Hopefully, Sharon will just forget about all this and let it go.<fnacfb> Chapters first released on f?i?n?d?n?o?v?e?l?</fnacfb>


    Monty and the others made their way back to the hotel pretty quickly.


    When they got there, Lisette was already waiting for them in the lobby.


    She looked a total mess-her cheek was swollen from being pped, and even though she''d tried to cover it up with makeup and ice packs, it was clear she wasn''t going to look like herself any time soon.


    "Lisette, are you okay?" Zelda rushed over, unable to hide her worry when she saw the state Lisette was in.


    "I''m fine," Lisette said, trying to keep her voice steady, though she was furious inside. "Ulysses and Horatio came back before you guys. What''s up with them? I tried talking to them, but they just ignored me!"


    She was getting anxious. It was obvious Ulysses was acting different around her. Horatio too. They used to be the ones who doted on her the most, but now they acted like they wanted nothing to do with her. How could she not worry?


    Was this all Calliope''s doing? Had Calliope somehow won them over? Lisette just didn''t get it, and the whole thing left a bitter taste in her mouth. "They''re acting weird?" Zelda shook her head. "I don''t know what''s gotten into Ulysses. He''s been acting crazy all day. Don''t worry about him. Oh, honey, your poor face! What are you gonna do? You were always our little beauty."


    "I said I''m fine," Lisette insisted, trying to act tough.


    But seeing her like that just made Zelda feel even worse.


    Zelda sighed. "This is all your dad''s fault. He shouldn''t have sent you over there without figuring things out first."


    Valerian was watching Lisette with a look of genuine concern.


    But honestly, he was more relieved than anything. If that Tanner guy hadn''t already been engaged, he might''ve lost Lisette for good. Thank God for small mercies.


    "But what about thepany?" Lisette dropped her gaze, voice small. "It''s not a big deal that I got hurt. What really matters is I couldn''t help the family. And from the looks of it, Callie isn''t going to help us. either. What are we gonna do if thpany goes under?"  s


    "Oh, sweetie. You''re always thinking of everyone else before yourself," Zelda said, her heart aching.


    "See? Lisette''s the only one who actually cares about this family!"


    "You''re a good kid, Lisette. There''ll be other chances," Monty said gently. "Let''s just wait until your face heals up and then figure things out."


    As for Calliope Monty had already realized convincing her to help was going to be next to impossible. She didn''t even bother pretending to care about them anymore. She had her own people now and seemed


    perfectly fine without them. She was


    stone-cold.


    s


    "If she''s not going to help, we shouldn''t waste any more time on her," Monty finally


    said. "We need to think of another n."


    "Yeah, forget her! That ungrateful brat isn''t going to lift a finger for us," Zelda snapped.


    "She won''t even give us the time of day," Monty added with a heavy sigh, unable to figure out where they d gone wrong for God''s sake, she was their daughter. How could she


    be so heartless?  s


    ...


    Meanwhile, upstairs in her own suite, Calliope was lounging on the couch. She''d just sent off a message, asking someone to look into Jett and his wife for her.


    It was honestly eerie-Mrs. White looked so much like her it was almost unsettling.


    And with what Sharon had said about lost memories, Calliope was starting to wonder... Could Mrs. White actually be her real mother?