Emily let her eyes fall shut for a second, not interested in trading pointless words with Cynthia. She got straight to the point. "Any updates on who drugged Tristan?"

The sudden question threw Cynthia off. For a moment, she just stared, trying to catch up. "They're still checking the security footage and questioning people. Nothing conclusive yet."

Emily replayed what had happened that night in her mind. The waiter had told her that Tristan had arranged the presidential suite for her. But if that were true, why did Tristan call and ask where she was? And later, when he was supposed to come by, it wasn't him at the door, just the waiter. Not long after, everything spiraled. Hilaria's room had been right next to hers. That couldn't be a coincidence.

It hit her. Hilaria must have set the whole thing up, probably hoping Emily would walk in and see her with Tristan and finally give up on him. It all lined up a little too perfectly.

She turned to Cynthia. "Check who booked room 1304 tonight. I think there's something shady going on."

Cynthia frowned. "What are you getting at? What's so special about that room?"

Emily knew Cynthia wouldn't do anything unless she spelled things out. So she decided to push a little harder.

"When I got here, a waiter told me Tristan had set up room 1304 for me and that I should wait there. But Tristan didn't know anything about it. After he was drugged, his secretary, Hilaria Vargas, took him to 1305. If I hadn't shown up when I did, who knows how bad it could've gotten. Two rooms, side by side. There's no way that's just a coincidence."

She left the rest unsaid, trusting Cynthia would connect the dots.

Cynthia's voice shot up. “What? Hilaria Vargas really went that far?”

Emily stayed cool. "Tristan already told Steven Davis to keep an eye on Hilaria. You should really look into who booked those rooms."

Cynthia pressed her lips together. "Now I have to deal with Hilaria Vargas too? Trust me, I'll get to the bottom of this. She's not getting away with it."

Emily nodded, her tone even. "Tristan's at The Apex Surgical Institute. If you want to come, you know where to find us."

As soon as Cynthia heard the hospital's name, she hung up.

About an hour later, Cynthia showed up with a crowd from both the Davis and Rivera families. They brought the whole story of what happened that night with them.

Tristan was still out cold when they arrived. Cynthia was the first through the hospital doors, practically dragging everyone after her.

"Which room is Tristan in?"

Emily was sitting outside in the hallway. She pointed to the door. “He's in there, but he's still asleep."

She wanted to remind them to keep

it down, but Cynthia didn't even pause. She barreled into the room the rest of the group trailing behind; making plenty of noise:

Most of the family went inside, but Steven Davis and Mr. and Mrs. Rivera stayed behind with Emily.

Steven's face gave nothing away. The Riveras looked torn between worry and anger.

Emily stood up out of respect. "Hi. Tristan's inside, but he hasn't woken up yet."

Steven let out a quiet sigh. "Ms. Blair, thank you for looking after Tristan We'll take it from here you've done enough. You should go home and get some rest."

So, they were trying to get rid of her.

Emily kept her tone polite but didn't budge. “I'm sorry, Mr. Davis. Tristan asked me to stay with him."

The air in the hallway grew heavy. Steven's eyes darkened, and the Riveras looked even more upset.

Steven's voice dropped low. "I know what's going on between you two. We've met before, remember? You and Tristan lied to me once..."

Emily's voice was steady. “Mr. Davis, I'm sorry for what happened before. But this time, I'm telling the truth."

Steven looked up, studying her. She

wasn't the same Emily he'd met

before. There was something

sharper about her now, a calm

determination that hadn't been there before.