"Really? Can you tell us the specifics?"

A reporter pressed.

Mia Kane had no proof, so she couldn’t definitively pin the blame on Chase Lockwood.

"It was just an accident. I was joking."

She forced a smile, but her face was so pale that it was heart-wrenching to see.

She struggled to walk forward, and the reporters tacitly cleared a path for her.

As she stepped onto the stage, it was obvious she was struggling to lift her leg.

When she stepped up, her whole body swayed uncontrollably, and she nearly tumbled off.

Just then, Chase Lockwood moved. He walked toward her instinctively, wanting to help her up.

But Mia Kane steadied herself, coldly dodging his reach.

Chase Lockwood’s hand froze in midair. His fingers stiffened as he silently withdrew it.

"Vivian Lynch. I’m here. Now, you can give me your formal apology."

She stood in the center, looking coldly at Vivian Lynch.

Vivian Lynch bit her lip, her eyes darting about. It was obvious she didn’t want to speak in front of her.

The doctor took the hint and spoke up. "Miss Kane, it’s not that Mrs. Lockwood is unwilling to apologize. She has already reflected on her mistakes just now. Everyone saw and heard it. You were the one who arrived late, so you can’t blame Mrs. Lockwood, right?"

"Mrs. Lockwood’s injury makes it difficult for her to speak again. If her vocal cords are damaged and she can never speak again, will you take responsibility?"

"I’ll take responsibility. Is that enough?"

Mia Kane’s sharp, deliberate retort left the doctor speechless, unsure how to respond.

"Vivian Lynch, if you really can’t speak again in the future, I’ll be responsible for you. I’ll support you for the rest of your life. But let’s handle one thing at a time. Don’t try to dodge the real issue. You and I made a bet, and you have to accept your loss."

"Or are you just paying lip service to accepting your loss, while secretly hoping to just rush through this and get it over with?"

"Mia Kane, she already apologized."

"Who did she apologize to? Me? I’m the other party in this bet. Did she do it in front of me? That doesn’t count. Apologize again, right now."

Mia Kane’s face was completely drained of color. She looked even more wretched than Vivian Lynch, who was wearing makeup.

She was clearly so fragile she looked ready to collapse, yet her back was ramrod straight. Blood was still spreading from the wound on her calf, a testament to how deep the cut was.

Her eyes were filled with stubborn defiance, shining with a resilient light that was impossible to look away from. It drew you in, stirring your emotions along with hers.

Even the reporters stopped chiming in with words meant to pressure Vivian Lynch.

In comparison, Mia Kane was clearly the more pitiful one.

Vivian Lynch could only look to Chase Lockwood for help.

Chase Lockwood’s brows were tightly furrowed.

There was nothing he could do to turn this situation around.

If he showed any favoritism, his own reputation would be in tatters.

’It’s better to just apologize quickly. She might even gain a good reputation for being frank, admitting her mistakes, and accepting her loss.’

"Vivian, since it’s come to this, just apologize."

The last shred of hope in Vivian Lynch’s heart died.

She could only look hesitantly toward Mia Kane.

"I made a bet with you, and I lost. From now on, I will leave this industry and dissolve my company. Mia Kane, I admit defeat—"

Vivian Lynch mustered all her courage to say the words, her voice trembling.

Every word was an immense struggle to get out.

She was a stark contrast to her calm and composed demeanor from just moments ago.

’What was the difference between apologizing to Mia Kane’s face now and having a knife held to her throat while being sentenced?’

An overwhelming sense of humiliation and indignation washed over her. She closed her eyes in despair as a single tear fell.

"Admitting defeat is enough. In the future, don’t you ever say you worked in the fashion design industry. And when you see me, you’d best keep your head down and walk the other way."

After spitting out those cold words, Mia Kane turned and left.

Everyone watched her retreating figure.

She was thin and frail, like a delicate porcelain doll that might shatter at any moment.

As she walked, her steps grew slower and slower, her body becoming unsteady.

