Chapter 9
Scarlett had barely entered the Seymour Villa when a shrill voice stopped her in her tracks.
"Hold it right there!"
Brianna appeared from nowhere, blocking the stairway, her eyes bulging as she glared at Scarlett. "You little slut! Nine lives, huh?"
She lunged forward, grabbing Scarlett's arm with her sharp nails digging into flesh. "Mr. Campbell is in the hospital because of you—his nose broken! You'll pay for this!"
Scarlett tried to pull away despite the pain, but Brianna only tightened her grip, spitting her venomous words. "Don't think you're special just because Sebastian rescued you! He was just passing by. Once he and Edith are engaged and she becomes his rightful wife, who'll protect you then? I'd like to see how you survive!"
Scarlett froze, momentarily stunned. She never imagined Brianna would know Sebastian had rescued her.
"Let go of me!" Scarlett finally snapped back to reality and wrenched her arm free, leaving several bloody scratches.
She stepped back, eyeing the nearly hysterical Brianna with barely contained fury. "You know exactly how your Mr. Campbell ended up in the hospital. You personally delivered me to his room and drugged me. Brianna, you've got some nerve."
Struck by the truth, Brianna's face went pale before flushing red again. "What nonsense are you spouting? I was doing it for your own good! You ungrateful brat—you tried to seduce Mr. Campbell and then assaulted him when he refused!"
"For my good?" Scarlett laughed, a sound laced with icy contempt. "Throwing me to the wolves is helping? Brianna, you'd better watch yourself."
She stepped closer, her eyes cold as ice, each word precise and measured, "Don't let me catch you slipping up. I'm not that little girl you could lock in the dark room anymore. Push me too far, and I'll do whatever it takes. I've got nothing to lose—let's see how the Seymour family handles the scandal."
She delivered the final threat almost against Brianna's ear, her voice low but carrying the force of someone ready to burn everything down with her.
Brianna flinched, involuntarily stepping back.
She had always thought of Scarlett as a docile creature who might occasionally show claws but could never cause real damage. Yet in that moment, she saw in those beautiful eyes a willingness for mutual destruction.
"What... what are you planning to do?" Brianna's voice wavered despite her attempt to sound authoritative. "This is the Seymour Villa! You have no right!"
"Mom, why waste your energy arguing with her? Don't upset yourself."
Edith descended the stairs, her hair loosely pinned up as if she'd just woken, though her eyes betrayed undisguised contempt.
She stood beside Brianna, gently patting her back. "It's not worth getting upset over someone like her."
Then she turned to face Scarlett. Her gaze lingered briefly on the bloody scratches on Scarlett's arm before a faint smile touched her lips, never reaching her eyes.
Edith moved closer until she stood just two feet from Scarlett.
Lowering her head slightly, she spoke in a volume only Scarlett could hear, enunciating each word, "Seb told me last night he only rescued you to prevent you from causing trouble that might embarrass the Seymour family. After all, you're still technically one of us."
She paused, watching Scarlett's face tighten, venomous satisfaction gleaming in her eyes as she lowered her voice further, "He also said, your type disgusts him the most."
She emphasized "disgusts" with particular venom, like a poisoned needle striking precisely at Scarlett's heart.
Scarlett jerked her head up, her chest seized by an invisible hand that made it hard to breathe. She stared into Edith's eyes, searching desperately for any sign of deception, but found only smug triumph and the gloating of a victor.
It couldn't be true, could it? How could Sebastian say such things? Five years of entanglement, those midnight embraces, those passionate moments, those seemingly casual acts of protection—were they truly just her own delusions?
Scarlett clenched her fists, nails digging into her palms deep enough to draw blood, though she didn't notice.
She had initially approached Sebastian to use him. But after five years together, the stark revelation that she meant nothing to him was unbearably cruel.
This information could only have come directly from Sebastian—how else could they have known about his movements?
Her throat felt constricted, unable to form words. All her rebuttals, all her questions remained trapped in her chest, transforming into a dense web of pain.
Edith, satisfied with Scarlett's devastated expression, curved her lips in approval. This was exactly the effect she wanted—to make Scarlett fully understand she was nothing in Sebastian's heart.
"Scarlett," Edith straightened, raising her voice slightly, "stay in your lane from now on. Stop reaching for things that don't belong to you. Save yourself the embarrassment."
With that, she turned away without another glance, linking arms affectionately with Brianna as they headed downstairs. "Mom, I had the kitchen prepare some tonic soup. Let's go have some."
Brianna, still recovering from the earlier shock, only came to when her daughter pulled her along. Before leaving, she shot Scarlett one last glare, though it now contained a hint of wariness.
The stairway finally fell silent. Scarlett remained with her head raised, staring at where Edith had disappeared, her eyes rimmed with red.
She slowly turned and made her way toward the attic, each step feeling as though she walked on cotton, unsteady and distant. Pushing open the attic door, a faint musty smell greeted her.
She didn't turn on the light, simply letting herself slide down against the door until she sat on the floor.
Her chest ached with bitterness. There was some part of her that couldn't accept it—couldn't accept that after five years, all she had to show was devastation.
After some time, her phone screen lit up with a message from Chris: [Did you get home safely? Did Brianna give you any trouble?]
Scarlett stared at the text, coming back to herself enough to reply: [I'm fine.]
After sending the message, she turned off her screen and stood up again, her face now expressionless.
Meanwhile, in Sebastian's office, the blinds were drawn tight.
Through the phone receiver, George's furious voice threatened to shatter his eardrum, "The engagement photos next Wednesday WILL happen! I've already had the formal wear delivered to the Seymour Villa, tailored to Edith's measurements. If you dare to be late, don't call me grandfather anymore!"
Sebastian's knuckles were white around the phone, veins visibly pulsing on the back of his hand.
He listened in silence until the voice on the other end paused for breath, then responded flatly, "Understood."