Chapter 15

"Ah!" At that moment, Melanie suddenly let out a soft cry. Sebastian stopped in his tracks and turned to look at her. "Melanie, what's wrong?" Tears welled up in her eyes as she sat on the ground, wincing in pain. "Sebastian, I… I twisted my ankle." When he looked down, he saw that her ankle was indeed red and swollen. Trying to appear considerate, Melanie said, "Don't worry about me. Go ahead and greet Mr. Lockhart and Ms. Lockhart." But seeing her pitiful expression, Sebastian responded in a low voice, "I'll take you to get it treated first." Seeing that, Regina frowned. "Sebastian—" "Grandma, helping someone in pain is more important than making small talk. Besides, there are so many people crowding around them right now. Even if I wanted to greet them, I wouldn't be able to squeeze in." Regina glanced at the packed crowd, then at Sebastian, who was now helping Melanie to her feet. She had no choice but to follow them out. After all, she couldn't go up to greet them alone. If they were to ask where Sebastian was, it would seem impolite no matter how she explained it. … Once Melanie was settled, Sebastian and Regina returned to the banquet—only to find that Jason and his sister were no longer there. After asking around, they learned that Jason had something urgent to attend to and would be back later. That eased Regina's worry. Just after Sebastian and Regina left, Mia quietly slipped out. She intended to help Melanie investigate the enemy. But as she stepped outside the room, she vaguely overheard a man and a woman speaking. "Vivienne, there seems to be an issue at headquarters. Wait for me. I'll come find you once I've dealt with it." "Alright. Go ahead." The woman's voice was all too familiar. Mia immediately recognized it as Vivienne's. She peeked around a corner and was stunned to see that the man speaking was Jason. Why was Vivienne with Jason? Could it be… that Jason's mysterious sister was Vivienne all along? Mia quickly dismissed the thought. Their last names were different, so there was no way they were siblings. She became convinced that Vivienne must have used her identity as Sebastian's wife to worm her way into the banquet. With that thought, Mia quietly followed her. Vivienne walked to the poolside garden behind the banquet hall. Under the soft glow of the orange-hued garden lights, the pool sparkled with a gentle shimmer. Vivienne hated socializing. Just those few minutes of mingling had made her face feel stiff from fake smiles. Earlier, she'd learned from Jason that he intended to reveal her identity publicly tonight. The powerful Lockhart family had faced kidnapping threats before. Both she and Jason had been abducted in the past, so to protect her, their family had let her take her mother's last name. They kept her away from the public eye, never revealing her identity. Vivienne understood why her family had done that. Those events had left deep scars on everyone. But now, she was capable of protecting herself. Since she would soon be taking on part of the Lockhart family business, there was no longer any need to keep hiding. Just then, a familiar voice called out from behind her. "Vivienne." She turned and saw Mia, who was dressed in a light blue gown. Vivienne raised an eyebrow. "What are you doing here?" Mia crossed her arms and stood in front of her, lifting her chin arrogantly with a smug, domineering expression. "I came with Sebastian, of course." At that, Vivienne's brow twitched slightly. Jason hadn't mentioned that Sebastian was also invited to the banquet. Her thoughts turned quickly, and she immediately guessed his intention. It seemed he wanted to use this opportunity to humiliate Sebastian. Vivienne rubbed her aching forehead. She wondered when Jason had become this childish. Mia looked over at her and smirked, her eyes full of hate. "Are you here to see Sebastian?" Mia asked. "Well, don't bother. Melanie twisted her ankle just now, and Sebastian is applying medicine for her. He doesn't have time for you. "Do you see it clearly now? Melanie will always be number one in his heart. You should stop coveting what doesn't belong to you. A bottom-feeding gold digger like you is utterly unworthy." Vivienne smiled faintly in response. "If Ms. Schafer is so important, then why did Sebastian marry me and not her?" At that, Mia's voice turned shrill. "Vivienne, if you hadn't schemed your way into Sebastian's bed, do you think he would've ever married you?" "No matter what methods I used, I still married him in the end. As long as we aren't divorced, Melanie will always be the shameless mistress lurking in the shadows." Standing taller than Mia and wearing heels that added to her height, Vivienne looked down at her with calm disdain. Though she wasn't angry, the air of a wealthy heiress radiated from her and completely crushed Mia's presence. Mia had never seen this side of Vivienne and momentarily lost her breath. Not wanting to waste another word, Vivienne turned to leave. Remembering the humiliation she'd suffered at Vivienne's hand, Mia's sweet-looking face twisted into something ugly and vicious. She became almost unrecognizable. In a sudden fit of rage, she shoved Vivienne violently into the swimming pool. The loud splash echoed as waves burst in all directions, and the cold water swallowed Vivienne whole. Ever since being thrown into the sea by kidnappers, she had developed a fear of water. In a daze, she felt like she was back on that cruise ship, being dragged under by the raging ocean. Back then, everyone had watched from the deck, but it was Sebastian who had jumped in to save her. And that was when she fell in love with him. Now, Vivienne could vaguely hear Mia's panicked voice through the distorted sound of water. But the vicious glint in Mia's eyes was like that of a venomous snake. "Oh no! Vivienne, you suddenly jumped in! What are you trying to do? Are you going for a swim?" she remarked mockingly. There weren't many people in the garden, but some had heard the splash and began walking over. "What happened? Did someone fall in?" someone asked. Mia sneered. "Fall in? That pool's so shallow you can stand up in it. She's just flailing around in there pretending to drown. What a drama queen." "Pretending?" someone asked suspiciously. Mia lowered her voice dramatically. "She's Sebastian's wife. She's always pulling these stunts—crying, throwing fits, threatening suicide—just to get his attention. I've seen it a million times…" Meanwhile, Vivienne was thrashing aimlessly in the water. The sensation of suffocating was overwhelming, making her dizzy and confused. Seeing her struggle so desperately only excited Mia further. Her eyes sparkled as she watched. "Everyone, don't miss this! Here's your front-row ticket to a live performance. To gain attention, she's even stooped to faking a drowning. How pathetic!" Her voice drew even more guests from the banquet into the garden. The dim lightning made it hard to see clearly, and no one recognized the soaking woman in the pool as the one who had entered earlier with Jason. With Mia twisting the story, the crowd began whispering in disdain. "I heard Sebastian only married her because she schemed her way into his bed. She's never been a good match for him." "Honestly, Melanie's way better than her. At least she's kind and was Sebastian's first love." "She should really consider the occasion. Pulling this nonsense at such an important event is just humiliating herself." The guest stood around the pool, sneering and gossiping, yet no one stepped forward to help. As they sneered, cold water filled Vivienne's nose and mouth. Her mind went blank. Someone finally noticed. "Look, her eyes are rolling back… Is she actually drowning?" Mia scoffed. "She's just acting. She's probably trying to make it look real. Honestly, if she ever went into acting, she'd probably win the Best Actress award." Vivienne was losing strength fast. Her consciousness dimmed, her limbs went limp, and she began to sink slowly to the bottom. The laughter onshore abruptly stopped. The guests exchanged uneasy glances. "She… She might really not know how to swim." "If she drowns here, that's going to be a disaster…" Even if Vivienne was disliked, she was still Sebastian's wife. No one had expected things to go this far. Mia still waved it off. "She's just pretending. Anyone who can swim can hold their breath for a minute or two. She's fine." Though the laughter had faded, no one dared to step forward. Just then, Sebastian and Melanie arrived near the pool, surprised to see such a crowd gathered in the garden. They stepped forward, puzzled. Sebastian frowned. "What's going on here?"