Venice, who had been teetering on the edge of madness, slowly regained her composure.
The realization settled in like a cold whisper: someone had deliberately planted it, intending to drive her insane.
Recalling how she had treated Hadi, a chill crept down Venice's spine as she hurried toward his VIP room.
This time, however, the bodyguards didn't allow her inside.
She didn't cause a scene. Instead, she stepped aside and called him, only to realize she had been blocked.
When Linda came to visit, she found her daughter sitting in a daze.
"I heard about the device they found. Did they figure out who planted it in your room?" Linda asked, placing the thermos she brought onto the coffee table.
Venice blinked slowly. "Hadi blocked me," she muttered.
Linda scoffed. "He dares? Do you think he's the one who planted that recording device to scare you? If he already intended to dump you after you lost the baby, what better excuse than making you seem like you're losing your mind?"
Venice froze. It was a convenient excuse.
Still…
"But he never visited me all this time," she said hesitantly.
"Of course he didn't need to. Someone like him could easily bribe a nurse to do it."
Venice nodded faintly, but as she recalled the people who had visited her, something didn't sit right. Her college friends, her parents and not long ago, Jj and Yeri.
"Yeri… she came here too."
Linda frowned, skeptical.
That dead girl may dislike them, but she had never seemed like someone who would scheme this way.
"Listen to me, Venice. Even if you suspect Yeri, that's not what matters right now," Linda said firmly. "You can't just let Hadi walk away from you so easily. Do you understand? It's already reached this point, and the public knows about your relationship with him. You need to prove that you're not someone he can just play with and discard."
Venice fell silent.
"Give me your phone. Let me see your chat history with him," Linda continued, her tone shifting with a hint of pride. "Out of all your father's women, why do you think I was the one who stayed with him the longest?"
Venice felt something stir deep within her.
Yeri's words from her hospital visit echoed in her mind.
Why was she walking the same path as her mother? Of all people, shouldn't she understand the pain of being a mistress's child? And even if she had managed to give birth to Hadi's child would she really force that same life onto her own child?
"Mom… why did you choose to be Dad's other woman?"
Linda, who had been speaking confidently moments ago, suddenly fell silent. She met Venice's gaze, her expression flickering with something complicated.
"Was he really worth all the hardship and humiliation you've endured all these years?" Venice pressed.
It was as if Venice had stepped directly onto a buried wound. Linda's hands trembled, fury and resentment bubbling to the surface.
"Do you look down on me now?" she snapped. "Venice, I may have chosen the wrong path, but I was just like you once. Foolish enough to believe love was all that mattered. When I gave birth to you, I had nothing. If I had left your father, we might have ended up on the streets."
Linda's voice wavered, but she pushed on. "Was he worth it? No. I realized that over time. But I didn't know how to survive on my own, and even if I tried to start over… what was I supposed to do? Abandon you?"
Venice stared at her, confused.
"I know you didn't have a perfect life," Linda continued, her tone softening just slightly. "I couldn't give you everything Yeri has. But as your mother, wasn't I your greatest support? I was always there for you. Haven't I provided for you? If I had left your father… would you have had the chance to change your surname? To meet someone like Hadi Keir?"
A sharp headache pulsed through Venice's temples.
This wasn't the first time she had questioned her mother, only to be drowned in guilt afterward. The same pattern, again and again.
But this time, something was different. Venice was no longer a child who could be swayed so easily. She could see clearly where love ended, and where self-deception began.
She understood the shame of being a mistress's child… but why should she be the one punished, as if she were the one who committed the sin? It had never been her choice to be born into such circumstances.
She understood that shame so deeply that she had longed to escape it.
Hadi had once painted a perfect future for her, and she took the leap without hesitation. A gamble, she told herself. She would only be his mistress for a short while anyway. Once he divorced his wife and she gave birth to his child, everything would change.
She would climb into one of the most powerful families, and her past would be buried where no one could ever dig it up again.
How was she supposed to know Hadi had lied to her, and that there was a crazy woman lurking in the shadows?
Right, Yeri was just a hypocrite.
Acting morally righteous, when in reality, she had simply been lucky enough to be chosen by Shin Keir.
Mistake or not, her mother was right.
She had already invested too much into this relationship. She had dropped out of school and her reputation was already crumbling.
How could she possibly let Hadi go now?
"Venice, are you even listening to me?" Linda said, dabbing at tears that never quite fell.
Venice ignored her. Instead, she reached for her mother's phone and sent a message to Hadi.
Not long after, there was a knock on the door.
