Julian’s eyes narrowed immediately. Seb ignored him and looked directly at Amara instead.

"And you don’t have to worry," he said quietly. "I won’t manipulate the results." A pause. "You can trust that." Amara stared at him angrily. Trust. That word sounded almost insulting coming from him.

After everything. After all the lies. All the manipulation. All the damage. Yet somehow... she felt she had no choice; she really wanted to be done with this nightmare.

"I promise," Seb said quietly as they stood outside the hospital entrance. "While you’re here, I want you to meet someone." Amara looked at him coldly. Seb continued before she could refuse.

"Because once the results are out... You and I will never cross paths again." His jaw tightened slightly. "I promise you that." Amara didn’t believe him.

Not even a little. Seb always had another secret. Another hidden card. Another manipulation waiting around the corner. But at this point, she was exhausted enough to play along if it meant finally getting him out of her life forever.

"Fine," she said flatly. "Let’s get this nightmare over and done with." A nurse soon arrived with a wheelchair despite Amara insisting she could walk. "You’re under stress, ma’am," the nurse said gently. "Please."

Amara didn’t have the energy to argue anymore. Julian stayed beside her the entire time as they moved through the quiet halls of Mercy Hospital. Unlike the chaos from earlier, this place felt almost unnaturally calm.

The lights were dimmer here. The floors quieter. Only the distant sound of machines and soft footsteps echoed through the long hallways. Seb led them toward the eastern wing of the building. Amara frowned immediately.

"This isn’t the testing department." Seb kept walking. "What is this, Seb?" she asked sharply. "I thought we came here for the test." Still no answer.

Julian’s expression darkened instantly. "I swear if you’re playing games right now—"

"I’m not," Seb interrupted calmly. They finally stopped outside one of the private rooms at the very end of the hallway. The corridor there felt isolated.

Too isolated. Amara slowly stood from the wheelchair, irritation rising again. "I’m not playing with you, Seb," she warned. Before he could answer. The room door suddenly opened. Everything happened in one second.

One glance. One breath. One heartbeat. And Amara’s entire world shattered. Little Seren is sleeping quietly on the hospital bed. Amara froze completely. Her heart skipped so violently it physically hurt.

No. No... That wasn’t possible. Her eyes widened slowly as the room around her blurred. Seren looked smaller than before, pale under the hospital lights, a stuffed bunny resting in her arms while cartoon sounds played softly from the television nearby.

But it was her. It was really her. Amara’s lips parted soundlessly. Julian had told her Seren died in the accident. The truck crash. They told her there was nothing they could do. Amara never saw the body.

Never attended a proper burial well because she thought Shane would not allow it.

There was only grief so unbearable she thought it would destroy her. She had mourned that little girl. Cried herself sick over her. Spent nights staring at Seren’s empty room, unable to breathe from the pain. 𝙛𝒓𝓮𝙚𝔀𝒆𝒃𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝓵.𝙘𝒐𝒎

And now....Now Seren was sitting there alive. Breathing. Blinking. Real. Amara stumbled backward slightly. Julian caught her immediately before she fell.

"Oh my God..." she whispered. Her voice barely existed. Tears instantly filled her eyes as she stared at the child in complete disbelief. Inside the room, Seren slowly lifted her head.

Something deep inside Amara broke. A strangled sob escaped her lips before she could stop it. Every emotion she had buried for years came crashing back all at once so hard she thought her chest would split open.

"Seren..." Her knees nearly gave out. Julian tightened his hold on her in shock while even he struggled to process what he was seeing. Seb stood quietly behind them. Watching. Waiting. Amara turned toward him slowly, trembling violently now.

Her face had gone pale with disbelief and fury. So many questions crashed through her mind at once. How was Seren alive? Who took her? Why was she hidden? Who lied to her father, Shane?

And the biggest question of all. Why now? "She was in a coma for three years," Seb said quietly. "She woke up yesterday." Amara slowly turned to look at him. Her entire body felt numb.

"How..." she whispered. "How is that even possible?" Seb looked exhausted for the first time since she had seen him again. Not arrogant. Not manipulative. Just tired. "It’s a long story."

His eyes drifted toward Seren, lying weakly on the hospital bed. "The doctors declared her brain damaged after the accident. They said there was almost no hope." His voice lowered slightly. "Most of them gave up on her."

A bitter smile touched his lips. "But I knew our baby girl was strong." Amara’s expression hardened instantly despite the tears still sitting in her eyes.

"She is not our baby girl, Seb," she said sharply. "So please—"

"Mummy?" The tiny voice interrupted her. Amara froze again. Seren had opened her eyes fully now. The little girl looked directly at her with sleepy excitement lighting up her pale face.

"Mummy, you came." The innocence in her voice was unbearable. Seren tried weakly to sit up, wincing slightly from the effort.

"How long have I been sleeping?" she asked softly. Then her small brows furrowed adorably as she stared at Amara’s stomach. "You look very big, Mummy." Amara stared at her in complete confusion.

No. No, this wasn’t happening. This couldn’t be real. The little girl who once screamed that she hated her... The child who had looked at her with so much anger and rejection during their last year together...

Why was she looking at her like this now? Why was she calling her mummy so naturally again? Amara’s chest tightened painfully. Beside her, Julian stayed silent, sensing something he couldn’t fully understand.

Seb finally spoke again. "Because of the injury, she lost parts of her memory." Amara looked at him slowly.

"What?"