Serena’s POV
I opened my eyes in the sterile hospital room, finally alone. The silence was almost too much after all the visitors and commotion. My body ached for rest, but my mind refused to shut down.
God, I was exhausted. Weeks of late nights revising designs, micromanaging every detail at the studio, and now this fire. My body had finally forced to take a break—through the worst possible ans.
Sally had just left, phone in hand. "Serena, focus on recovery. I’ll be back tomorrow. Got a ssage from Mr.Alvin that needs handling."
With her gone, the quiet in the room beca oppressive. Every ti I closed my eyes, all I could see was that wall of flas, feel the smoke burning my lungs, clouding my vision until I couldn’t see anything at all. Then soone charging through the fire to grab ...
I found myself wishing it had been Cedric who’d saved . The thought startled awake. Why would I even think that? What was wrong with ?
A sudden knock at the door made flinch.
"Co in," I called, trying to sound stronger than I felt.
A nurse poked her head in. "Mrs. Lancaster, there’s soone insisting on seeing you. Mr. Lancaster left instructions not to allow additional visitors, but she’s quite persistent."
I frowned. "Who is it?"
"She says her na is Maya, the general manager from LUXE Group. Claims she’s your friend."
Maya. The na was familiar—wasn’t she the one who’d stood up for that eting? The last thing I needed right now was a business discussion or fake sympathy.
"Please tell her I’m not feeling well enough for visitors," I said firmly.
The nurse nodded and closed the door. But peace didn’t last long. Within minutes, I heard raised voices outside.
"Mrs. Quinn, you cannot go in! The patient needs rest! Please leave imdiately!"
"Move aside!"
The door burst open, and a woman with red-brown hair rushed in, her gray eyes scanning frantically. When she saw , her entire face changed, eyes instantly rimming with tears.
"What do you think you’re doing?" I snapped, irritation flaring. "I’m a patient who needs rest, not your uninvited concern!"
The nurse had followed her in, trying to coax her back out, but this Maya person completely ignored her, staring at like she’d seen a ghost.
"Serena..." she whispered, rushing to my bedside. "It really is you! Why are you pretending to be Mrs. Lancaster from Elegant Realm studio?"
My mood darkened instantly. Was this Ryan’s doing? So twisted ga? The small flicker of gratitude I’d felt toward him for saving vanished completely.
"Mrs. Quinn, please control yourself," I said coldly. "I’m not this ’Serena’ person. You’ve got the wrong woman."
Maya shook her head, disbelief written across her face. "That’s impossible. We’ve been best friends for years—I’d recognize you anywhere, even in ashes." She sat on the edge of my bed, grabbing my hand. "Are you angry with us? The car accident—we had no idea until it was too late, and by then you’d vanished. The Quinn family and Mr. Blackwood have been searching for you for three years! If you’ve been alive this whole ti, why didn’t you co ho?"
I yanked my hand away. Her words sounded like soone else’s story—completely disconnected from my reality.
"Mrs. Quinn, I’ve already told you—you’ve mistaken for soone else," I said firmly. "I understand I might resemble this woman you know, but I am not her. Please see clearly."
Being repeatedly confused for soone else was infuriating. My already raw throat made my words sound even harsher.
Maya froze, her expression shifting from shock to sothing like dawning horror. I’d never seen such raw emotion on a stranger’s face before—except it didn’t feel entirely strange. Sothing about the way she tilted her head when processing information seed oddly familiar.
"Serena," she said slowly, her voice dropping to barely above a whisper. "You... you don’t rember anything, do you?"
Sothing flickered in my mind—a shadow, a whisper of recognition that vanished before I could grasp it. I didn’t imdiately deny her claim, which seed to confirm her suspicion.
Maya inhaled sharply. "I should have realized. Why else wouldn’t you recognize ?"
I didn’t want this conversation to continue. I pressed the ergency call button beside my bed.
Nurses rushed in within seconds.
"Mrs. Quinn, please leave. You’re seriously disturbing my rest," I said coldly.
Maya refused to budge. "Serena, listen to . I don’t know what happened to you before, but now that you’re back, you don’t have to be afraid anymore." Her eyes pleaded with . "You can tell anything—everything."
She reached for my hand again, but I slapped it away.
"Mrs. Quinn! Get out!" My voice rose with anger, triggering a violent coughing fit.
The nurses quickly moved to comfort while others escorted Maya toward the door.
"Serena! What’s happened to you?!" Maya cried out desperately,
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