Kendra's POV:
"Thanks, Elaine."
I made sure I looked grateful enough to fool them while still letting a little fear show. They bought it completely. Vince even looked at me as if he'd already won.
"Kendra, you need to start appreciating what Elaine's done for you. And you need to stop treating her like you used to," Vince said. "She's the real Scott heiress, but she's still helped you over and over again. Most people wouldn't do that for someone who came from nowhere."
I gave him a quick nod and pretended his warning had scared me.
Elaine kept comforting me for a few more minutes, though every kind word coming from her felt fake. Then she took out a piece of paper and a pen and pushed them toward me.
"Kendra, we both know what happened that day. You tried to hit me with your car," she said softly. "I'm not trying to make things harder for you, but the police already know about the accident, and they'll want an explanation."
She gave me a concerned look before nudging the paper closer. "I'm not going to press charges. Just sign this, and we can finally put the whole thing behind us."
One look at the statement told me exactly what they were trying to do. It had already been written from my point of view. According to the confession, I'd been drunk behind the wheel and caused the crash myself.
So that was their plan. Elaine had been the one who hit me, but now she wanted me to admit that I'd caused everything. If I signed my name, I'd be taking responsibility for a crime I hadn't committed, and that lie could follow me for the rest of my life.
There was no way I could sign it.
My fingers relaxed around the pen, and both of them noticed my hesitation almost immediately.
"What's the problem now?" Vince asked impatiently. "You're not seriously going to pretend you didn't do it, are you? Elaine's already letting this go when she doesn't have to. The least you can do is stop making things difficult."
His words hurt more than I wanted to admit. Vince used to tell me I was the most important person in his life, and he'd promised that he'd always protect me. Whenever people looked down on me because of where I'd come from, he'd stand up for me. He'd even spent time teaching me how to carry myself so I could become a proper heir.
I never thought all those promises would mean nothing less than a year later, or that he'd end up helping another woman ruin me.
I lowered my head so they wouldn't see what I was feeling. Then I pressed the pen to the paper and dragged it across the page for a few seconds, leaving behind nothing but a crooked line.
"What are you doing?" Vince grabbed my wrist and glared at me. "Are you screwing around with us?"
I swallowed my anger and quickly pulled back as if he'd scared me. "I'm sorry. I... I don't think I can write with this hand anymore."
They called the doctor back into the room, and his explanation was simple.
"The accident may have damaged some of the nerves in her hand," he said. "That can affect movement and coordination. It's not uncommon after a serious crash."
Elaine's irritation disappeared almost at once, and a pleased look crossed her face. She gently took my hand and went right back to pretending she cared. "Don't worry, Kendra. We'll figure this out. You should get some rest. Vince and I need to talk to the doctor for a minute."
A short while later, they left the room. My entire body still ached, but I forced myself out of bed and made my way to the door. I opened it just enough to hear them talking outside.
"Looks like luck's finally on our side. Kendra can barely use her hand now, so what good is she to the family? We might not even have to push her out. There's no way the Scotts would make her the heir like this. Elaine, this is our chance. Before they come back, we need to make sure everyone hears about her memory loss and what happened to her hand. Then when they have to choose between Kendra, who can't remember anything and can barely use one hand, and an adopted daughter who's healthy and has never caused them any trouble, who do you think they're going to pick?"
Vince kept his voice down, but the excitement in it was impossible to miss.
"But she's still Mom and Dad's biological daughter," Elaine said. "What if they feel sorry for her and still make you marry her?"
Vince reached for her hand. "Then we'll give them a reason not to. We'll make it look like she's seeing someone else and let the whole city know. And I already know who we can drag into it. Rhett, my father's illegitimate son. He's been trying to find Rhett a wife from a decent family anyway. If everyone starts believing something's going on between him and Kendra, we can dump them on each other and be done with both of them."
Elaine leaned into him. "You really do think of everything. But how are you going to get Rhett to go along with it?"
"Don't worry about him. He's spent most of his life outside this world. He doesn't know how any of this works." He sounded completely sure of himself. "I'll offer him something he wants, and he'll take the bait. By the time he figures out what's happening, it'll be too late."
Vince pulled Elaine closer and kissed her. The sound carried through the quiet hallway.
My hands started shaking as I slowly closed the door. I couldn't stand there and watch them hold each other like that.
Three days ago, I'd still believed Vince loved me. I'd thought I was lucky enough to have a fiancé who cared about me and an adopted sister I could trust.
Now I knew exactly what both of them were.
I fought back the tears and curled my fingers into my palm until my nails dug into my skin. Whatever they were planning, I wasn't going to let them win.
I was done letting them decide what happened to me. Once I got out from under their control, I'd make sure they paid for every single thing they'd done.
Vince's POV:
Once Elaine was gone, I called Rhett Clarke.
"Rhett, I have an offer for you. I'll give you one of the company's biggest projects if you help me with something."
I hid my dislike for him and kept my tone friendly. "My fiancée, Kendra, is the Scott heiress, but she's having memory problems right now. Until she gets better, I need you to pretend you're her fiancé."
I was sure he wouldn't turn me down. He'd only recently started working at the company, and he badly needed a major project if he wanted to prove himself.
Just as I expected, Rhett agreed without much hesitation.
"Fine. I'll do it."
Rhett showed up sooner than I thought he would. He wore a suit that looked custom-made, and I could smell cologne on him as soon as he arrived. Clearly, he'd made an effort for the occasion.
I looked at him with quiet contempt. What a pathetic bastard. He was taking a woman I'd already cast aside and acting like he'd somehow won something valuable.
I kept those thoughts to myself and brought him straight to Kendra's hospital room. The moment the door opened, I saw the surprise on her face, and a sense of satisfaction rose inside me.
"Kendra, this is Rhett Clarke, your fiancé," I said. "He's also my illegitimate younger half-brother."
