Chapter 4

In Genevieve's hand was Liam's precious, creamy white jade pendant, the one his grandmother had left him!

The pendant teetered precariously in her fingers, almost slipping several times.

My heart hammered in my chest. I rushed in, snatching the pendant from her hand.

“What are you doing? This is Liam's grandmother's relic, how can you just...”

“What business is it of yours?” Genevieve snapped, snatching it back. Seeing how tense I was, a cruel smirk suddenly curved her lips. “Oh, you care that much? Then...”

She deliberately let go.

*Shatter—*

The pendant hit the marble with a sickening crack, shattering into two pieces.

My heart almost stopped beating.

That was Liam's most cherished heirloom, given to him on his grandmother's deathbed!

“What's going on?”

Liam's voice came from the doorway. I looked up to see him standing there, his face grim, staring at the fragments on the floor.

“Miss Hayes broke it,” Genevieve quickly interjected, her voice laced with feigned hurt. “I just picked it up to look at it, and she rushed over to grab it...”

Liam's eyes turned to ice. “How dare you...”

“There's a security camera in the study,” I interrupted him softly, my voice trembling slightly. “You can check it. See what really happened.”

The air instantly froze.

Genevieve's face shifted, and she grudgingly changed her story. “I'm so sorry, Liam. It was... I accidentally broke it... Was it very important to you? I can just buy you another one, exactly the same.”

To my surprise, Liam's anger instantly evaporated.

He strode quickly to Genevieve's side, taking her hand. “Are you hurt?”

I stood rooted to the spot, watching Liam carefully examine Genevieve's fingers, a hollow ache spreading through my chest as if a piece had been carved out.

No one knew better than I the significance of that pendant to Liam.

Three years ago, when Mrs. Blackwood accidentally misplaced it, Liam had just undergone major leg surgery.

He'd dragged his injured body through a snowstorm for three hours, searching for it. When he returned, he had a furious argument with his mother, then locked himself in his room, smashing things.

It was I who braved the heavy snow, searching inch by inch in the yard, my fingers numb with cold, until I finally found the pendant at dawn.

And now, the pendant was deliberately broken by Genevieve, and all he cared about was whether *she* was hurt.

I laughed, a self-mocking sound.

He loved Genevieve to such an extent.

And I, how incredibly naive I was, to ever think Liam would marry me once he recovered.

Countless nights, I'd watched over him, seen him suffer through grueling physical therapy, and secretly promised myself I'd stay with him forever.

Even in his darkest, most self-destructive moments, I wrote in my diary, a silly, naive wish: “I'll marry him the day he walks again.”

Now, I realized I was a complete and utter joke.

Thankfully, I was finally awake.

My unappreciated devotion? I would never offer it again.

After that day, I barely left my room.

Until, during dinner one evening, Genevieve suddenly clutched her stomach, cried out in pain, and crumpled, pale-faced, into Liam's arms.

“What's wrong?” Liam panicked, immediately calling his private doctor.

After an examination, the doctor's face was grim. “It's poisoning,” he stated flatly.

The entire villa was thrown into chaos.

The house staff stood rigid with fear, and the butler immediately began grilling the kitchen for details about dinner prep.

“I... I saw it...” a young maid spoke up, her voice trembling. “I saw Miss Hayes put something in the soup...”

Liam's gaze instantly turned to ice.

He strode over to me, grabbing my wrist, his grip so fierce it felt like my bones would shatter. “Just because of that jade pendant, you'd try to kill Genevieve? Sera, what has gotten into you?”

I looked up at him, my voice very quiet. “I didn't.”

“Still trying to deny it?” Liam's eyes were cold and sharp. He turned to the maid. “Bring the rest of the soup.”

My pupils constricted. “What are you doing?”

“To teach you a lesson,” Liam squeezed my chin, his voice chilling. “So you'll know what to do and what not to do from now on.”

The maid brought the remaining soup, and at Liam's command, forced the bitter liquid down my throat.

I fought with all my might, but two burly bodyguards held me fast.

The warm soup was forcibly poured down my throat, making me cough violently.

The poison took effect almost immediately.

I collapsed to my knees in agony, cold sweat instantly soaking my back. I curled into a ball, my nails digging deep into my palms, yet I stubbornly repeated, “I didn't poison her...”

Liam didn't even spare me a glance. He stayed by Genevieve's bedside the entire time, carefully feeding her water, gently wiping the sweat from her forehead with a damp cloth, his eyes dripping with tenderness.

“Liam...” Genevieve weakly gripped his hand. “Miss Hayes...”

“Don't defend her,” Liam murmured, soothing her. “Just rest.”

My vision blurred, my mind growing hazy from the intense pain. The last thing I remembered was being roughly loaded onto an ambulance.

I lay in the hospital all night. Not a single soul came to visit me.

When I returned to the villa the next day, the entire house was empty.

My phone vibrated. It was a photo from Genevieve.

Under a clear blue sky, Liam had his arm wrapped around Genevieve's waist, both of them beaming at the camera.

The caption read: `Someone brought me to the beach to clear my head. Says I needed to relax after such a fright~`

I quietly locked my screen and began packing my suitcase.

As I zipped up my luggage, I suddenly realized how few of my things there were in the place I'd called home for three years.

A single 24-inch suitcase held every trace of my life here.

I had never truly belonged here.

Just as I had never truly entered his heart.

“Have you learned your lesson?”

Liam's voice suddenly came from behind me. I turned to see him standing sharply dressed in a suit at the doorway, his brow furrowed, his gaze scrutinizing me.

“Yes,” I said softly.

My mistake was in loving you.

My mistake was in stubbornly staying by your side for so many years.

Liam's expression softened slightly. “Good. Get dressed. We're going to a party.”

“A party?” I was slightly startled.

“You don't remember it's my birthday today?” Liam's frown deepened, a hint of disbelief in his tone, as if my forgetting was utterly incomprehensible.

Only then did it dimly occur to me. Yes, it was his birthday.

In previous years, I would have already prepared a cake, carefully chosen a gift, even decorated everything myself.

I would remember his favorite flavors, the decorations he disliked, his wish every year.

But now, I had forgotten.

“You go ahead,” I said softly, my voice barely audible. “I'll get changed and ready with a gift, then I'll be right there.”

“Liam!” Genevieve's voice floated up from downstairs, laced with a hint of a whine. “Everyone's waiting for you!”

Liam nodded, giving me one last look. “Don't be long.”

With that, he turned and left, his footsteps fading into the distance.

I stood there, watching his back disappear down the hallway, a self-mocking curve on my lips.

Liam, this time,

My birthday gift to you, is my permanent disappearance from your world.

To let you and Genevieve have your deeply intertwined love, and to finally set myself free.

I picked up my already packed suitcase, gave one last look around the place I'd lived for three years, then walked out without a backward glance.

The airport buzzed with people. I stood before the boarding gate, pulled out my phone, and sent Liam one last message:

`Liam Blackwood, I'm leaving. May your love for Genevieve be deep and unwavering, and may you grow old together.`

Then, I turned off my phone and headed towards the boarding gate.

Three years of foolish devotion, and now, finally, awake.

Our paths diverge, never to cross again.