The sound of Celia's voice made Jennifer's blood run cold.

Was... was she hearing things?

Why would she be hearing Celia's voice now?

Wasn't Celia supposed to be at the hotel?

Jennifer took a shaky breath and looked up.

There, standing in the doorway, was Celia.

And next to her stood Caitlin.

It wasn't a hallucination.

It was real.

Jennifer staggered, her face draining of all color. She felt faint.

How could this be?

How was Celia here?

That meant...

She had heard every word of her conversation with Griffin.

Jennifer gasped for air, her mind racing as she looked at Celia, her expression crumbling. "Miss Palmer, it's... it's not what it looks like! I... I can explain."

She pointed a finger at Caitlin. "It was her! All of it! It was that witch Freya! She framed me!"

Yes!

It was Caitlin.

If it weren't for Caitlin, she would still be Celia's closest friend.

She never would have ended up in this position.

It was all Caitlin's fault.

Caitlin had pushed her to this.

Seeing Jennifer still trying to shift the blame, Celia's rage boiled over.

*SLAP!*

She swung her hand, striking Jennifer across the face.

"Shut up!" Celia seethed. "Even now, you're still trying to blame Freya for your own mistakes!"

Celia had put all her strength into the slap.

A bright red mark instantly appeared on Jennifer's cheek.

It stung.

A burning, searing pain.

But more than the pain, Jennifer was stunned.

She stood frozen, her hand covering her cheek, unable to process what had just happened. She stared at Celia in disbelief.

She had hit her.

Celia had actually hit her.

She had been by Celia's side for over twenty years. They were officially mistress and servant, but in reality, they were sisters who had grown up together. Celia had never, ever raised a hand to her, and she had never done anything to betray Celia.

Until today.

And now, Celia had struck her for an outsider.

Tears welled in Jennifer's eyes and spilled down her cheeks. "Miss Palmer, you hit

me," she sobbed. "For her, you hit me!"

"And you don't think you deserve it?"

Celia looked at Jennifer, her expression one of pure

disappointment. "Jennifer, let me tell you something From this day forward, you are no longer a friend of Celia Palmer."

"We are done. Our bond is broken."

Bond broken?!

What a joke.

Jennifer's eyes widened as she met Celia's gaze, a bitter, mocking smile on her

lips. "You're breaking our bond over a single prescription?"

Had Celia forgotten? She was the one who had grown up with her.

She had saved her life.

That year...

She had nearly died to save Celia.

And now, Celia was cutting her off.

"Is this just about a prescription?" Celia's voice was cold as ice. "You not only stole it, but you tried to frame Freya for it! You tried to turn me against her."

"Jennifer, I trusted you so much! And what did you do? You have disappointed me more than I can say."

When Caitlin had first suggested Jennifer might be involved, Celia's immediate reaction had been to defend her.

She had believed in Jennifer's character.

She had thought Jennifer was above such things.

But in the end?

Jennifer had shattered that trust.

If Caitlin hadn't been so quick-witted, setting a trap to make Jennifer believe their

friendship was broken, she would still be completely in the dark.

Hearing Celia's words, Jennifer's sobs turned into laughter.

Loud, hysterical laughter.

"Hahaha !"

"You trusted me? Celia, you say you trusted me?" Jennifer stumbled slightly. "If you really trusted me, would you have conspired with Freya to set me up?"

Her voice rose, her emotions finally erupting. So what if I took the prescription? It's just a piece of paper! A healer's duty is to serve humanity. I took it for the good of the people of Valerium!"

Yes!

That was it!

She was just trying to contribute to Valerium's medical field.

"Miss Palmer, Jennifer continued, her tone righteous, "you've been through that darkness yourself. You know how agonizing it is to live with an incurable condition! Don't you want others who are suffering like you did to recover and live healthy lives?"

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Jennifer painted herself as a selfless hero, as if she had stolen the prescription

not for personal gain, but out of pure altruism.

Celia, a noble of Valerium, had never once thought about her own people.

She didn't deserve her title.

She didn't deserve to be from Valerium at all.

"You're twisting the truth!" Celia shouted. "Are you sure you stole that prescription

for the people of Valerium? If that's the case, why did you demand that Smith list

you as an inventor?"

"If you truly wanted to contribute to medicine, to save people from suffering, you should have become a doctor! You should be creating your own breakthroughs, not stealing someone else's!"

"Jennifer, stop with the noble act. You're nothing but a thief! A common, backstabbing thief!"

Celia had never imagined a day would come when she would be so at odds with

Jennifer.