Chapter 8

Charlotte arrived at the lavish hotel ballroom on time. The air hummed with the sound of self-congratulation. She saw doctors she had worked with for years, people she had considered friends. They averted their eyes, their faces a mixture of pity and contempt.

Kaylynn was the center of attention, a queen holding court. Everett stood by her side, a proud king. They were a power couple, bathed in the warm glow of success and adoration.

"Isn't she brilliant?" someone gushed. "And from such a good family."

"I hear the wedding is next month," another whispered. "A perfect match."

Kaylynn saw Charlotte and detached herself from the fawning crowd. She glided over, a predator spotting her prey.

"What do you want?" Charlotte asked, her voice flat.

"I want what you owe me," Kaylynn said, her voice a low hiss. Before Charlotte could react, Kaylynn grabbed her arm and dragged her into the center of the room. The music died down. All eyes were on them.

"This woman," Kaylynn announced to the silent room, "has been spreading vicious lies about me. She is a desperate, pathetic homewrecker."

The screen behind the stage lit up, showing a montage of photos-Charlotte and Everett in happier times, now twisted and reframed as evidence of her supposed obsession.

"Did you or did you not try to seduce my fiancé?" Kaylynn demanded, her voice ringing with false righteousness.

The crowd murmured, their faces turning from curiosity to judgment. They were a jury, and Kaylynn was the prosecutor.

Charlotte stood silent, her good hand clenched into a tight fist, her nails digging into her palm.

Everett appeared, striding to the center of the room. He stopped next to Charlotte and, to her utter shock, wrapped an arm around her waist. It was a familiar gesture, once filled with love, now a cold, proprietary brand.

"It's true," he said to the waiting crowd. "This woman has... an unfortunate fixation on me. But I have only ever loved one person."

He turned and pulled Kaylynn into a deep, passionate kiss.

The crowd erupted in applause and whistles.

He broke the kiss and looked at Charlotte, his eyes full of contempt. "I was never interested in you. Not for a second."

Then the dam broke. Kaylynn threw her glass of red wine in Charlotte' s face. Encouraged by this, others in the crowd started throwing things-canapés, drinks, their mockery a barrage of filth.

Charlotte didn't flinch. She just stood there, enduring it, her eyes fixed on Everett.

She saw it. A flicker of something in his eyes. A brief, quickly suppressed flash of... discomfort? Guilt? He looked away, unable to meet her gaze.

"Get her out of here," he commanded his security guards.

As they dragged her out of the ballroom, a man she recognized as Everett' s personal assistant slipped a small, metallic object into her hand.

A USB drive.

"Mr. Spears wanted you to have this," the assistant said, his voice low. "It's the original, unedited video of... your daughter. He said he promised to give it to you."

A promise. The word was a joke.

"Tell him," Charlotte said, her voice a low, chilling whisper, "that I regret the day I saved his life. I regret every second I spent loving him."

She turned and walked away without looking back.

Back at the hospital, Barbara was awake. They held each other, a silent pact passing between them. It was time.

Charlotte packed a single bag. She gently placed Julianne's urn inside. She helped Barbara into a wheelchair. She pushed her mother, not to the elevators, but to the emergency stairwell. They went up, and up, and up.

On the roof, a helicopter was waiting, its blades already starting to whir. Men in dark, unmarked uniforms helped them aboard. This was her father's final gift. An escape.

As the helicopter lifted off, soaring into the night sky, Charlotte took out her phone. She deleted Everett' s number. She snapped the SIM card in half and threw the pieces out into the wind.

She was free.