The Heiress Who Watched Them Fall

Chapter 3

Julian did not return all night, and Clara went to the hospital alone to have her injuries treated.

She cleared out most of the backlog at the station and personally shut down several of the Rivers family’s gray-area establishments.

Rumors spread outside that Mrs. Rivers had turned love into hatred and was retaliating against her cheating husband, but Clara ignored them completely.

Until one day, she went in plain clothes and staked out the target dessert shop.

She pushed the door open, and a sweet aroma hit her instantly—then the scene inside froze her in place.

Under the warm yellow lights, Julian wore a pink apron that looked completely out of place on him, his attention fixed on Scarlett beside him. His expression was relaxed, showing a lightness she had not seen in a long time.

Clara’s fingertips turned cold.

She remembered that years ago, she had once passed a dessert shop like this and excitedly said she wanted to try it with him.

Back then, he had frowned and said it was boring, suggesting she simply have the chef make it instead.

When she got upset, he pulled her into his arms to soothe her, saying he was allergic to cream and could not stand the smell.

But now, not only was he standing in the sweet, creamy air, he was even obediently eating the bite of cake Scarlett held to his lips.

Then he smiled, ruffled her hair, and clearly mouthed "good."

It felt like something had carved into Clara’s heart, a dull pain spreading through her chest.

She suddenly turned and pushed open the door, instinctively trying to escape the suffocating scene.

The breeze cleared her mind for a moment—then a familiar voice called after her from behind.

"Clara!"

Julian caught up in a few steps and blocked her path, frowning slightly.

"Are you pretending you didn’t see me?" His tone was helpless. "Still angry? You’ve made quite a scene these past few days—you’ve shut down several of my important venues. That should be enough to boost your performance, right?"

Clara slowly looked up at him.

The sunlight was blinding, and she narrowed her eyes slightly, suddenly finding it almost absurd.

To Julian, all her emotions were nothing more than childish sulking.

The dull pain in her chest slowly turned into a cold numbness.

She curled her lips slightly. "Julian, I’m not throwing a tantrum."

Looking at his slightly stunned expression, she said word by word, "And I won’t get angry because of you anymore. It’s simply not necessary."

"Go keep Miss Vance company and make your cakes. I’ve got work to do."

Julian frowned tightly. Seeing Clara’s calm expression, an inexplicable unease rose in him, and he instinctively reached out to grab her. "Clara, you—"

Before he could finish, the dessert shop door was pushed open again.

Scarlett stepped out, frowning as she looked at Clara.

At the same time, Clara sharply noticed the suspect she had been staking out appear behind Scarlett, holding a dagger in his hand.