Chapter 32
Sienna‘s pov
I could hear them through the door, their voices light, almost easy.
My palm rested against the wood, and I hesitated instead of pushing it open.
“Ms. Price is really strong. I admire her. I’ve heard a little about the Price family. You raised her well.”
My mother let out a quiet sigh. “If I hadn’t been so impulsive back then, Sienna wouldn’t have suffered so much. It’s my fault she went through all that.”
“To Ms. Price, you’ve never been a burden.”
I lifted my hand and knocked, and my mood sank with the sound.
The one thing I’d spent five years trying to hide had still reached Nora Everly, and Julian Vane had played a major part in that.
The moment I stepped into the hospital room, I forced on a bright smile, because seeing my mom sitting there, lucid and steady, made my throat tighten.
“Mom, I’m here to take you home.”
She turned her head, and guilt flooded her eyes. I assumed it was because of the five years I’d lived like a punchline.
“I told you, you didn’t have to come,” she said. “I can handle the discharge myself.”
She’d already changed out of her hospital gown, dressed like she’d been waiting for the right moment.
Julian held the paperwork in a folder and handed it to me. “I’ve taken care of the discharge procedures. Ms. Everly can leave anytime.”
I took the folder and kept my voice cool. “Mr. Vane, you’re busy. We can handle the rest. Thank you for your help.”
The line between us was deliberate.
Julian only smiled, calm and polite, like my distance didn’t matter.
“Then I’ll head out,” he said. “If you need anything, ask. I’m always willing to help.”
His eyes lingered on mine a second too long, like he was offering something I hadn’t requested.
‘I’m not taking it.’
“Sienna. Sienna?”
My mother called my name more than once before I snapped back. She shook her head with a small smile. “What are you thinking about? Do you like Mr. Vane?”
The question was so unexpected I almost laughed. “No. Of course not. I’m not familiar with him.”
We’d met fewer than ten times, and every vague invitation he’d thrown out, I’d dodged. I’d never tried to understand Julian Vane, because men like that didn’t pull you closer without a price.
“Not familiar?” she asked softly. “Then why would he spend so much on my treatment?”
I felt her suspicion forming, and my stomach tightened.
“Sienna.” Her fingers closed around my hand. “Let me be honest. Harrison Blackwood has already cheated. Divorce him as soon as you can. Don’t follow my path.”
She shook her head and sighed, slow and heavy. “I know you don’t want to give up. I was the same. But even if you win a round, so what? You won’t be the one in his heart. And even if you’re only after his status, Elena Whitmore will find ways to come after you.”
I hadn’t expected her to say any of this to me. Not now, not when I’d already made the decision myself.
“They’re demons,” she said, her voice rougher. “Stay away from them. Leave Harrison, and free yourself.”
Harrison was still the man I’d loved for five years. Hearing someone call him poison still stung, no matter how much time I told myself had passed.
Today, Luna Reed didn’t interrupt once. She sat to the side, watching me closely, her expression steady, and when I glanced at her she gave me a small, grounding smile.
“Don’t worry,” I told my mother, squeezing her hand. “I’ve wanted to divorce him for a long time. It’ll be soon. And after I leave the Blackwood family, I’ll take you on a trip. We’ll breathe again.”
I helped Nora Everly out of bed, and Luna stepped in immediately to support her other side. The three of us left the hospital together.
Luna drove us to her private villa in New Haven. She’d never gotten along with her family and had moved out early, and her place felt like the kind of home you built when you refused to be trapped.
As I helped my mom out of the car, I leaned close and spoke low. “Mom, stay here with Luna for now. Once I divorce Harrison, I’ll come back for you, and then we’ll—”
The screech of brakes cut me off.
Three cars surged in from both ends of the road and closed around us, tight enough that the air itself felt pinned. My breath caught, sharp and cold.
I never expected to see Harrison here.
He stepped out of the passenger seat of the closest car, alone, suit flawless, face blank. From another car, a man climbed out from the driver’s seat. He looked familiar, and then recognition hit like a slap.
The masked doctor Harrison had sent to treat my injuries.
My skin prickled. My mind went too quiet.
Luna moved in front of us at once, protective and furious.
“Harrison Blackwood, what is wrong with you?” she snapped. “Sienna is bringing her mother to my place. You want to control even that?”
Harrison didn’t answer. He only nodded once, but not at Luna, not at me.
At him.
“Luna,” the man said. “Come with me.”
The moment he spoke, the past snapped into focus.
Luna turned stiffly, disbelief spreading across her face so fast it looked like pain.
“Alexander Grant?” Her voice broke. “You’re alive?”
I knew what he was to her. Years ago, when he had nothing, she had still chosen him, and she had loved him in a way she’d never let anyone else earn. Then he’d died—because her father had made sure of it. After that, Luna had lived like she was trying to drown herself on purpose, one night and one stranger at a time.
And now he was here.
Alive.
Standing with Harrison.
What did that make him?
“I’ll explain,” Alexander Grant said, stepping toward her. “But you have to come with me now.”
He reached for her wrist. Luna jerked back like she’d been shocked.
“I’m not going,” she said, voice sharp. “I have more important things to do right now.”
Then she looked at Harrison, and I watched understanding land in her eyes. A short, bitter laugh slipped out.
“I’m not even going to ask why you’re with him,” she said to Alexander Grant, jaw tight. “If you still care about what we had, take Harrison and leave.”
My throat tightened until it hurt.
Seeing them together made it obvious Alexander Grant was on Harrison’s side, and Harrison had brought him here to neutralize Luna. Of course he had.
‘He planned this.’
“He’s called Alexander Grant now,” Harrison said coldly. “Take her.”
Alexander Grant moved before Luna could brace. He hoisted her up and carried her toward the car, and Luna fought, furious and helpless, her voice tearing through the air as the door slammed shut.
Then he drove off.
My hands went numb.
Next was me.
No—Harrison’s target wasn’t even me.
If he’d tracked us here, it could only mean one thing.
He was after my mother.
“You discharged her,” he said, voice low and suffocating, “without my permission?”
The pressure rolling off him felt physical. I clenched my teeth so hard my jaw ached.
“She’s my mother,” I said. “Where I take her is none of your business.”
“If my money wasn’t keeping her alive, would she still be here?” Harrison sneered. “Two million a month, Sienna. You want to pay it back? Then you can pay it back the way you always do.”
Cold sweat dampened my palms.
‘Not in front of her.’
“Enough!” I shouted, unable to stop myself. “What do you want? You said you’d divorce me next week. So what is this?”
I couldn’t let him say more with Nora Everly standing right behind me, listening.
My voice cracked anyway.
“You said you’d let me go.”