Fugitive

Two days before Sienna left.

CRASH!

The sound of a vase shattering into a thousand pieces echoed through the Holland family's living room. Mahesa stood with his face contorted in rage, one hand still cupping the area between his legs where a vicious throb persisted.

"That bitch! You told me she was obedient, Holland!" Mahesa screamed, unhinged. "She nearly crippled me! She came at me like a goddamn animal!"

"Calm down, Mahesa. It was probably just a panic reaction. Sienna can't possibly know how to fight — she's a sheltered homebody, she's weak—"

"Weak my ass!" Mahesa spat. "She had me in an arm lock that nearly snapped my bone! Now she's missing, and that money I gave you — I want every cent back if you can't drag her in front of me by tonight!"

In the corner of the room, Grandmother Marisa — the family's imperious matriarch — rapped her cane against the floor. Her sharp eyes turned on Scarlett, Sienna's biological mother, who could only stand trembling in the far corner.

"Ungrateful wretch!" Marisa snarled. "Raised in this mansion, and she repays us by running off like some common whore. Sienna is damaged goods — rotten seed, just like her father! Worthless!"

"I-I'm sorry, Mother... Sienna was probably just scared," Scarlett whispered.

"Scared? She's conniving, Scarlett! Look at what your daughter's done — she's blown up a major business deal!" Marisa wheeled on Holland. "Find her. Drag her back. Tie her up if you have to! Don't let her run off with this family's dignity!"

Meanwhile, on the other sofa, Aluna — Holland's biological daughter and Sienna's stepsister, only a year younger — lounged with studied boredom, examining her nails. A thin smile hid behind her phone.

Good riddance, Aluna thought cheerfully.

Holland and Mahesa had always been fixated on Sienna's classic beauty. With Sienna out of the picture, Aluna would finally be the only princess in this house.

The night wore on, but Scarlett's anxiety was a dam about to break. She knew her daughter couldn't survive alone out there without help. Only one name surfaced in her mind — someone she desperately missed but equally feared, because of old wounds.

Harris.

Her eldest son, who had cut ties with her the day she chose to marry Holland. Scarlett slipped out of the house and drove to a modest apartment on the outskirts of the city.

With shaking hands, she knocked on the door again and again.

Click.

The door opened to reveal Harris, disheveled, dark circles under his eyes. His gaze hardened the instant he saw who it was.

"Mom?" His voice came out flat. Cold. "What are you doing here? Aren't you happy enough in your Holland palace?"

"Harris... please..." Scarlett broke down, abandoning any pretense of composure. "Sienna is gone. She ran from Mahesa's hotel. Is she here? Please, just tell me she's safe."

Harris said nothing for a long moment. He could see the exhaustion and genuine terror carved into his mother's face. But the disappointment ran too deep.

"She was here," he said tonelessly.

Scarlett's eyes lit up. "Where is she? I need to talk—"

"She's gone. Far away," Harris cut her off. He leaned against the doorframe. "And don't expect you or Holland to find her. Sienna chose her own path because you could never protect her in that hellhouse."

"Harris, she's still so young, she—"

"She's not a kid anymore, Mom! She's braver than you ever were!" Harris's voice climbed. "She left to save herself from the scumbags you people picked out for her. Go home, Mom. Tell Holland that Sienna's dead or whatever — I don't care. Just stop looking for her, if you have an ounce of love left for her."

Harris shut the door hard, right in Scarlett's face, leaving her sobbing in the cold hallway.

A few hours later, Aluna drifted into the kitchen and poured herself a glass of cold orange juice as though no catastrophe had occurred.

Scarlett, Sienna's mother, sat slumped at the dining table, sniffling into her hands. Aluna approached and set the glass down with a deliberate little clink.

"God, Mom... stop crying already. That sound is giving me a headache," Aluna said, her tone dripping with false concern while her eyes glittered with mockery.

Scarlett looked up through swollen eyes. "Aluna, your sister is in danger. How can you be this calm?"

Aluna let out a pretty laugh — melodious and laced with poison. She bent down, bringing her face level with Scarlett's, and whispered so neither Holland nor Marisa could hear.

"Sienna isn't in danger, Mom. She's just a fraud," Aluna hissed. "She ran because she knew she'd never get her hands on Dad's money. She's selfish. She left, and now Mom gets to take the fall. Is that what a loving daughter does?"

"Sienna isn't like that!" Scarlett protested weakly.

"No? Then why didn't she take you with her? Why did she only think about saving herself?" Aluna straightened up and twirled a strand of her hair. "Mom should just accept it — Sienna was a parasite in this house. Now the parasite's been pulled out. Isn't life going to be so much more peaceful without watching Dad beat Sienna every day?"

Aluna sipped her juice slowly, then flashed a wide smile.

"Besides, Mom... I actually helped Sienna. You're welcome."

Scarlett's eyes went wide. "Helped? How?"

"I'm the one who whispered to Dad that Uncle Mahesa had his eye on Sienna. I told Dad that Sienna secretly liked Uncle Mahesa too. If I hadn't said that, you think Dad would've sold her off that fast?"

"Y-you... you planned all of this?" Scarlett covered her mouth, unable to believe what she was hearing.

Aluna shrugged casually. "I just sped up the inevitable, Mom. I wanted her gone as soon as possible. Too bad Uncle Mahesa's plan fell apart because Sienna turned out to have a mean right hook. But whatever — point is, she's a wanted woman now. She'll never dare show her face here again."

Aluna leaned in close to Scarlett's ear again, and this time the threat was unmistakable.

"So don't even think about looking for her. If Mom starts making noise and stressing Dad out, I won't hesitate to tell him that Mom's been hiding jewelry from Sienna's late father as an escape fund. Want to get thrown out on the street too?"

Scarlett fell silent. Aluna — the girl who had always played the spoiled daddy's girl in front of Holland — was in truth a calculating little devil. She left Scarlett hunched over the table in defeat. A single tear fell onto the wrinkled skin of her left hand.

"Sienna... forgive me for not being able to do anything for you."

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