Chapter 23

"Mom, I'm so sorry." Alice's tears dripped onto the edge of Margaret's blanket. Her voice was hoarse from crying. "I just started at the company, and my boss made a last-minute decision to send me on a business trip. I couldn’t come see you when I promised."

"It's not your fault." Margaret's frail fingers brushed weakly against the tubes connected to her. She gave a weak, bitter smile. "I don’t even know if I’ll wake up the next time I close my eyes..."

"Don’t say that!" Alice pressed her forehead against Margaret’s hand, her shoulders shaking. "I can’t lose you. You’re all I have left in this world."

Alice had barely recovered from her own ordeal, but instead of returning to Alexander’s place, she spent the entire day at the hospital tending to Margaret. She washed her hair, trimmed her nails, and gently wiped her skin with a warm cloth. The color slowly returned to Margaret’s face, as if Alice’s care alone had breathed life back into her.

She was so thorough in her care that Alexander, the actual son, stood uselessly by the door, watching the two women—one his mother, the other a stranger who treated her better than he ever had.

When Margaret finally drifted off to sleep, Alice quietly left the hospital and returned to the penthouse she shared with Alexander.

Back home, she immediately took off the emerald bracelet he had given her and placed it in his palm. "This is too valuable. You should keep it."

Alexander had slipped it onto her wrist on their way to the hospital. Now, he didn’t take it back. Instead, his voice was low and firm. "It wasn’t for you. It was for my mother’s sake."

Alice smiled faintly. "I never thought you’d give me anything of value anyway."

After everything that had happened—after he had saved her—she finally had the courage to speak her mind.

"Mr. Knight, when I first met your mother, she was the one who approached me. She saw that I was young and alone, so she took pity on me. We grew close over time."

"Then her health worsened. She couldn’t handle the workload anymore, so I helped her."

"That’s the bond we built in prison."

"I was never the scheming liar you thought I was."

"And please, handle your relationship with Victoria properly. I don’t want to nearly die again because of her jealousy."

Without waiting for a response, she turned and walked to her room, leaving the bracelet on the antique table.

For the first time, Alexander felt like he was the one being dismissed.

His dark, unreadable eyes lingered on her.

Her short hair was slightly messy, her cheeks still swollen and red from crying. Yet, despite everything, she carried herself with quiet dignity—neither pleading nor defiant.

She had retreated back into herself, as if the world outside no longer mattered.

Most women would have used this moment to manipulate him—to act vulnerable, to seek comfort, to secure his favor.

But Alice did none of that.

She existed in her own space, untouched by the chaos around her.

A woman like this couldn’t possibly be a liar.

She was just someone who had learned to armor herself against the world’s cruelty.

The realization twisted something inside him.

His phone buzzed. Victoria’s name flashed on the screen. He answered with a sharp, "What?"

"Alexander..." Her voice trembled through the line, her words broken by sobs. "I know I’ve ruined everything. I just—I need to apologize. Please, just see me one last time. If you don’t come down, I’ll stay here in the rain until you do."