Chapter 12
Camila looked at Agnes with calm, unreadable eyes
She hadn’t even done anything, yet Agnes recoiled as if she had been startled. Her body trembled, and she took several step. back, her face pale as she stammered, “Camila, please don’t look at me like that… with so much hatred. You’re scaring me
Arthur’s fury erupted. He shoved Camila aside and roared, “What are you trying to do to Agnes?”
Caught off guard, Camila stumbled backward, her body slamming into the railing. For a split second, she teetered dangerously on the edge, nearly falling from the second floor.
But no one cared. Arthur and Belinda stood in front of Agnes like a shield, their faces full of wariness and distrust–as if Camila were the threat.
Harry opened his mouth, ready to reprimand her out of habit. But just as the words were about to leave his lips, he hesitated.
The memory of what she had endured in prison flashed through his mind. The cruel remarks he once threw at her so effortlessly now felt impossible to say.
Camila’s face remained emotionless, but the faint curve of her lips carried unmistakable mockery. She thought, “This is my family. The moment Agnes shows the slightest bit of distress, I become the scapegoat
There was a time when their judgment could shake her, when a single look or word from them could cut her to the bone. But not anymore,
Now, even as they misunderstood and condemned her, she felt nothing–no anger, no sadness, not even disappointment. She didn’t explain herself. Instead, she lowered her gaze.
Her complete indifference made Harry’s chest tighten. His voice softened despite himself. “Did you hit yourself? Does it hurt?”
Camila looked up, surprised. For a moment, she struggled to reconcile this version of him–the one who seemed to care- with the brother who once humiliated her with cutting words
Funny how habits worked. He showed her the slightest concern, and somehow, she wasn’t used to it.
“No, it doesn’t hurt,” she said. A small bruise was nothing. Compared to the agony of having her leg shattered, this didn’t even register
Just now… you heard everything?
Camila hesitated for a second, realizing what he was referring to. She gave a quiet “Yeah. And nothing more.
Harry thought, “That is it? I have cut ties with the Connor Group for her. Terminated a crucial business partnership Cost the Jackson Group 300 million dollars in a single night–all for her sake. And she can’t even spare a single word of gratitude?
A wave of frustration burned in his chest, seeping into his stomach like a hundred needles piercing him at once. His chrome stomach condition flared up violently.
As if punishing her for her indifference, Harry gritted his teeth and clenched the railing, his face pale with pain
In the past, whenever he had a stomachache, she was always the first to panic. His eyes locked onto her, searching desperately for a trace of worry–just a flicker of the old Camila, the one who would have dropped everything to help bus Even just a few words of concern. That was all it would take to make everything he did today feel worth it.
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Chapter 12
But there was nothing. Camila chidn’t even look at him. Her face remained calm, detached–so utterly indifferent that it was suffocating
“If there’s nothing else, I’ll be going now,” she said. Her tone was steady, but the words were ruthless, like a dull knife slicing into flesh–slow, deliberate, and unbearably painful.
Under the weight of four pairs of eyes, she turned and walked away. Her steps were unsteady, but she never faltered. Harry gripped the railing tightly, watching her leave with an expression of pain and disappointment.
He thought, ‘It isn’t supposed to be like this. She used to care. Whenever I was in pain, she would cry while frantically searching for my medicine, as if she wished she could take on the suffering in my place.
“When has that changed? When did she stop caring?
mame from his lips, his voice raw with emotion.
“Camila!” He forced her na
She instinctively paused.
Seeing Camila pause, a flicker of hope lit up Harry’s eyes. His voice unconsciously softened, tinged with a rare vulnerability. “Camila, my stomach hurts.”
It was an offering, a way out of this standoff–a chance for her to step down gracefully. But who said she had to take it? Camila lifted her gaze, looking up at him with an expression as distant as the moon. A faint smirk tugged at her lips, laced with cold mockery. “Mr. Jackson, if your stomach hurts, you should be calling a doctor–not me.”
At that moment, Harry swore he heard the sound of his own heart shattering. Every bit of hope he had clung to crumbled beneath the weight of her indifference.
Pain flooded through him, drowning out everything else. His legs buckled, and he sank to his knees. But even as his body gave out, his hands clung desperately to the railing, his gaze locked onto Camila through the gaps in the balusters.
She didn’t even look at him. Without hesitation, she turned away.
Her cold detachment sent Arthur into a rage. His voice thundered through the hall. “Camila! Get back here right now and get Harry his medicine!”
Belinda’s sobs grew louder as she pleaded, “Camila, you always took care of Harry when his stomach acted up. How can you just walk away now? He’s your family! How did things come to this?”
Even Agnes, emboldened, spoke up with feigned righteousness, “Camila, I know you still resent us after spending five years in prison, but you can’t just stand by and watch Harry suffer. You, more than anyone, know which medicine works best for hin
Camila stopped walking.
The Jackson family thought they had finally gotten through to her. But when she turned back, they were startled to find her smiling, a smile as sharp as a blade.
She said, “So, you did see everything I did for you. You just never cared. It never mattered.
“Since that’s the case, I’ll take it all back. From now on, whether the Jackson family thrives or crumbles, whether you die–it has nothing to do with me.
“After all, you never truly cared about me, either. And now? I’ve finally run out of reasons to care about you.”
Her words hit like a sledgehammer, slamming into Arthur, Belinda, and Harry with merciless force.
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Chapter 12
Belinda sobbed harder, her tear filled eyes desperate as she looked at Camila. “Camila, that’s not true! You’re my daughter–1 carried you for ten months, waited every day to bring you into this world. How could I not care about you?”
Arthur’s face darkened, his anger boiling over. His voice was sharp as a knife. “How did we end up with such an ungrateful, heartless daughter?
“If I had known you would be so disobedient, so vindictive, so full of jealousy–always targeting Agnes–I never would have brought you back! Then we wouldn’t have to deal with the mess you bring.”
Belinda’s sobs quieted slightly as she tugged at Arthur’s sleeve. “Don’t say that about our daughter.”
Arthur scoffed, shooting Camila a cold glare.
Agnes, ever the performer, sighed softly, her voice laced with sorrow. “Dad, it’s okay… Camila has every right to be angry. After all, I took the place that rightfully belonged to her. I got the love and care that should have been hers.”
She sniffled, her voice trembling just enough to sound sincere. “Camila, if it makes you feel better, I can leave. I just hope you won’t upset Mom and Dad anymore. And please… don’t abandon Harry when he’s in pain.”
Camila stood still, watching them with quiet detachment, as if observing a carefully rehearsed stage play.
She waited patiently until every one of them had finished their lines. Then, in an unhurried tone, she said, “Are you done? Good I’m going to bed.”
Her indifference ignited Arthur’s fury. He pointed a shaking finger at her, his voice thick with rage and disappointment. “You say you don’t care about this family anymore? Then why did you even come back?
“You’re nothing but a convicted felon who spent five years in prison. You’re the stain on the Jackson family name! Who gave you the right to return?”
His words were like daggers, each one sharper than the last.
He continued, “If you have any dignity left, you should leave immediately. No one will stop you.
“Do you think we’ve been suffering in your absence? Let me tell you, life was peaceful–better, even–before you came back Yet here you are, acting like we owe you something.”
A sneer curled at the corner of his lips. “Let me make one thing clear. Just because your mother and I gave birth to you means we owe you not a damn thing”
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