With a helpless sigh, he finally uttered, "Yes."

At that moment, the last fragile thread in Hailey's heart snapped an invisible break that felt deafening in its finality.

She bore the weight of scornful gazes and biting condemnation before being taken into custody, her dignity crushed beneath their judgment.

Three days of detention.

In the cold, suffocating jail cell, she shrank under the piercing stares of hardened criminals. Fear stole her voice, rendering her too afraid to utter even a whisper.

But then, salvation came, Jasmine.

This normally unshakable woman clutched her, tears streaming down her face like fragile petals battered by rain. "Why didn’t you call me? Do you have any idea how scared I was?" Her voice trembled with raw emotion.

In this bleak world, Jasmine was the only one who cared.

She was a small ray of light in an otherwise endless night.

On the way home, Hailey noticed a lively commotion; the family celebrated Allison’s birthday. Just as she neared, she stumbled upon a few guests stepping outside for fresh air, their laughter starkly contrasting to the suffocating silence that had engulfed her for days.

They were Allison’s friends.

One of them curled her lips into a sneer, her voice laced with mockery.

“Well, well! Look who decided to show her face, the murderer herself!”

“You hurt our Hailey, yet you still have the audacity to show up here? Shameless!”

Once again, insults rained down on Hailey; cruel words hurled like stones. The flashing cameras of eager reporters only fueled the spectacle. But she stood there, unmoved, indifferent to their judgment.

Until a sound drifted from the bedroom.

"Enzo, do you love me?"

The man didn’t hesitate.

"I do."

Hailey’s hand, just inches from knocking, froze midair.

A moment later, she withdrew it. Instead, she reached for her phone and dialed Kaia.

In a quiet voice, she said, “Transfer the money. I’ll leave now.”

On the other end, Kaia smiled as if she had anticipated this exact moment. Without missing a beat, she booked Hailey a flight to the capital.

“Good. I knew you’d make the right choice. I’ll have the remaining forty million transferred to your account.”

"Leave tonight."

Meanwhile, in the bedroom next door, Enzo and Allison laughed together, lost in their own world.

Hailey packed her bags alone.

By the time the first light of dawn touched the sky, she lifted her suitcase and walked out without looking back.

What she didn’t know was that the moment she left, her phone lit up with countless missed calls, each one from Enzo.

As she boarded the plane, a wave of relief washed over her, light, unshackled, free.

For the first time in forever, she was leaving behind that gloomy, paranoid, insecure version of herself.

High above the endless stretch of clouds, Hailey slept soundly, her first real rest in what felt like an eternity.

By the time she landed, two days had slipped by.

That night, pulling her suitcase through the crisp autumn air, she muttered under her breath, "Why is the capital’s weather so damn cold?"

And Maddox? Where was he? Had he really not bothered to come pick her up?

How boring.

Just as she was about to grumble again, a familiar figure appeared in front of her.

Leaning lazily against a sleek red Ferrari, a smirk played on his lips.

"Were you just cursing me in your head?"

Hailey let out an amused scoff, feigning innocence.

"I was not."

He chuckled, tilting his head toward the car. "How about this? A Ferrari, grand enough for you?"

It had been a long, long time since she had seen Maddox.

She had been the orphan taken in by the Campbell family and raised by him for over a decade, only to later discover her real parents.

She had once yearned for the warmth of a real family.

But to her parents, she had never been more than an afterthought.

Allison was their precious jewel, their pride, their priority.

And her? Just an existence they barely acknowledged.

But Maddox was the only one who had ever treated her like she was something precious.

Three years had passed since she last saw him.

Hailey studied the man beside her, taking in every detail.

Now in his early thirties, he carried himself with quiet confidence, his scent subtle yet intoxicating.

Sharp brows framed his face, his jawline strong and defined. And those fox-like eyes, mirth dancing in their depths, held a charm that had only deepened with time.

The Maddox before her was nothing like the one from three years ago.

Back then, there had still been traces of youthful innocence in his features.

