Chapter4

His few offhand words sealed the ring's fate.

A glimmer of triumph flickered in Vera's eyes.

"Exactly. I love this ring. Name your price—I'll pay whatever it takes."

But I stubbornly shook my head. "I don't want money. I just want my ring."

Callen glared at me coldly. "Give you an inch and you take a mile, huh? If you don't want the cash, get the hell out."

Vera tugged at his sleeve, her voice dripping with soft reassurance. "Don't be mad, Callen. Let me talk to her."

She stepped closer, leaning in to whisper in my ear.

"Don't think you can replace me just because you put on an act for Callen and seduced Nolan into making you his girlfriend while I was gone. To them, I'll always be the one who matters most."

"Want the ring back? Fine. Get on your knees and beg me. Honestly. Then I'll consider returning it."

My breath hitched. I didn't say a word.

It was the only thing my grandmother had left me. The memory of her gentle, kind face surfaced, and an invisible hand squeezed my heart into a vice.

Slowly, my knees bent. I knelt before them all.

"Please. Give it back to me."

Callen and Nolan remained on the couch, watching with icy detachment. Neither lifted a finger.

"You really have no self-respect, do you? Think kneeling and playing the victim will work? Who are you trying to guilt-trip?"

Vera tilted her head, a chilling malice swimming in her eyes.

"Fine. Take it."

The moment the words left her mouth, her fingers parted.

The ring hit the hardwood floor. The sapphire snapped from its setting, skittering away. The metal band warped out of shape.

She did it on purpose. It was unmistakable.

Staring at the ruined pieces, my chest heaved violently. Vision blurring with red, I swung my hand and slapped her across the face.

A split second later, a brutal shove sent me crashing to the floor.

Nolan had already gathered Vera into his arms, murmuring comforts as he carefully blew on the swelling welt on her cheek.

Callen’s face darkened like a thundercloud. "Evelyn! You dare lay a hand on her right in front of me? Apologize to Vera. Now!"

His words were serrated blades, leaving my heart sliced open and bleeding.

When I offered no reply, he scoffed. "You really think that dead woman's piece of junk is worth anything? Are you done throwing your tantrum?"

Trembling all over, pushed past my breaking point, I reached up and slapped him.

"Callen! It wasn't a piece of junk. It was from my grandmother. Do you know how old I was when she died? I was seven."

"It was the absolute last thing I had in this world."

"You had no right to give it away."

"She broke it on purpose. I will never apologize."

Callen’s hand froze mid-air. But his hesitation shattered instantly. Seething, he brought his heel down on the broken fragments. "And here I was feeling a shred of pity for you. You really don't know your place. You care about this ring that much?"

"Don't let her leave."

Hands grabbed me almost immediately, pinning me down. Then, they forced my face into the shattered glass and the sharp edges of the loose sapphire. Again and again.

A sharp, piercing agony tore across my skin, yet it was nothing compared to the hollow ache in my chest.

Within moments, warm blood trickled down my cheek and pattered against the floor.

My face was a bloody mess; the sheer pain had already driven me to the edge of delirium.

Staring at the blood painting my skin, Callen felt an inexplicable tightness grip his chest.

"Do you know what you did wrong yet?"

I remained completely silent.

He sneered. "Keep going."

Nolan spoke up suddenly. "Callen, that's enough. She's going to get seriously hurt at this rate."

Callen swirled the drink in his glass at a leisurely pace. "What, does your heart ache for her? Don't forget who recorded her..."

Right then, Vera suddenly collapsed in a dead faint.

Without a second's hesitation, Nolan scooped her into his arms. He turned and bolted, not sparing me a single glance.

His face wore a look of frantic desperation I had never seen before.

Callen looked back at me, a flash of profound irritation crossing his eyes.

"See that? You were never the one Nolan cared about. Stop dreaming about things that don't belong to you. You're not worthy."

They all left.

I went and had my wounds treated alone.

Barely out of the hospital doors, my phone buzzed. It was my professor.

"Evelyn, we can leave earlier than planned."

I said okay.

On the ride home, my mother's words echoed in my mind from that day in the bedroom.

"Why do you think I risked my life to marry into the Black family?"

For the first time, I think I finally understood.

At the hospital.

Callen stood in the hallway, smoking.

Cigarette after cigarette.

His mind was a chaotic mess.

It wasn't because Vera had fainted, nor because Nolan's attitude seemed off.

It was the words Evelyn had spoken while kneeling on the floor.

"It was from my grandmother."

He remembered the way her face had pressed into the jagged shards.

She hadn't cried. Not a single tear.

He pushed open the door to the patient room.

The very next second, he saw Vera sitting up, excitedly waving her phone in the air.

"Callen! Nolan! I can't believe you guys actually sent Evelyn away just for me!"

The moment those words hung in the air, the color instantly drained from both men's faces.