexander sounded a lot more curious now.

Oliver hesitated, clearly unsure how to break the news. After stumbling a bit, he finally straightened up and said carefully, "She switched the screen setup before the banquet. Ended up playing a video of... Isabella confessing her love to a guy at some bar."

"A bar? A confession?" Alexander raised an eyebrow, puzzled.

Something about it rang a bell. He eyed Oliver suspiciously.

Oliver stepped back, lifting his hands defensively. "I swear, I mean no offense, Mr. Prescott. But yeah... you guessed right. The guy was you..."

He had to admit-even he was impressed by Elizabeth's guts. That kind of move? Bold.

Too bad she just unintentionally ticked off the most powerful man in the room. He was already bracing himself for the storm-until he saw Alexander smirk.

"She's got brains. And balls," Alexander muttered with a tone that wasn't just amused... it was almost fond.

Oliver's eyes popped. Wait-did he just... smile? Was their stoic boss actually smiling?

Holy crap. Did Mr. Prescott just... catch feelings?

...

Elizabeth headed out to her grandma's place in the outskirts of Capitol City. The buildings around there were pretty run-down, and by the time she got there, it was already late afternoon. She figured her grandma would be home by now.

She walked up quietly-and right away, noticed the front door was barely open. And voices were coming from inside.

"You lazy old hag, quit faking and get up to clean!"

"I wish you'd just kick the bucket already. Burying you would save me so much trouble."The woman's angry yelling got clearer as Elizabeth got closer. Her face darkened instantly. She didn't need to guess-those words were aimed at her grandma. Without hesitation, she kicked the door open so hard it banged loudly against the wall.

Everyone inside jumped in shock.

With quick strides, Elizabeth stormed into the room. A mean-looking woman stood in front of a frail old lady on a recliner, still brimming with fury like she had just finished yelling. The sight made Elizabeth's blood boil; any trace of reason vanished in an instant. She stepped up and yanked Megan Quin's arm before flinging her aside. Megan stumbled and nearly saw stars.

Then, Elizabeth knelt gently in front of the old lady, her voice trembling with emotion, eyes glistening with tears.

"Grandma," she whispered, her throat tight, "I'm back."

Old Mrs. Steele froze in disbelief before sitting up with difficulty. Her worn hands trembled as they reached out to touch Elizabeth's face. "Are you... my sweet little Liz?" she asked, her voice quivering.

That rough hand was warm and full of love. Elizabeth choked up and nodded slightly.

Old Mrs. Steele's body shook as tears streamed down her wrinkled cheeks. She wrapped her arms tightly around Elizabeth and sobbed.

"My sweet Liz, I've missed you so much. You're finally home..."

Elizabeth wiped her face quickly. Seeing sweat on her grandmother's forehead, she pushed all emotions aside and asked softly, "Are you feeling sick? Let me take you to the hospital right now."

"No, no," Old Mrs. Steele said quickly. "I'm fine, really. You worry too much. Just wait and see-I'll make your favorite dishes later."

She forced a weak smile, trying to hide the pain in her abdomen.

The old woman slowly struggled to stand, but even the slightest movement pulled at the pain in her stomach. Sweat trickled down her face as she winced and collapsed back onto the recliner.

"Oh, what a miracle! Weren't you just playing dead?" Megan, now recovered, sneered as she stomped over. "Now suddenly you can get up and cook? What a joke-"

"Smack!" A loud slap cut her off, sending her stumbling backward.

Elizabeth's voice was laced with fury. "Megan, when I left a few years ago, I gave you a million bucks-for Grandma and Gabriel's living expenses and to thank you for helping out. And this is how you treat them?!"