Chapter 302

Serena's POV

I sat rigid in the cold metal chair. The guard had instructed me to wait.

When the door finally opened and Nina shuffled in, I felt nothing. No surge of satisfaction, no pity, not even anger. Just... nothing.

She looked awful. The Nina I knew-the one who sabotaged my engagement, and tried repeatedly to destroy everything I'd built-had always been impeccably put together. This woman before me was a ghost of that person. Her once perfectly styled hair hung limply around a gaunt face. The expensive clothes were gone, replaced by a standard-issue uniform that hung off her frame. Dark circles shadowed her eyes, which still managed to flash with defiance when they met mine.

She sank into the chair across from me, her hands fidgeting on the table between us.

"Why did you want to see me?" I asked, cutting straight to the point. My voice echoed slightly in the sparse room.

Nina's lips curved into something that might have been a smile on anyone else. On her, it looked like a wound.

"Aren't you happy to see me like this, Serena?" she asked, gesturing vaguely at herself. "Isn't this what you've always wanted? Your precious little sister brought low?"

"Yes," I admitted. "I am."

Her laugh was harsh, brittle. "At least you're honest. Always so perfect, so righteous."

"There's nothing righteous about this," I replied. "You earned every bit of this outcome."

Nina's face contorted, her composure cracking. "Why can't I ever beat you? Why?" Her voice rose with each word. "I did everything right! I took all families' love. I nearly destroyed your reputation. I even got your fiancé to leave you! I had the Whitmores and the Sinclairs in my pocket. I even made connections with the Thornes! And still-STILL-I end up here while you sit there in your perfect clothes with your perfect life!"

I let her rant, watching the wild gestures of her hands, the spittle that flew from her mouth as she worked herself into a frenzy.

"I spent my entire life learning how to destroy you," she continued, breathless now. "I studied you, obsessed over you, plotted against you. What do I have to show for it? What did I do wrong? Tell me! What makes you so much better than me?"

I leaned forward slightly, my voice quiet but cutting. "Evil begets evil, Nina. It's that simple."

"Evil?" she practically spat the word. "You're not innocent either! Look at all the people who tried to hurt you-Ian, me, the Thornes-they're all ruined! You destroyed them all!"

I shook my head. "I never set out to hurt anyone. The difference between us is intent. I defended myself. You attacked unprovoked."

She laughed again, the sound unhinged and desperate. "Lucky you, then. Lucky, perfect Serena. Everyone who crosses you ends up destroyed, and somehow you come out smelling like roses."

I sighed and reached for my purse. "If you called me here just to vent your frustrations, I'm leaving. I have actual responsibilities waiting."

"Wait!" The desperation in her voice made me pause. "I need your help."

Now that was unexpected. I raised an eyebrow, waiting.

"Help me with my case," she said, her voice smaller now. "I need a good lawyer."

The audacity was almost impressive. I stared at her, wondering if this was some elaborate joke.

"No," I said simply.

"Please," she pressed on. "I'll give you my StarRiver shares. All of them. Just help me find a good attorney. That woman who represented you last time-Quinn Ashford-I want her."

I shook my head. "I'm not going to help you."

"The shares-"

"I don't want them," I cut her off. "I don't want anything from the Sinclairs. Not a single thing."

"Give them to Lawrence then," she suggested, a hint of her old cunning returning.

I almost laughed at that. "You hate him as much as I do. Why would you give him anything?"

She shrugged, a bitter twist to her mouth. "I'd donate them to charity before I let him have them." Then her eyes narrowed. "Unless... you want revenge against him? Is that it? You can use my shares to destroy him."

"Nina," I said slowly, as if explaining something to a child, "I already control StarRiver. If I wanted to tank the company, I could do it with a few phone calls. Your shares mean nothing to me."

She stared at me, clearly not having anticipated this response.

"If you want my advice," I continued, "cooperate with the investigators. Confess. Show remorse. You might get a lighter sentence."

Her eyes welled with tears. "And then what? I get out in a few years and do what? Everyone will know what I did. I'll be a pariah."

"That's not my problem."

"You know what hurts the most?" she whispered. "I wasted my whole life on hating you. My biggest dream was to see you bowing at my feet, to have Lawrence and everyone at StarRiver acknowledging me as better than you."

I studied her face, seeing for the first time how young she looked beneath the bitterness. "There will always be someone better than you, Nina. That's just life."

"What good does knowing that do me now?" she asked, deflating.

"It's never too late to learn," I replied, standing up. I smoothed my blazer. "You made your choices. Now you face the consequences."

"That's it? You're just leaving?" There was panic in her voice. "After everything, you're just walking away?"

I nodded. "This is the last time I'll visit. Whatever comes next is your journey alone."

As I turned to leave, I heard her take a shuddering breath. "Serena-"

I glanced back, curious despite myself.

But she just shook her head, eyes downcast, whatever she wanted to say dying on her lips.

I walked through the heavy door, the guard locking it behind me with a definitive clang. Outside, the spring air hit my face, fresh and sweet. I took a deep breath, filling my lungs.

Milo and Stella was waiting by the car, their small face lighting up when they saw me.

"Is the bad lady still in trouble?" Stella asked as I approached.

I knelt down to her level. "Yes, sweetheart. But we don't have to worry about her anymore."