Chapter 5

I was too stunned to react.

After she left, my dad talked to me all night in his study, repeatedly urging me to think of the family.

And so, I became engaged to Burton.

According to Mrs. Belmont, as soon as he woke up, he knelt before his parents and begged to marry me.According to conventional wisdom, given my family's social standing, it would have been impossible for us to become connected with the Belmont family.

However, upon witnessing their son's struggle back from the brink of death, Mr. and Mrs. Belmont were overcome with joy and immediately agreed.

Mrs. Belmont even went so far as to have our astrological charts compared, declaring Burton and me a match made in heaven. She insisted that his awakening was all thanks to the good fortune I had brought.

I found little credence in such notions, knowing full well that I had nearly been the cause of his demise.

For several more days, the precious daughter of the Everhart family wept and wailed at home, refusing to marry Casper and insisting on staying with her parents a bit longer.

The Everhart family had always doted on their little girl. Since she was unwilling, they decided to call off the marriage altogether, flatly rejecting Mrs. Stratton's suggestion for the young couple to spend more time together.

This turn of events infuriated Mrs. Stratton. In her rage, she violently smashed a collection of priceless treasures to pieces all over the floor.

I couldn't help but wonder. Everyone knew Felicity had been fond of Casper since childhood. Mrs. Stratton had been grooming her to be a future daughter-in-law for years. Why the sudden change of heart?

Word had it that Felicity accidentally hit her head on the corner of a table, remaining unconscious for days. When she finally came to, she seemed like a completely different person. Now she avoided Casper like the plague, as if he were the bearer of some deadly disease.

A bold idea struck me: Could it be that she, too, had been given a second chance at life?

I needed to find an opportunity to meet with her and confirm my suspicions. As luck would have it, it appeared she had the same idea.So, we met in the Everhart family's small garden.

As soon as I saw her, I knew the Felicity standing before me wasn't the same as before.

We had been at odds for eight years, and I could read her thoughts better than my own.

"You're back too."