Chapter 21

Mason didn’t answer, just downed his drink.

“So what if you did?” another friend chimed in. “You’re not in love with her anyway. Now you can finally marry Chloe.”

“Real Chloe is fine as a mistress on the side, but she’ll never marry into the Quinn family,” a third friend scoffed. “Vivian Hart, for all her faults, is still the daughter of the Han Corporation. Ten years ago, that company was a force to be reckoned with. And don’t forget, she’s also got the Bayer family behind her. Chloe can’t compete with that.”

Mason poured another glass and drank it in one go. “Whatever. Vivian said she wanted to break up. I don’t care.”

“Come on, Mason,” the friend laughed. “She’ll come crawling back in a few days. ‘Breaking up’ is just her playing hard to get. She was willing to be Chloe’s personal blood bank, for God’s sake. You really think she’s going to leave you!”

“True,” another agreed. “Everyone knows she was happy to be Chloe’s stand-in just to be with you.”

Hearing their words, the unease in Mason’s heart began to fade. They were right. Vivian couldn’t live without him. She would be back. He just had to wait.

Back in the hospital, Sienna found a quiet corner and dialed Jason’s number. Hearing her voice, Jason on the other end went from calm to chaos in a split second.

“Wait for me!” Jason called out into the phone, “Wait, I’m on my way, right now!”

Jason’s eyes were red as he threw on his coat and sprinted out of his office. He slapped himself hard across the face in the elevator, just to make sure he wasn’t dreaming.

Ten years. A full decade of silence. But that voice, it was hers. He would never mistake it. She was back. He knew she was still alive. He had always known.

He burst through the hospital doors and saw her, a vision of elegance standing by the entrance. “Sienna!” he called out, voice trembling.

Sienna turned. A handsome, breathless man was running towards her. When he saw her face, his eyes lit up. She was even more beautiful than he remembered, with a mature, captivating allure.

“Enna, it’s really you!” Jason closed the distance between them and pulled her into a tight, desperate hug.

“Jason, it’s me,” Sienna said, gently patting the back of the man who was currently squeezing the life out of her.

He was a grown man, a respected doctor, but he couldn’t stop the tears from welling in his eyes. “Enna, where have you been? Why didn’t you come back?”

Sienna Vivian, worried that Sienna had been gone for so long, had come looking for her. She was met with the sight of a man clinging to her.

“Sienna,” she said again, a little louder.

Sienna saw her and tried to gently push Jason away, but he refused to let go. His heart was still pounding with a joy so fierce it was almost painful.

“No,” he whispered, “Let me just hold on for a second. I’m afraid this is a dream and you’ll disappear.”

Vivian’s eyes narrowed. She marched over and started pummeling his back with her fists. “Let go of my sister! Didn’t you hear me! Let her go, you…”

“Ouch! Stop it, hop it!” Jason yelped, surprised by the girl’s strength. “You’re going to break my ribs!”

Sienna ruffled Vivian’s hair. She could tell Jason was exaggerating, but she played along. “Vivian, it’s fine. This is my friend, Jason Everett. Now a very famous and respected doctor.”

Jason waved his hands dismissively. “Don’t say that, Enna, you’ll embarrass me. Look at me, I’m losing my hair from stress. If you hadn’t come back soon, you would have missed my handsome prime.”

Sienna smiled faintly. “Alright. I came to ask if you could take a look at my sister.”

Jason’s expression turned serious, as well as his tone. “Come on, Enna, we’re friends. Anything for you.”

“Great,” Sienna nodded, then gestured to Vivian, “Just follow him, Vivian.”

Vivian nodded. She left with Jason, and an hour later, Jason returned to the office with a chart.

“How is she?” Sienna asked immediately.

“It’s not good, Enna. She’s your sister, so I’ll be blunt,” Jason’s brow was furrowed, a look of grave concern on his face.

Sienna nodded for him to continue, so he did. “She has significant trauma, most likely from prolonged bullying and abuse,” said Jason. “There are signs of recent improvement, which is a good start. But I need to be clear. She has a history of multiple suicide attempts and exhibits signs of obsessive–compulsive personality disorder.”

“Keep going.” Sienna replied.

“Alright.” Jason cleared his throat. “This kind of illness has to be overcome by the patient herself—you can’t just medicate it away. But your presence is key. She was only fifteen when you left, and that clearly triggered her. Her emotional state is fragile, so don’t disappear again. It could cause a serious relapse.”

In short, the loss of her only protector had left her vulnerable to years of abuse, and the constant stress had shattered her psyche.

Sienna’s gaze, which had been heavy with sorrow, now sharpened into a blade of cold, hard fury. She looked at the words on the report—multiple suicide attempts—and her anger melted into a familiar, aching guilt.