Emerald’s POV
I folded the last sweater into my suitcase before reaching for the small pile of belongings the servants had brought over from my apartment this Wednesday morning.
Since Saturday night, I hadn’t set foot back into my own home. Father had insisted I remain at the family residence until things settled down, so he sent a few servants to pack some of my essentials and bring them over for me.
Most of it was clothing, a few books and some documents. Nothing that carried much meaning.
As I sorted through the pile, something silver slipped out from between two folded shirts and landed softly on the bed.
My hand froze. It was the wristwatch Kelvin had given me on my twenty-fourth birthday. I stared at it for a moment.
I could still remember the smile on his face as he fastened it around my wrist and promised that, one day, when Mercer Technologies became successful enough, he would buy me something even better.
Back then, I had believed every word that came out of his mouth. Now, the memory only made me feel sick.
Without allowing myself another second to hesitate, I picked up the watch, walked to the waste bin beside my desk, and dropped it inside.
The metallic clang echoed softly as it hit the bottom.
I stood there for a moment before quietly exhaling. Some things deserved to stay in the past.
A few seconds later, a knock sounded on my bedroom door.
"Miss Emerald?"
I turned around. One of the housemaids stood outside with a polite smile.
"Mr. Hugo is waiting for you. The lawyers have arrived."
I nodded once. "I’ll be right down."
The meeting lasted less than an hour.
Three lawyers from Hugo Group’s legal team sat across from my father and me, carefully explaining the steps they would take against Kelvin and Maya.
I listened quietly while my father handled most of the discussion.
As the meeting drew to a close, the lead lawyer shut his file and turned his attention to me.
"Miss Hugo, you won’t need to return to Los Angeles for the legal proceedings," he said. "Our team will handle everything from here and contact you only if your presence becomes absolutely necessary."
Before I could respond, Father spoke for me.
"You’ll be leaving for Boston in a few days," he said, his voice calm but final. "Your priority now is Lanard Business School."
There was no harshness in his tone, but the firmness behind it left no room for argument.
"The lawsuit can wait," he added. "Your future cannot."
A quiet sense of relief settled over me. At least I wouldn’t have to keep flying back and forth between Boston and Los Angeles.
I could focus on one thing. School.
Just then, my phone vibrated inside my purse. I didn’t have to take it out to know who it was.
It had to be Claire or Laura.
Ever since Saturday night, they had been calling and messaging me nonstop. I hadn’t answered a single one.
The endless stream of abusive messages and threats flooding my phone after the scandal had become too overwhelming, forcing me to disable my social media accounts and switch off my phone entirely.
This morning was the first time I had turned it back on.
The phone vibrated again. I lowered my eyes to my purse before looking back at my father as he exchanged a few final words with the lawyers.
A small wave of guilt washed over me. Claire and Laura had done nothing wrong. They deserved an explanation.
I released a quiet breath.
Sooner or later, I would have to answer their call.
Once the lawyers were done, Father stayed behind in the study to settle a few final details with them.
I quietly excused myself.
The moment I stepped into the hallway, my phone vibrated again. I looked down at the screen. It was Claire calling.
A faint smile found its way onto my face. Claire was nothing if not persistent.
I drew in a slow breath, answered the call, and lifted the phone to my ear. "Hello..."
"Jesus, Mera!" Claire’s voice burst through the speaker before I could say anything else. "Where have you been? Are you okay?"
I pulled the phone slightly away from my ear before bringing it back. "I’m okay."
For a moment, Claire said nothing. When she spoke again, her voice was much softer. "No, you’re not."
My fingers tightened around the phone.
"You don’t sound all right," she said.
My throat went dry.
"I saw everything," she continued quietly. "The videos, the blogs... everything they’re saying about you."
I closed my eyes for a second. "I know."
Another pause passed between us before Claire sighed. "Hold on. Let me add Laura. She’s been just as worried as I have."
Before I could protest, the call merged. Barely two seconds later, another familiar voice burst through the speaker.
"Emerald Hugo!"
I couldn’t help letting out a small, tired laugh. Only Laura could sound this dramatic.
"There you are!" she exclaimed. "Do you have any idea how worried we’ve been? Claire almost drove me insane calling me every few hours asking if I’d heard from you."
Claire immediately defended herself. "I was worried!"
"So was I!" Laura shot back. "But I wasn’t about to wear out my phone battery doing it."
Despite everything weighing on my heart, I found myself smiling. It was small, fragile, but real.
"I really am sorry," I said softly. "I just... needed some time."
Neither of them blamed me. Claire was the first to speak. "We figured."
Laura sighed. "You scared us, Mera."
"I know."
There was another brief silence before Laura’s voice turned noticeably colder. "I still can’t believe those two."
I didn’t have to ask who she meant. I knew it like I knew my name.
"Maya and Kelvin are unbelievable," Claire muttered.
"They’re worse than unbelievable," Laura snapped. "They’re shameless."
My chest tightened.
Laura didn’t stop there. "If I’d been at that event, Maya would’ve needed more than makeup to cover her face."
"Laura," Claire warned.
"What?"
"You would’ve made things worse."
"I don’t care."
"I know you don’t."
Laura huffed loudly. "I’m serious, Mera. That woman is lucky I wasn’t there."
I shook my head with another quiet smile. "You haven’t changed."
"Of course I haven’t."
Claire laughed softly. "She’s still the shortest person in our group, but somehow she makes enough noise for all three of us."
"I’m not short."
"You are."
"I’m vertically efficient."
Claire burst into laughter. "So that’s what we’re calling it now?"
Even I laughed. Though it wasn’t loud and lasted only a few seconds, it felt strangely unfamiliar.
I couldn’t remember the last time I had laughed. Perhaps because, until this moment, I hadn’t realized how much I had missed them.
The warmth in my chest caught me by surprise.
Maya was gone.
The friendship I had treasured for years no longer existed. But listening to Claire and Laura bicker over something so trivial reminded me that I hadn’t lost everyone. I still had them.
The realization made my eyes sting again.
Before either of them noticed the change in my breathing, I quietly said, "Thank you for worrying about me."
Laura immediately clicked her tongue. "Don’t do that."
Claire agreed at once. "You don’t need to thank us."
"We’re your friends," Laura continued. "That’s literally our job."
I lowered my gaze. "I know."
"And we’re terrible at it if you keep shutting us out," Claire added gently.
Guilt crept into my chest. "I wasn’t trying to push you away," I explained.
"We know. You just needed space," Laura finished for me.
I nodded even though neither of them could see me. "Exactly."
A comfortable silence settled between us. For the first time in days, it didn’t feel suffocating.
"There was actually something I wanted to tell you both," I said after a moment.
"Oh?" Claire sounded curious. "What is it?"