In the past, vacations for Serena were bustling with life, as her friends would flock to her place, a giggling gaggle ready for fun. They’d hit up the local diner, catch the latest flick at the cinema, or pamper themselves with a spa day.
But this winter break, she found herself confined to the walls of her ho.
Confined for so long that she and her friends barely crossed paths.
"I actually thought she realized her mistake and was considering giving her another chance. But it turns out, apologies are just part of her routine. They are just empty words."
Serena had sounded so sincere that Kenneth nearly fell for it!
Louisa was heartbroken and disappointed, never imagining Serena could turn out this way!
It was utterly disheartening!
"It seems we were too lenient sending her to the guesthouse to reflect on her actions." Louisa mused.
If the homade biscuits with milk, the handwritten letters, the colds and fevers, including the heartfelt ssage she had sent today were a sche to escape the guesthouse and return to the main house,
then her heart must be incredibly terrifying.
Louisa didn’t dare to think about it, because on closer thought, she realized Serena was nothing like the person in her mories. She was becoming soone unrecognizable.
When had she changed? Was it since Rose left for ho, or was it when Martha started stirring the pot.
"Mr. and Mrs. Collins, I swear on my family’s life that there is no falsehood in my words." Edith suddenly knelt down, raising her right hand to swear, "You treat like your own, and Ms. Rose has always treated with genuine respect and kindness. I can’t bear to see you deceived any longer, and I can’t
stand to watch her bully Ms. Rose like before, with such arrogance."
"Edith, we know all that you’ve done for this household, and we are aware of your loyalty. Please stand up. The floor is cold." Louisa hurried to help her up, expressing her disappointnt, "We had this image
of her being gentle, well-mannered, and graceful, but now I’m starting to see her true colors."
It would be a lie to say they weren’t disappointed and hurt.
In the end, Louisa steeled her heart and said to Kenneth, "Let’s not reply to her just yet. Let’s see what else she tries to stir up."
Kenneth too felt let down and heartbroken by Serena’s actions. He had always seen her as a daughter, intent to cover for her for the rest of his life. But she.
She was playing them for fools, bullying their own daughter, and still showing no remorse.
Serena waited in her room, ti dragging on until Betty arrived with lunch, revealing she had been waiting for three whole hours!
Her parents weren’t ones to sleep in; they’d rise with the sun, and by this hour, they should have been up and about, likely at lunch themselves.
Even if sothing urgent had co up, it was unthinkable that they’d leave her hanging without so much as a punctuation mark in reply.
What could be keeping Kenneth and Louisa so busy?
Could it be a poor network connection that they didn’t receive her ssage?
It seed unlikely; she had sent so many ssages. It’s unlikely that not a single one was received.
What could be the reason? Could Rosemary be there, making it awkward for them to respond.?
"Serena, ti for lunch," Betty said cheerfully as she set the lunch tray down, arranging the dishes one by one on the dining table.
Serena latched onto her words like a lifeline. "Where are Mom and Dad? What have they been up to all morning?"
Betty jumped when Serena grabbed her hand.
"After I brought your breakfast, I got caught up helping clear away branches. The gardener decided every tree in the estate needed pruning." Betty paused, glancing at the clock. "I didn’t get back to the main house until almost noon, and I saw your folks coming in from a stroll in the garden. They plopped down on the couch and started sending voice ssages on WhatsApp too."
Betty hesitated, afraid to continue.
"To who?" Serena pressed, her voice tinged with urgency. "Co on, spill it. No secrets."
Swallowing hard, Betty confessed, "They were checking in on Ms. Rose. Asking if she’d had lunch yet, telling her not to work too hard, and offering to have the chef make sothing special to be delivered
right to her door. They seed really concerned about Ms. Rose."
Serena felt a jolt of shock and disbelief. "Did you see them sending these ssages with your own eyes?"
"Yes, I heard the ’ping’ as they sent them. Ms. Rose even replied." Betty couldn’t grasp why Serena’s face was etched with such defeat and despondency. "Serena, are you feeling better today? Did the
fever go down after the dicine?"
It struck Serena that the only person who seed to care about her was Betty, soone who was completely unrelated to her.
A sardonic smile played on Serena’s lips, a mix of bitterness and defiance. "You actually saw them ssaging on their phones, right?"
Betty was confused by the repeated question. "I saw it with my own eyes. They chatted for like twenty minutes. Serena, what’s wrong?"
"What did they do after sending the ssages?" Serena probed further.
"They got caught up reading so news on their phones. I only knew because I overheard their conversation. After that, they went for lunch."
Serena felt her heart growing colder. So Kenneth and Louisa had ti for news and warm chats with Rosemary but couldn’t spare a single punctuation mark for her own ssages.
The smile on Serena’s face soured. She had been feverish last night when Martha suggested a plan, which seed good at the ti. Bravely, she had typed out over two thousand words, half for Dad, half
for Mom, hoping to stir so mories.
She waited until this morning to send them, not wanting to disturb them.
She thought maybe they were busy and hadn’t seen the ssages, or couldn’t reply just yet.
But no, they had seen them and simply chose not to respond.
"Serena, what’s wrong?" Betty asked, seeing Serena push her food around the plate. "The food’s getting cold, and this table doesn’t have a heating function. Serena, it’s better to eat while it’s warm. It
won’t taste as good once it gets cold."
Serena managed a hollow laugh, feeling utterly abandoned. In just a few days, she had gone from the beloved daughter, the jewel of the Collins family, to a forgotten wretch—like a queen fallen from grace,
banished to a lonely, sunless palace, wondering when she might regain her freedom.
"Serena, Serena?" Betty called softly again.
With a heart heavy with sorrow, Serena whispered, "Betty, please leave be for a while. I need so ti alone."
At that mont, Serena knew what it felt like to be cast aside, forsaken by the parents who once adored her, left to wither in the shadows of the Collins family’s indifference.
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