Chapter 5

Sienna‘s pov

In the end, Victor Price and I parted on bad terms, and I didn’t bother asking Luna Reed to pick me up.

I had Martha Wilson carry my suitcase upstairs, then collapsed onto the couch, drained.

Five years ago, everything started going wrong, and the memory still made my teeth ache with frustration.

Before I turned eighteen, I was the Price family’s prized daughter. By twenty-two, I was an outcast, shoved out of my own home like I’d never belonged.

That was also the year I married Harrison Blackwood, only to be despised by my husband from the start.

And now, just to avoid losing everything, I had to take care of Adrian for Elena Whitmore.

I let out a low, humorless laugh. 'Sienna, you’re pathetic.'

“Mrs. Blackwood,” the housekeeper said, “Ms. Blackwood is here.”

I frowned and stood.

Why was Chloe Blackwood here?

Since I married into the Blackwoods, they’d never accepted me, and Chloe made sure I remembered it. If she weren’t Harrison’s sister, I would’ve thought she was in love with him, twisted by wanting what she couldn’t have.

I went out anyway.

But Elena was with her.

Elena walked in linked to Chloe’s arm, wearing that calm, harmless face. Her other hand held Adrian’s.

So that was it.

She’d found herself a backer, and she’d brought Chloe as proof.

Chloe looked at me with familiar disgust. “You’re still shamelessly staying in a place that doesn’t belong to you. Elena, come on. Let’s go inside.”

She brushed past me on purpose, forcing me aside as they walked in.

They sat on the main couch like they owned it, and Chloe lifted her chin at me. “Why are you still standing there? Guests are here. Aren’t you going to get us some water? You came from nothing, and you still haven’t learned manners.”

My pulse stayed steady. “Chloe, did you forget Elena and I share the same father? She trusts you so much. If you talk like that, you might hurt her feelings.”

Chloe froze, then her face darkened. “Since when did you get so sharp?”

“I didn’t know you could be this affectionate with the mistress,” I said evenly. “No matter how much you hate me, I’m still Harrison’s legal wife.”

Then I looked at Elena. “But if you’re here to drop off Adrian, you can leave.”

Chloe’s eyes flashed. “Sienna, what is that attitude? Harrison will never like you.”

“Oh?” I crossed my arms. “But my name is still in the spouse box on his marriage certificate. Does it matter if he likes me or not?”

Elena lowered her lashes and slipped in, soft and reasonable. “Chloe, let’s go. As long as Sienna takes good care of Adrian, I don’t mind.”

I didn’t answer.

Elena’s sweetness was familiar in the worst way, the kind people loved because it made them feel generous.

Chloe patted Elena’s hand. “You’ve been wronged, Elena. Don’t worry. She won’t stay by Harrison’s side for much longer.”

I watched without giving her the satisfaction of a reaction.

Adrian suddenly jumped down and charged at me, grabbing my hand. His teeth sank into the back of it.

Pain flared. Blood followed.

I jerked back, but when I met his eyes—so much like Harrison’s—the anger in me went thin and useless.

Adrian’s existence made the last five years feel like a joke I’d paid for in full.

I turned my face away. The bite barely mattered compared to everything else.

Chloe stood, satisfied, and tugged Elena along. “Sienna wants to be a good stepmother, does she? For a woman who’d do anything for money, this little pain is nothing.”

“Let’s go.”

Elena nodded as if reluctant, but when she passed me, her voice slid low. “Sienna, the show is just beginning.”

I didn’t look at her.

Adrian glared at me with pure hatred. “Bad woman.”

I spoke to Martha Wilson without blinking. “Prepare a room for Adrian.”

Martha’s gaze dropped to my bleeding hand. “Mrs. Blackwood, your hand…”

“I’m fine,” I said. “Take him downstairs.”

Upstairs, I went straight to my bedroom. My hand burned, but I didn’t reach for medicine.

Pain was honest. Everything else in this house was a performance.

I don’t know how long I lay there before I opened my eyes. Midnight.

Downstairs, Martha was in the kitchen.

“Harrison hasn’t come back?” I asked.

“No, Mrs. Blackwood.”

I nodded and took a sip of the hot tea beside me.

“Where’s Adrian?”

“He’s already asleep.”

“I see.”

I went back to bed.

Maybe because my head was finally empty, I slept deeply.

Until Martha shook me awake, her voice tight. “Mrs. Blackwood, there’s a call from the Blackwood Estate. They want you to go over now.”

“Now?” I rubbed my temples. “Fine.”

It was probably about Adrian. I changed clothes and left.

The Blackwood Estate had always made one thing clear: I was tolerated, not welcomed.

The moment I stepped into the main hall, the familiar malice settled in my chest.

Catherine Blackwood sat in the center, with Chloe beside her.

Chloe rolled her eyes. “Mom, look at her. She’s getting more and more unruly.”

Catherine’s gaze pinned me. “Sienna, you’re an adult. You insisted on bringing Adrian into this. I thought you were smart enough, but it turns out you’re foolish.”

Her voice didn’t rise, but it didn’t need to. “Kneel. Butler, bring it.”

My fingers curled into my palms.

The butler appeared with a wooden board fitted with nails.

“Mother, I don’t know what I did wrong,” I said, forcing the words out.

“You don’t know?” Catherine’s eyes hardened.

She gave a small signal.

Before I could step back, the housekeeper shoved me down.

Catherine turned her back. “Then kneel until you realize your mistake.”

My knees hit, and pain tore through me so fast my vision blurred. Cold sweat broke out along my spine, and I bit down hard enough to taste metal.

The nails bit deep.

“Mr. Blackwood！”

A powerful hand yanked me up, and I stumbled into the warmth of an embrace.