I turned to Mr. Hastings Senior and forced a faint smile. "Mr. Hastings Senior, let''s step outside and talk."


    Without a word, he got up and walked out of the hospital room. The hallway was empty, filled only with the scent of disinfectant and the distant murmur of voices.


    I took a deep breath and said, "The doctor told me my mother has depression. What happened today was because of an episode."


    Mr. Hastings Senior lit a cigarette and took a deep drag before exhaling slowly. The haze of smoke made his already weary face look even more exhausted.


    "I know." He turned and looked at me gloomily.


    I sighed and finally voiced the reason I had asked him toe out, "Mr. Hastings Senior, get a divorce."


    His expression shifted. He avoided my eyes and said in a low voice, "Right now... Let''s just focus on letting your mother rest." With that, he turned to leave.


    "Why?" I called after him. "Why won''t you let her go?"


    His steps faltered. He slowly turned back and stared at me fixedly. "Serena, I made a promise to take responsibility. And I will."


    Responsibility?


    I opened my mouth but found myself speechless.


    He took onest look at me and sighed. "Take care of your mother, Serena."


    Then, he walked away without looking back.


    When I returned to the hospital room, Mom was awake.


    Shey there quietly. I walked over and took her hand. "Mom, how do you feel?"


    She turned her head and looked at me. "Serena, am I useless?"


    I held her tightly. "Mom, don''t think that way. You''re just sick. You''ll get better. We both will."


    ...


    Meanwhile, Alex pulled up in front of Serena''s office building.


    Serena had once told him that she had encountered her grandmother and aunt here before, so he insisted on checking the surveince footage.


    He headed straight to the security office and said to the guard, "Hello, I need to check the surveince footage."


    The security guard gave him a once-over, but his tone was less than friendly. "Surveince? Who are you? What''s this about? We don''t just let anyone look at the surveince footage."


    Alex kept his temper in check and exined, "I was sent by your boss. She ran


    into some trouble and needs to review the footage to confirm something."


    The guard still refused. "Trouble? What kind of trouble? Did she report it to the police? If not, we can''t just show you the footage."


    Alex took a deep breath, barely


    restraining his anger. "I already told


    vel


    you that I''m here on your boss'' orders. Does she need your permission to check her own surveince? I''m Alex, her boyfriend. If you waste any more of Serena''s time, can you take responsibility for that?"


    His imposing tone unsettled the guard, though he still hesitated. "Fine, but you''ll have to give me details, When did these people.e? What did they look like? What were they wearing? The more specific, the better."


    Alex described Felicia and Shirley in as much detail as possible, along with the likely time frame in which they had appeared. Only then did the guard reluctantly pull up the footage.


    Alex stared at the screen, reviewing the footage frame by frame. As the minutes passed, his expression darkened.


    The footage clearly showed Felicia and Shirley lingering near the office entrance, ncing around suspiciously. They even attempted to enter the building.


    Then, Elena emerged from the shadows. She spoke with them briefly before leaving the underground parking garage with them.