Now, time had sculpted him into something sharper, more refined, yet it hadn’t left a single blemish on his face. If anything, he had only grown more striking.

"You know I look good, but staring at me like that isn’t very polite," Maddox suddenly interrupted, amusement lacing his voice.

Hailey instantly pouted, crossing her arms. "I wasn’t staring."

A lazy hum escaped his lips, his smirk deepening. "Alright, alright, you weren’t staring. You just love pretending."

His teasing was as effortless as ever, but this time, he let it go, perhaps out of consideration for her thin skin.

By the time they arrived at the Fourfold Manor, the night had settled in completely.

But to Hailey’s surprise, Maddox hadn’t taken her to the old mansion. Instead, he brought her here.

Sensing her confusion, he spoke with casual ease. "Grandmother doesn’t like the villa. So, I transferred the Rosewood Estate to your name."

Hailey scoffed, rolling her eyes. "I didn’t ask you to."

Maddox was giving himself away with that unnecessary explanation.

It wasn’t until Hailey saw Charlotte, Maddox’s grandma that she truly understood how ruthless time could be.

In her memories, Charlotte had always been round and kind, a woman of simple habits despite coming from an aristocratic family. She never indulged in luxury, never sought extravagance.

Now, she was still the same Charlotte. But when her gaze fell on Hailey, tears shimmered in her eyes.

She hurried forward, her voice trembling with affection. "Hailey, Hailey!"

Maddox quickly steadied her, his expression exasperated. "Grandma, Hailey just got back. She needs rest. You can see her properly tomorrow, alright?"

But Charlotte huffed like a stubborn child, unwilling to listen. She clung to Hailey’s hand, her words spilling out in excitement, her tone almost smug, like a child showing off a treasured possession.

Hailey humored her patiently, warmth filling her chest.

Meanwhile, Maddox sat on the balcony, rocking slowly on the swing, eyes lifted toward the night sky.

A man nearing thirty, stargazing, or at least pretending to.

His fingers idly rolled a pocket watch, his gaze flicking to it more often than the stars.

The cigarette between his fingers burned quietly, its ember glowing faintly before crumbling into ash. A stray spark kissed his skin, leaving a tiny burn on his long fingers, a fleeting burst of light, gone in an instant.

When the clock struck nine, Maddox clicked his tongue and cast a knowing glance at the stubborn Charlotte.

"Grandma, Hailey needs to sleep now."

Only then did she finally let go, grumbling under her breath like a child reluctant to part with a favorite toy.

Maddox wasted no time dragging Hailey upstairs.

By the time she finished washing up, her voice had turned hoarse.

"Hailey, go to sleep," he murmured, his voice low, steady.

He never asked what had happened. Never pried. Instead, he quietly preserved the last shred of dignity she still held onto.

"Hailey, stop tossing and turning. Do you want me to tell you a bedtime story again?"

Her ears burned instantly. She pouted. "I never said that."

When Maddox had first taken her in, thunderstorms would keep her awake at night. Back then, he would always come to her room and tell her stories until she drifted off to sleep.

The sound of his voice had filled her childhood, weaving warmth into the coldest of nights.

And now, as the memory surfaced, a quiet warmth bloomed in her chest. She suddenly felt lucky, so incredibly lucky, to have met Maddox.

"Alright, don’t sulk anymore. Tonight, I’ll tell you the story of the Little Mermaid."

"A long, long time ago, in the eastern seas, there was a mermaid…"

That night, the Fourfold Manor glowed softly with warmth, and Hailey slept soundly, dreamless, wrapped in peace.

Meanwhile, in Cortland, a chill crept into Enzo’s heart, cold and unshakable.

His head felt heavy, clouded with a dull haze. He had never imagined Hailey would vanish so completely, so silently, without a trace, without even a moment for anyone to catch their breath.

Allison had called him more times than he could count, but Enzo ignored every single one. Each ring only stoked the restless irritation clawing at his chest.

“She just left like that? Do I even matter to her?”