A bodyguard stepped in saying Hadi was asking to see her.
A triumphant smile curled on Venice's lips.
The pale, disheveled, almost unhinged girl from earlier vanished as she quickly fixed her appearance.
----
Meanwhile, the first hearing of the Neri Medical Hospital lawsuit had begun.
Madam Neri, who had entered the courtroom brimming with confidence, certain she would overcome this obstacle just as she had with Lianna's case, could no longer maintain her composure.
One by one, pieces of evidence were presented before the jury.
Illegal medical transactions. Suspicious bank transfers. Asset manipulation.
Evidence that should not have existed… yet somehow, it did.
Her fingers tightened instinctively as her gaze snapped toward the opposite side of the courtroom.
Zahn sat there.
Her expression twisted with disbelief and fury. Beside her, Xavier Song looked equally unsettled, his hands clenched as he struggled to maintain his composure.
The moment the hearing ended, reporters swarmed them like a storm breaking loose.
"Xavier Song, are you planning to marry Madam Neri?"
"What made you fall in love with her?"
"What's your response to the accusations against your girlfriend?"
At the words marry and girlfriend, Xavier's lips pressed into a thin line, barely concealing his irritation.
It almost seemed as if the reporters were deliberately provoking him.
Madam Neri brushed them off impatiently as she made her way toward Zahn's legal team.
"Madam Neri is requesting to speak privately with you," Zahn's lawyer relayed.
Throughout the hearing, Zahn's expression had remained cold and unreadable. After a brief pause, he gave a slight nod.
Inside a private room in an upscale café, Zahn had barely taken his seat when Madam Neri and Xavier entered.
The moment he saw them together, displeasure flickered across his face. He moved as if to leave, but Madam Neri quickly stopped him.
"Son, it's alright. Xavier is someone I trust."
"Trust?" Zahn echoed flatly. "Then how should I address him? Uncle? Elder brother? Or perhaps… your most trusted beneficiary?"
Madam Neri's face stiffened in disappointment, though she quickly tried to soften her expression.
"How did we become so distant that you speak to your own mother this way?" she said, her voice tinged with grievance. "I admit I was wrong to hide my relationship… but it was because I knew you would react like this."
However, Zahn had no intention of entertaining such a conversation. He cut straight to the point, otherwise, he would leave.
Madam Neri looked aggrieved but still forced herself to comply, hoping she could dissuade him from pursuing the case.
"Are you really going to convict your own mother?" she demanded. "I know you're acting like this because you can't accept my relationship—"
"The hospital isn't yours alone," Zahn interrupted coldly. "There are board members, shareholders, investors, and patients, people who have all become indirect victims of your illegal medical transactions."
"Zahn," Xavier interjected, his tone firm, "you may dislike me, but you can't abandon your own mother. The Song and Neri families have no conflict with each other. I assume Shin Keir is the one who put you up to this?"
Zahn shot him a cold, contemptuous glance, clearly unwilling to engage.
But Xavier didn't stop.
He continued speaking, deliberately inserting himself into the conversation, asserting his position as Madam Neri's partner.
What began as tension quickly escalated into sharp exchanges.
And just like that day at the beach, the argument turned physical.
----
When Lianna arrived at the police station, she spotted Zahn sitting alone on one of the benches.
"What happened?" she asked, scanning the area.
"You came?" Zahn replied instead, his tone unreadable.
Lianna frowned, then approached one of the officers. After a brief inquiry, she finally understood the situation.
Madam Neri and Xavier Song were nowhere to be seen. It seemed they had already left.
But situations like this, conflicts between powerful families, were rarely pursued seriously. Since neither side intended to press charges, the police simply recorded the incident and let it pass.
"You forgot to update your emergency contact," Lianna said as she returned, her gaze falling on his injured right hand. "Shouldn't you get that treated?"
Zahn glanced at it. As a surgeon, his hands were his most valuable asset but the injury didn't seem serious.
Before he could respond, a familiar voice cut through the air.
"Stone face, what the hell happened to you? You look terrible."
Zahn turned instantly, his expression hardening.
"Saeki Jie," he said coldly. "Why are you here?"
Before Saeki could answer, Zahn suddenly stood up and grabbed him by the collar.
"Are you going to tell me it's a coincidence again?" Zahn demanded. "That you just happened to pass by the villa and saw Lianna coming out?"
Lianna was startled, quickly stepping forward. "What are you doing? This is a police station, can you talk this out properly?"
But her words only seemed to fuel Zahn's anger.
From Xavier Song… to Saeki Jie…
It felt like he couldn't catch a break.