Chapter 76
Amber couldn’t understand why, but so many things now seemed different from what she’d always believed.
Amber thought, Mia is the only one at school who’s willing to be friends with me. So why would she use my name to write those love notes?
Claire’s words echoed in her mind. ‘Was Mia really just using her?’ Amber wondered.
Jocelyn was still scheming how to keep Amber under her control when Sienna’s icy voice suddenly cut through her thoughts. “Elisa. Ms. Lambert and Miss Turner seem rather tired. Please escort them downstairs to rest.”
Elisa stepped forward authoritatively. “Yes, Miss Sienna. Ms. Lambert, Miss Turner, this way.”
With great strength belying her fifty years, Elisa grabbed both Linda and Jocelyn by the arms and dragged them away like a raging bull.
Linda struggled and shouted. “Let go of me. How dare you treat me like this? I’m the mistress of the Hart family. Just wait until my husband comes back. You’ll pay dearly for this.”
Linda was grumbling and cursing, but in the end, she and Jocelyn were still locked in the dark room. Jocelyn couldn’t believe Elisa actually dared to lock them up here. This was always the place Amber and Vivian were usually sent to.
Jocelyn, what are we going to do? Are we just going to let them bully us like this?” Linda clung to Jocelyn and burst into tears.
This wasn’t her first time being locked in here. Last time, she’d only gotten out by faking a faint.
Jocelyn screamed Amber’s name, then Sienna’s, at the top of her lungs. Elbert walked over with a practiced smirk and slid open the small viewing window.
“Miss Turner, Ms. Lambert, how considerate of Miss Sienna. She’s noticed how active you’ve been all day and insists you get some well-deserved rest. Do make yourselves comfortable,” he said.
With that, he shut the small window, cutting off the last source of light and leaving them in darkness as he walked away without another word.
Jocelyn screamed, “Ah, how dare Sienna treat us like this? I’m calling the police. I swear, I’m calling the cops right now.”
Linda quickly grabbed Jocelyn’s arm to stop her. “Don’t call the police. Jocelyn, calm down, please. If we involve the cops, it won’t do us any good. This is Sienna’s house. If your father finds out you called the police, he’ll be furious.”
Aiden really cared about his reputation. Besides, if Linda made any trouble, he might just cut her off.
Jocelyn thought of an idea and pressed, “Mom, do you get what I’m saying? You must bring Dad back.”
Linda’s eyes burned with determination as she gritted out, “Fine. I’ll make it happen.”
Amber noticed that Linda and Jocelyn were gone. She stepped forward, looked at Sienna, and asked, “Aren’t you eating?”
Sienna stood up. “I will,” she said.
Amber mumbled softly while eating, “Honestly, I only sleep in class because it’s boring. I get everything at a glance, and it’s all right there in the textbook. I really don’t get why they keep droning on about it.
“I’m not explaining anything to you, and I definitely haven’t forgiven you. I remember perfectly well. Last time, you hit me because of Vivian.”
And you used to spend every night with her, she wondered. The words lingered on her tongue, and she didn’t dare say them out loud. Instead, she sulkily poked at the fish on her plate with her fork.
These words, neither too loud nor too soft, drifted perfectly into Sienna’s ears. Of course, she could tell Amber was saying them for her benefit.
“Tomorrow’s the weekend. I did promise I’d take you to the amusement park, remember?” Sienna said.
Amber’s cowlick instantly stood straight up. Her pretty eyes, usually downcast, suddenly sparkled with excitement, while an irrepressible smile tugged at her lips, impossible to suppress no matter how hard she tried.
Amber thought, ‘She never forgot. She still remembered the promise she’d made. Hmph, at least she knows better.’
“If you don’t want to go, I-” Before Sienna could finish speaking, Amber abruptly pushed her chair back with a loud scrape and jumped to her feet, sending her fork clattering to the floor.
Amber blurted out, “Who says I don’t want to go?”
Amber immediately regretted her outburst. Trying to regain her composure, she huffed and said, “I’m just giving you a chance to make amends. It’s not like I actually want to go.”
“What’s so fun about amusement parks anyway! I’m not a little kid; it’s childish. But since you brought it up, I’ll do you a favor and go with you.”
Sienna chuckled helplessly: “Alright then, you can keep me company.”
Amber pouted and muttered, “I’m full,” then dashed upstairs at lightning speed. She nonchalantly closed the door behind her, threw herself onto the bed, and started rolling around in excitement, bursting into laughter.
“Amusement park, yeah!” Amber chanted, her voice bubbling with joy. “She’s actually coming with me.”
Once she had calmed down, Amber sensed something was off. Why do I feel like someone’s watching me? she wondered. Slowly moving the pillow away, she saw three maids cleaning the room, all staring at her.
The maids stood frozen in shock, staring dumbfounded at her, their cleaning tools still raised mid-swipe.
Amber thought desperately. Don’t stop me. I want to die of embarrassment right now.
The well-trained maids, clearly used to such scenes, bowed their heads respectfully and slowly backed away, cleaning supplies still in hand.
“Miss Amber, our deepest apologies. We were simply cleaning too slowly. Please rest assured. We saw absolutely nothing at all,” they said.
Seizing the moment when no one was watching, Jocelyn crept up to the second floor and furtively slipped into Amber’s room.
After Sienna had Elisa slap Jocelyn, she ordered the maids to thoroughly clean the room while also checking for any dangerous objects.
The maids never expected Amber to burst in so suddenly, and she was so focused that she didn’t even notice them at first.
Amber buried her head under the pillow and let out a muffled cry. The maids, charmed by how adorable Amber was, exchanged amused smiles before quickly leaving the room.
Vivian had just wrapped up a business deal when she unexpectedly ran into her classmates having a reunion. Before she could protest, they practically dragged her along to Charmvale, a trendy bar.
Marcy and Bella weren’t about to let such a golden opportunity pass. Last time, a woman had suddenly appeared and put them in their place. Now, at the class reunion, they were determined to teach Vivian a lesson she wouldn’t forget.
Everyone heard Hart Corporation was crushing the competition in Vallaris, quickly becoming the latest dark horse and rising star. It was said they had even partnered with SIE Corporation.
But they didn’t think it had anything to do with Vivian. Everyone here knew Vivian was already kicked out of the Hart family and had nothing to do with them anymore.
If Vivian were really the esteemed heiress of the Hart family, she wouldn’t have needed to work three jobs during college, even desperately keeping after Mason.
And now Vivian was working at some random company no one had ever heard of. Seriously, it was quite funny.
“Vivian, long time no see. Too good to have a drink with us now? Heard you and Mason are tying the knot?” The speaker said this deliberately to mock her.
They all knew the Junior Quinn Group had already gone bankrupt.
Back in college, Vivian was painfully shy and kept to herself most of the time, which only made her an easy target for bullies and mockery. Haunted by past trauma, Vivian never fought back.
She had always been the one getting picked on. She thought that once she left those people behind and stepped into society, all the emotional scars they left would just fade away.