Chapter 22

At the dining table, Laura slowly swirled her spoon through her coffee.

When Kaia stepped inside, Laura's face brightened. "You're home. Sit down and eat something with me."

Hiding her irritation, Kaia moved closer and spoke quickly. "Mom, I spotted a car out front when I got back.At first, I figured it was Wayne Happer trying to drag me to lunch again. But when I asked, it turns out the driver was here for Verena."

"Verena?" Laura's brows knitted together. "She barely set foot in Shoildon. Who would even know her?"

After a pause, her frown deepened. "Probably some worthless acquaintances."

Kaia noticed the dismissive tone, bit her lip, and then let out a sudden smile. "I thought the same thing. Still,it doesn't sit right with me."

Her voice grew sharper, and her brow tightened. "If it's just casual friends, then fine. But what if she ends up tangled with the wrong kind of men? Don't forget, she's Isaac's future wife. One wrong rumor could wreck her standing. Think of how people will talk about the Willis daughters if this gets out."

At those words, Laura slammed her cup onto the table, splashing hot coffee across the surface.

Her voice turned cold as she snapped, "If she dares to fool around and ruin the alliance between the Willis family and the Bennetts, I'll see to it she pays dearly for it!"

Kaia hid the smirk tugging at her lips and placed a gentle hand on Laura's wrist. "Mom, I'm only speculating.Maybe Verena isn't that type of girl."

Laura narrowed her eyes, clearly certain that Verena was the type of woman she had suspected.

Upstairs on the third floor, Verena gathered her things, grabbed the medical kit, and stepped out of her room.

As she came down, she caught sight of Laura and Kaia sharing breakfast together, a picture that almost seemed warm and ordinary.

Her eyes rested on them for only a moment before she quickly turned away.

"Hold it right there," Laura barked, freezing Verena just as she reached the door.

Verena stopped in her tracks without glancing back. "What is it you want from me?"

A dark scowl spread across Laura's face. "Running out this early-who exactly are you sneaking off to meet?"

For a brief moment, Verena looked taken aback, but she quickly turned around, her eyes landing on Laura before drifting toward Kaia.

Kaia tried to meet Verena's stare with ease, yet the weight of that unwavering gaze broke her composure.Her throat tightened as she looked away in discomfort.

A sharp laugh slipped from Verena as her eyes returned to Laura. "If you're going to accuse me,at least make the lie believable. Having a voice doesn't give you the right to spit out garbage."

The table rattled as Laura struck it, rising to her feet and jabbing a finger at Verena. "This is the respect you show me when I'm trying to guide you?"

"Guide me? What authority do you think you even have?" Verena retorted.

Laura's rage only deepened when Verena dismissed her so openly in front of Kaia.

"I'm your mother. That alone gives me every right to discipline you," Laura snapped.

To Verena, the claim was nothing but a joke, and she laughed outright, the sound edged with scorn.

"Oh, so you do remember that I'm your child too. For a while, it felt like you were only a mother to Kaia and Luka. When it comes to me, nothing I say ever matters, but the moment they speak, you take every word as the truth."

With that, Verena turned a sly smile on Kaia. "Save your plotting. The car outside belongs to Isaac, not some 'wrong kind of men'. You're too young to be tossing around filthy ideas-try keeping your thoughts, and your She was teasing Kaia deliberately, repeating the same things she had told Laura. Just before coming downstairs, she had happened to overhear part of their conversation.

The blunt strike drained the color from Kaia's face. She clung desperately to her image of obedience before Laura, holding back any retort, and let tears spill instead.

Verena cut her off before the tears could even fall. "Spare me the act. I'm the one being slandered here, and I'm not weeping. You're the one making things up-so why are you crying? Do you really feel wronged, or do you just think I don't have the right to call you out? Pathetic."

With a short, dismissive laugh, Verena turned away, walking off without giving either of them another second of her time.

The sting of Verena's words left Kaia speechless on the outside, but her chest burned with fury.

Laura, on the other hand, felt an uneasiness she couldn't shake. She knew she played favorites, yet even with that awareness, she couldn't stop herself. And now, Verena's defiance stirred not just guilt but also an echo of resentment, perhaps because it reminded her too much of Shawna, her late mother-in-law.

"Mom..." Kaia noticed the flicker of guilt in Laura's expression, and dread took hold-what if that guilt made Laura soften toward Verena and give her more attention?

What Kaia couldn't see was that Laura had already sensed her fear and understood her intention,yet even so, Laura's instinct remained the same: to stand firmly on Kaia's side.

...

Medical kit in hand, Verena stepped into the car, and before long, the ride brought her to the location Isaac had sent.

When the car stopped, the driver addressed her with quiet respect. "Miss Willis, Mr. Bennett is already inside the hospital waiting for you."

Her gaze lingered on the private hospital towering before her, and for a moment she stayed silent. She had messaged Isaac before, telling him that they would begin with a traditional approach before surgery.For the traditional treatment, they didn't need the equipment of a hospital, so why would he choose to meet her at a hospital today?

Setting her questions aside, Verena walked straight toward the top floor, making her way to the VIP ward where Isaac was waiting.

In the end, Isaac chose to place his trust in Verena.

Since Evelyn couldn't be found, Cayden grew uneasy about leaving Isaac in the hands of someone who appeared untrained in medicine, so he came along to watch closely.

Although he offered to help Verena, he had already decided in his mind that he would take over the operation if necessary.

Inside the ward, the two men sat in silence until a knock sounded against the door.

"Come in," Isaac called out.

Cayden's eyes stayed locked on the door as it swung open.

Through the doorway stepped a young woman in a simple V-neck sweater and faded jeans. Her frame was slender but carried a quiet elegance, and her face was striking enough to draw every eye. With no makeup at all, her natural beauty shone, most of all in the clarity of her gaze.

For a heartbeat, Cayden was caught off guard by herpresence, and only when she greeted them did his attention drop to the medical kit in her hand.

His surprise slipped out in his voice. "You're Verena Willis?"

In response, Verena gave a courteous nod, her gaze shifting briefly from Cayden to Isaac.

The sight left Cayden astonished. Who had ever claimed she was plain? Anyone making that claim had clearly never stood in the same room with her.

Still, this was no time to focus on appearances. Isaac's condition came first, and the presence of a traditional medicine kit only deepened Cayden's doubts. Isaac shared in the confusion, his brow furrowing. "Wasn't today meant to be the surgery?"

Verena glanced at Cayden briefly before addressing Isaac directly. "I recommended we start with traditional methods first and hold off on surgery until the timing is right," she said calmly. "Doesn't that sound wiser? If you'd like, I can show you our chat history."