Mia Kane had lost too much blood. Her vision was darkening, and she couldn’t hold on long enough to make a graceful exit.

She felt light-headed as her body pitched forward heavily.

The moment they saw her fall, everyone present felt their hearts inexplicably clench.

Chase Lockwood, in particular, instinctively jumped off the stage and ran toward her.

But before he could reach her, Mia Kane fell into a strong, familiar embrace.

"Ad—"

She saw the person who had caught her and tried to say his name, but her strength gave out, and she fainted.

When Adrian Preston saw the wound on her calf, his heart seized. He immediately swept her up into his arms and rushed her to the hospital.

The wound was long and required more than ten stitches. There was still rust in it, creating a high risk of tetanus, so she was given anti-inflammatory drugs.

Because of her weakened state, she developed a recurring high fever and remained unconscious.

Theo Thorne went to check the janitor’s closet and found an unconscious Shannon Preston. There were still traces of sedatives in her system.

Mia Kane had been injected with a smaller dose, so she had remained partially conscious and had managed to stay awake by injuring herself.

He was holding the photos Theo Thorne had taken.

The self-inflicted wound was from a sharp piece of metal, likely something a janitor had picked up to sell as scrap.

It was stained with blood, and there was a large pool of blood on the floor.

She had walked all the way to the banquet hall, leaving a winding trail of blood on the floor.

DRIP... DRIP...

He could picture it all: her dragging her injured body, limping along.

’At the doorway, she would have composed herself, endured the pain, straightened her back, and then walked in with steady steps, all so her enemies wouldn’t see her at her most vulnerable.’

She was just that strong-willed, just that stubborn.

Like a thorny rose blooming on a cliff’s edge, alluring you to come closer, only to prick the one who tries to pick it.

Adrian Preston silently tightened his grip on her hand.

Just then, Theo Thorne informed him,

"Sir, Young Master Lockwood is here. He wants to check on his sister-in-law’s injuries."

"He dares to show his face?"

Adrian Preston walked out, his eyes bloodshot.

Seething with rage, Adrian Preston swung a fist, landing a heavy blow on the corner of Chase Lockwood’s mouth.

Chase staggered back several steps, blood appearing at the corner of his mouth as his whole mouth filled with the taste of it.

This time, he didn’t dodge.

He wiped the corner of his mouth.

"I didn’t think she would hurt herself."

"You verbally promised to make Vivian Lynch apologize publicly, but you were pulling strings behind the scenes the whole time, trying to protect her. If you couldn’t do it, why make the promise?"

It was unclear if that last sentence was about this incident or something else entirely.

"How badly is she hurt? I just want to see. If she’s okay, I’ll leave."

"You’re not qualified to see her. Don’t ever come looking for her again."

"She wasn’t like this before. She used to be so delicate and gentle, so dependent on me. But now... she’s become someone I don’t understand at all. If I had known she would hurt herself, I never would have pulled those strings. I wanted to save face, but I never intended to hurt her like this."

"Chase Lockwood, you’re pathetic. You were with her for three years, and you still don’t know what kind of person Mia Kane is!"

"Then again, you’ve had those lingering ties with Vivian Lynch for years, and you’ve always been a poor judge of her character too, haven’t you?"

"What are you talking about?"

Chase Lockwood frowned deeply.

Adrian Preston didn’t elaborate. He didn’t want Chase Lockwood to see Vivian Lynch’s true colors. If Chase started seeing Mia through rose-tinted glasses again, he might try to win her back from him.

Just then, a pained murmur came from the hospital room.

It was faint, but Adrian Preston caught it. His expression changed, and he rushed inside anxiously.

Chase Lockwood tried to follow, but Theo Thorne blocked his way.

"Young Master Lockwood, she has nothing to do with you now. She is my sister-in-law—Adrian’s woman."

The words were like two knives stabbing into his heart.

Through the crack in the door, he saw Mia Kane waking up, held tightly in Adrian Preston’s arms.