Chapter 346

Chapter 346:

Despite her efforts to remain calm, tears burned in Camille’s eyes. “You’re wrong, Rose. So wrong about everything. They loved you. I loved you. But you tried to kill me. What did you expect them to do?”

“I expected loyalty!” Rose shouted. “I expected them to understand that everything I did was because of how they treated me. Always comparing me to perfect Camille. Always making me feel like I didn’t belong.”

For a split second, Camille saw the hurt child Rose had once been—the adopted girl who never felt secure in her place, who always thought she had to fight for love.

Then the moment passed, and Rose’s expression hardened again. “It doesn’t matter now. What matters is what comes next.” She pointed to the screens. “Victoria first, I think. The woman who replaced your mother. Who made you her heir while I was cast aside.”

“No,” Camille whispered, the word torn from her throat. “Please, Rose. She’s ill. She’s recovering from cancer.”

“I know,” Rose said coldly. “That makes her the perfect first target. So vulnerable in that isolated lake house. So trusting of her security team.” She smiled over her shoulder at Camille. “I’ve been studying the layout, the routines, the weaknesses.”

Her protection. When the time comes, it will be so easy.” Camille lunged forward, the chair scraping against the wooden floor as she fought against her bonds. “Stop it! Stop this now!”

“Why should I?” Rose turned, watching Camille’s struggles with mild interest. “You took everything from me. My family. My place. My future. Now I’m taking everything from you.”

“I never took anything from you!” Camille shouted, abandoning her attempt to stay calm. “You tried to kill me! They found out the truth about you!”

“THE TRUTH?” Rose’s sudden scream echoed through the cabin. “The truth is that they never really wanted me. The truth is that I was never good enough. The truth is that from the moment they adopted me, I was just waiting to be thrown away.”

Her chest heaved with emotion, hands clenched at her sides. “Do you know what it’s like? To never feel secure? To always be afraid that one mistake will make them send you back? To watch them love their real daughter unconditionally while you have to earn every scrap of affection?”

Despite everything—the fear, the danger, the threats to those she loved—Camille felt a flicker of pity for her sister. “Rose, that wasn’t real. It was all in your mind. They loved you. We all did.”

“STOP SAYING THAT!” Rose grabbed a vase from a nearby table and hurled it against the wall. It shattered, pieces scattering across the floor like her fractured words. “Stop lying to me! They threw me away. They abandoned me. They chose you.”

For the first time, Camille saw clearly the depth of Rose’s delusion, the sickness that had warped her mind over years of perceived rejection. This wasn’t just jealousy or resentment. This was something deeper, more broken.

“Rose,” she said softly, “You need help. This isn’t right. This isn’t you.”

“You don’t know me,” Rose spat. “You never did.” She turned back to the laptop. “And now it’s too late.”

.

.

.