Chapter 182 Imprisonment

Chapter 182 Imprisonment

The treatment room fell silent, leaving only the rhythmic beeping of the monitors.

Felix's phone screen lit up again. Cecilia was calling back.

He answered. Her voice came through cold. "You hung up on me."

"She reached her limit."

"Not quite." Cecilia said. "She just touched the actual memory layer."

Felix looked at the sleeping Eloane, his voice dropping. "That's enough for tonight."

Two seconds of silence on the other end. "Felix, what are you hiding?"

"I'm protecting her."

Cecilia didn't press further. She only said, "When she wakes up, give her some warm water. Someone needs to watch her through the night. I'll review the assessment results tomorrow."

Back at her apartment, Cecilia didn't turn on the lights. She tossed her bag onto the couch and went straight to her study, pulling out an old wooden box from the bottom drawer.

Group photos, school badges, old car keys, yellowed event ticket stubs, and that metal insignia she'd seen once in the Knightley Manor study—she spread them all across the desk.

She picked up the group photo. The light hit the paper, making the details at the edges sharper than memory served.

The teenage Felix in the photo stood tall, his shoulders already showing signs of strength. Several blurred faces stood nearby, one corner bearing a mark that looked exactly like the spray-painted symbol on the old factory's exterior wall.

Cecilia stared at that marking, her breathing growing heavier.

Eloane had mentioned three things under hypnosis.

A factory. A knife. That photograph.

She flipped the photo over. The handwritten date on the back was worn and faded, but at the end, barely visible letter initials remained.

S.F.

Cecilia's gaze froze. After a moment, she placed the insignia next to the photo. When she aligned them, they matched almost perfectly.

She leaned back in her chair and closed her eyes.

The truth was close to surfacing, but the closer she got, the more wrong it all felt.

Meanwhile, at the Lames Estate.

Mary slammed her teacup onto the carpet, shrieking, "What right does he have to lock me up! I was just making money for the family!"

Mr. Lames stood in the doorway, his expression hard. "You were making money for Campbell, not Lames."

"Zoe scared you with a few words and you believed her?"

"Not scared. Evidence." Mr. Lames looked at her. "You've been supplying Campbell through private channels, bypassing Laurent's old customs routes. You really thought no one would know?"

Mary's expression shifted. "I was just doing business."

"That business will drag down the entire family." Mr. Lames raised his hand, signaling the bodyguards forward. "Starting today, you're under house arrest. Phone, car keys, credit cards—all suspended. Anyone who lets you out goes with you."

Mary trembled with rage. "You wouldn't dare!"

Mr. Lames didn't even look at her. He turned and left, saying to the guards, "Watch her. If she causes more trouble, cut off the landline too."

The door closed. Mary rushed over and pounded on it, but the people outside didn't react.

That afternoon, at Knightley Group.

In the board meeting room, Felix sat at the head of the table. When his gaze swept across the room, no one dared speak first.

He pushed several records of private correspondence to the center of the table. "Anyone who wants to side with Campbell, speak up now. I'll let you go."

No one spoke, but sweat had already formed on some foreheads.

Felix spoke calmly. "If you won't speak up, then listen to me. Drake's entering New York. Campbell wants to use outside forces to turn the tables. Anyone who leaves them an opening at this point—I'll make sure you and your entire family leave Wall Street. Understood?"

"Understood." Finally, someone in the meeting room responded, voice hoarse.

Felix stood. "Good. Then cut everything that needs cutting."

As he walked out of the meeting room, Roman hurried after him. "Boss, we heard back from Zoe's side. Ms. Cecilia has agreed to attend the banquet."

Felix didn't slow his pace, but the corner of his mouth moved slightly. "She agreed pretty quickly."

"She also said—" Roman paused.

"Say it."

"She said she's going to tear down Campbell's facade, not to accompany you."

Felix laughed quietly, reaching up to loosen his tie. "That sounds more like her."

Roman took the opportunity to ask, "Should I arrange for stylists and the jewelry team?"

"Arrange it." Felix paused, then continued. "Get the floor plans for Evergreen Isle Hotel, the security layout, surveillance blind spots—everything. The night of the banquet, no one slips away."

"Understood."

"And Eloane." Felix stopped walking. "Don't let her see what's online. If she doesn't want to go, don't force her."

But when he returned to the private residence that evening, Eloane brought it up herself.

She was holding her tablet, her face still pale. "Felix, I know Scarlett will be there."

Felix sat down across from her. "You don't have to go."

"You're all going to settle accounts with her, aren't you?"

"Yes."

Eloane was silent for a moment, then looked up. "Then I want to go. I want to see her lose with my own eyes."

Felix looked at her and reached out to ruffle her hair. "Okay."

The night before the banquet, Cecilia had just finished an interview when the makeup team arrived at the Laurent Estate. The gown was spread out in the dressing room—satin fabric cutting clean lines, shoulders and waist tailored precisely.

As the makeup artist arranged her long hair, she couldn't help but sigh. "Ms. Laurent, everyone at the banquet tomorrow night will be watching you."

Cecilia looked at herself in the mirror, her tone calm. "Then let them get a good look."

Two knocks on the door. Felix walked in, carrying a deep blue velvet box.

He was dressed formally today—broad shoulders, long legs. When he entered, even the makeup artist instinctively held her breath.

"Five minutes," he said.

The others in the room tactfully withdrew. Felix walked behind Cecilia and opened the box. Inside lay a diamond necklace.

Cecilia watched him through the mirror. "Mr. Knightley, are you bribing me?"

Felix leaned down, bringing the necklace around her neck. When his fingers brushed her collarbone, they paused for half a second. "Tomorrow night will be loud and it'll get dirty. You just stand in the brightest spot. I'll handle the rest."

Cecilia looked up. In the mirror, their gazes met.

She didn't look away, only said flatly, "Don't make it sound like I'm going to marry you."

Felix laughed softly, his voice carrying a hint of desire. "When you say yes, I'll prepare something ten times grander than this banquet."

The corner of Cecilia's mouth twitched. She didn't respond to that.

Outside the room, Zoe pushed the door open. Seeing the two of them standing side by side in the mirror, she raised an eyebrow. "All right, Scarlett's side has already started livestream promotions. The whole internet is waiting for tomorrow night."

Cecilia stood, her fingertips grazing the cold gleam around her neck. "Then let her wait properly."

Felix withdrew his hand, his gaze settling heavily on her face.

He knew tomorrow night wasn't just a birthday banquet. It was the Campbell family's final stage, and the moment they would settle all accounts.