At the banquet, Ian held his phone while his body trembled uncontrollably.
He had never imagined there would be a day when Selena would hang up on him.
But when he called again, he couldn’t get through.
All that remained was a cold, mechanical message informing him that the number he was trying to reach was no longer available.
What was going on? Selena hadn’t said anything before hanging up.
He had only caught the faint sound of an announcement in the background.
It sounded like an airport.
But that was impossible.
Where could Selena possibly go on her own by plane? “Tan, what’s wrong?” Vanessa had noticed he was distracted and walked over to ask.
He told her that Selena’s phone was now unreachable.
“Don’t worry, I just went to check on her before we left. She was still in her room. There’s no way she could’ve —- gone anywhere in such a short time.”
Seeing that Ian still seemed unsettled, Vanessa took his hand and looked up at him with teary eyes.
“It’s my fault. Selena must still be upset with me for taking her patent. If I had known, I never would have gotten involved. I’ll apologize to her when we get back. If I have to, I’ll even kneel and beg for her forgiveness. I just want you two to make up.” Ian frowned slightly.
Normally, words like these from Vanessa would have moved him.
But now, something about them felt off.
He had reviewed the restaurant’s security footage and saw for himself that Selena never pushed Vanessa.
And yet, Vanessa had acted like she had been beaten, leading even him to lose control of his temper and say things he deeply regretted.
He had confronted Vanessa afterward, but she only looked pitiful and claimed she wasn’t sure whether she had tripped on her own or if Selena had pushed her.
Her excuse had been vague.
It was like she was trying to —- brush the matter aside.
At the time, he had let it go, reasoning that Vanessa had just gotten out of the hospital and was still weak.
It wasn’t impossible for her to be confused about what had really happened.
He wanted to believe it had been an accident.
But every time he lay awake at night, a chilling thought crept into his mind.
‘What if Vanessa set Selena up?! It wouldn’t have been the first time.’
He recalled how, in the past, every time he went to see Selena, Vanessa would harm herself just to draw his attention away.
‘If all of this was orchestrated’ The realization made his blood run cold.
Of course, he never let himself dwell on the idea. Vanessa was dependent on him.
She had depression.
It was natural for her to panic when she couldn’t see him.
Still, as she held onto his hand, Ian instinctively pulled away and forced a smile.
“IT can’t shake this worried feeling about her. You guys go ahead and enjoy the banquet. I need to check on her. I’m afraid something might have happened.”
Hearing this, Ryan walked over and tried to stop him.
” Wait until the banquet is over. She’s just trying to get your attention. She’s doing this on purpose to ruin Vanessa’s big night.” Zachary nodded in agreement.
His voice was full of disdain.
“That girl would do something like this. Ignore her.” Tan was stunned by how cold they were.
Not a single person in this family showed the slightest concern for Selena’s well-being.
Had it always been like this? Suddenly, memories flooded his mind.
From the time she was a child, Selena had never been truly loved in this household.
Her world had only ever revolved around him. And yet, he had forgotten. He had even been cruel enough to tell her to go to hell.
“What have I done?” Ian stumbled back a few steps, ignoring the Carter family’s attempts to stop him.
Then, he turned and ran out of the hotel.
