Chapter 2 – Three Months That Took Everything

Three years after their marriage...

Alice finally understood something.

No matter how hard she tried...

Adrian Kingsley would never love her.

For three years, she had lived in the Kingsley Mansion as his wife.

But they were husband and wife only in name.

Adrian rarely returned home.

Even when they met, he spoke to her with cold indifference.

Alice endured everything because she still believed one day he would forgive her.

She didn't know...

That hope would soon be destroyed forever.

...

One afternoon, Alice personally prepared lunch and went to Adrian's company.

She wanted to surprise him.

Instead, she saw Adrian and Ava together.

The two were discussing work, and Adrian actually smiled.

It was a smile Alice had never received in three years of marriage.

Her heart tightened.

She walked into the office.

"I brought you lunch."

Adrian barely looked at her.

"I've already eaten."

Alice forced a smile.

"I made it myself."

"I don't want it."

Before Alice could reply, Ava stepped forward with her usual gentle smile.

"Mrs. Kingsley, President Kingsley has been very busy lately. Please don't misunderstand."

Those simple words sounded harmless.

But to Alice, they felt like another victory.

For years...

Ava had always appeared whenever there was a misunderstanding.

Always pretending to help.

Always making Alice look unreasonable.

Alice could no longer control herself.

"Stop pretending!"

The argument quickly moved into the company garden.

Employees watched from a distance but did not interfere.

Near the garden was a decorative pond.

Ava suddenly lowered her voice.

"You'll never replace me in President Kingsley's heart."

Alice's face turned pale.

"What did you say?"

Ava smiled.

"You heard me."

The smile on Ava's face completely shattered Alice's patience.

She reached out and pushed Ava away.

She only wanted Ava to stop provoking her.

She never imagined what would happen next.

Ava stepped backward...

Then suddenly screamed.

She fell into the pond, striking the stone edge before disappearing into the water.

For a brief moment...

Everything became silent.

Then Adrian arrived.

He rushed into the pond without hesitation and carried Ava out.

Blood slowly trickled down Ava's forehead.

She weakly grabbed Adrian's sleeve.

"I... I didn't mean to make Mrs. Kingsley angry..."

Those words were enough.

Adrian looked at Alice with eyes filled with disappointment and anger.

"Alice."

"I didn't..."

She shook her head desperately.

"She provoked me. I only pushed her. I never wanted this to happen."

But Adrian didn't listen.

"Enough."

His cold voice echoed through the garden.

"I've believed your excuses too many times."

Alice stared at him.

For three years, she had waited for him to trust her.

Even once.

But he never did.

...

The incident spread throughout the city.

Security cameras only recorded Alice pushing Ava.

They did not record Ava's words.

Several employees claimed they had seen Alice threaten Ava before the accident.

Alice knew they were lying.

But no one believed her.

The Kingsley family hired the best lawyers.

The evidence was overwhelming.

In the end...

Alice was found guilty of assault causing injury.

She was sentenced to three months in prison.

...

The prison gates closed behind her.

Alice thought the sentence would be the hardest part.

She was wrong.

...

One month after entering prison, a prison officer handed Alice a letter.

She smiled bitterly.

She thought it was a notice from her lawyer.

Instead...

It was news from the Carter family.

Richard Carter had passed away.

The letter slipped from her trembling hands.

"No..."

Her grandfather...

The man who had loved her unconditionally since she was a child...

Had left this world.

Alice rushed to the prison officer.

"Please... please let me attend his funeral."

"I just want to see him one last time."

The officer looked at her with pity.

"I'm sorry."

"Your request has been denied."

Alice collapsed to the floor.

She cried until her voice became hoarse.

For the first time in her life...

She truly understood what it meant to lose someone forever.

...

Two months later...

Another letter arrived.

This time, it carried only one name.

Aaron Carter.

Alice frowned.

Her hands suddenly became cold.

She slowly unfolded the letter.

Every word felt heavier than the last.

Her younger brother...

Had died.

Alice sat motionless on the cold prison floor.

The letter slipped from her fingers.

Tears quietly rolled down her face.

She remembered the quiet boy who rarely spoke.

The younger brother who always stayed in the background.

The brother she had almost forgotten...

Was no longer in this world.

Alice covered her face with both hands.

She had always believed there would be another chance.

Another chance to ask him how he was.

Another chance to become a better sister.

Another chance to make up for all the years she had ignored him.

But fate never gave her that chance.

It had taken him away before she could even say...

"I'm sorry."

...

When Alice was finally released three months later, the world outside had completely changed.

The Carter Mansion no longer felt like home.

The laughter she once heard had disappeared.

The people she wanted to see were gone forever.

She stood outside the gate for a long time before gathering the courage to walk inside.

But what greeted her wasn't warmth.

It was silence.

And regret.

The nightmare she thought had ended...

Had only just begun.

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