The next moment Adrienne regained her consciousness; the first thing she noticed was that she wasn’t seeing the familiar scenery from her balcony. Instead, she noticed that she was in a moving vehicle. The scenery was moving too fast to her liking, making her feel dizzy and nauseous at the same time.
"Mr. Han would have our heads once he found out we’ve taken this bitch out of his lair." She heard her stepsister, Elise Jiang says with irritation.
"You worry too much, Elise. It would be too late for him to find her even if he found out." Cayden replied, followed by their mother’s laugh. He pressed the accelerator harder, making Adrienne feel worse. Whatever these three were up to, she knew that she could only expect the worst.
"Can’t you two stop bickering? Do not spoil my night."
Camilla Yan couldn’t suppress the smile spreading on her lips as she thought about how they could finally get rid of Rosemary’s daughter once and for all. She had endured this long and could finally live as Madam Jiang without hesitation. For as long as she could remember, she had lived with the dark shadow of the eldest miss of the Jiang family lurking, causing her to be cast aside by everyone.
Adrienne, who had a striking resemblance to her mother, irritated Camilla the most. It was as if she was facing the young Rosemary all over again.
It was hard for Adrienne to keep up with their words. She kept slipping in and out of her consciousness and had no idea where she was being taken to. It wasn’t until a few hours later did she crack her eyes open and found that the moon had risen again.
The snow had finally ceased falling but left a heavy blanket on the city and neighboring towns. The window beside her was rolled down, allowing Adrienne to take a look at where she was.
Unlike when she woke up late at night at the Han Mansion, Adrienne could see the moon better as the sky was clearer here. She wasn’t sure where the trio had taken her, but as she glanced outside the car’s windshield, she could see the night lights from the city below her, glittering like the stars up the sky. She was confused as to why she was seated in the driver’s seat now.
Adrienne opened her mouth, but she found it hard to breathe. Her throat felt dry and aching. She was extremely parched, and it didn’t help that she was malnourished. She wasn’t sure how the three managed to smuggle her out of Alistair’s watch. He was probably aware of her disappearance and was looking frantically for her.
"Look, the sleeping beauty finally woke up." Cayden leaned against the door—a lit cigarette between his lips as he looked at her with mockery.
Behind him, Adrienne saw their stepmother and Elise appeared. Elise frowned as if she was impatient for something, while Camilla was obviously in a good mood.
"What do you want from me?" Adrienne hissed at them, her eyes filled with hatred toward these people who wronged her mother.
"You are in no position to act so haughty towards us, dear sister. If anything, your foolishness has caused you to end up like this." Elise’s sarcastic voice reached Adrienne’s ears.
Upon hearing this, hatred flashed in Adrienne’s eyes. Of course, she knew that, but it wouldn’t change the fact that these three had gone overboard to make her life miserable since her father remarried.
She knelt before her heartless father, but he didn’t relent to her pleading. Instead, he wrapped his arm around Camilla’s waist, and she leaned her head against him, looking as if they were a loving couple. It made Adrienne wonder if her father ever loved her mother, given how easy it was for him to give up on her and marry another woman.
He hardened his face, glared at her, and said, "Weren’t you the one who chose to keep her on life support? You even went as far as going against my wish and declared that you are not part of this family. Addie, it’s time for you to let your mother go. It’s been years, and there is no sign of improvement in her. You are only making this difficult for us. Stop making a fool of yourself and get up. I won’t spend another dime on your mother. You should know when to give up."
Angry tears rolled down Adrienne’s face. Her gaze then moved to Camilla, who was smiling at her with satisfaction while she was on her knees, desperately crying for help. Her heart sank at her father’s dismissal. Something within her shattered, and Adrienne was never the same again.
Seeing the change in her expression, Elise looked pleased, and the corner of her mouth lifted.
"See, dear sister. I don’t understand what Alistair Han sees in you, but even he cannot stop your death now. There’s not much time left."
Adrienne shifted her gaze to her older brother, feeling betrayed that he allowed these wicked people to harm her to this extent. Couldn’t he see how rotten this mother and daughter pair were?
When did their relationship start to deteriorate to this extent? She had seen how Cayden treated Elise and he had never once treated her with that level of care. He’d treated Elise more like a doting older brother compared to her, his actual sister. She couldn’t fathom what made her brother act like this.
Meeting her gaze, Cayden scoffed and laughed, sending a shiver down Adrienne’s spine.
"You are still as stupid as ever. You still can’t put the pieces together, can you? No wonder you’re about to lose everything now. I’m not Rosemary Zhao’s real son and your birth shouldn’t have happened in the first place. You are a mistake that needs to be rid of once and for all..."
Adrienne felt like she had been hit by lightning right then and there. She stared at her brother in shock and disbelief. Everything made sense to her now, but it was too late.