Chapter 3

Isabel was in the hospital for three days. No one visited her during that time. When she headed home with her things, she found the place looking as empty as it had been when she'd left. Perhaps Kendall hadn't even come home in the past three days. He'd probably been with Winifred. Kendall had given Isabel this villa as her 20th birthday present. She'd always thought of it as the home they shared. But now, he was no longer hers, and the villa was no longer her home. Isabel lazed on a lounge by the pool and enjoyed the sun after taking her medication. She didn't know how long she had been there, but a shadow suddenly loomed over her. She opened her eyes to see Winifred looking down at her tauntingly. "You're awake, Izzy. I made a special trip over here to thank you for being so generous. You worked hard for the past three years to get the chance for direct admission to the graduate program, yet you gave it to me." "How did you get in here?" Isabel regretted asking the moment the words were out of her mouth. She and Kendall were the only ones who had the keys to the place. He had obviously given one to Winifred. As expected, Winifred covered her mouth and laughed smugly. "Don't you already know? Kenny gave me a key, of course. He was with me for the past few days, and he sent me here to get him a change of clothes because he had something to do." That made Isabel feel like she'd swallowed a fly. Her stomach churned with nausea. She rubbed her chest to ease the feeling. She didn't want to have anything to do with Winifred anymore, so she said shortly, "His things are on the second floor. Leave once you've taken them." However, Winifred sat by the pool leisurely and dipped her feet into the water. "I heard you can't swim, Izzy. Why do you think Kenny had this pool built in the first place? You might not be aware of this, but I've loved swimming since I was a child. I was even a swimming champion!" Her sharp voice pierced Isabel like a needle. Isabel gritted her teeth and said icily, "Go ahead and jump in the pool if you love swimming so much. After all, you're horrible at everything else now. Maybe you can make your parents stop worrying about you if your health were better." Winifred shot to her feet and glared at Isabel like a cat that had had its tail stepped on. The latter merely glanced at her coolly before getting up to head inside. As she brushed past Winifred, the latter suddenly grabbed her arm and fell toward the pool. Suddenly, two figures appeared and grabbed them both. Winifred burst into tears before Isabel even realized what was going on. "Mom, Dad! Izzy tried to push me into the pool when I'm still recovering from my period cramps!" "I didn't! She—" Isabel didn't get the chance to explain. Gordon Court and Linda Bronson glared daggers at her. Gordon snapped, "We heard from Felix that you were hospitalized and wanted to come over to see how you were doing, but look at what you were doing. How can you be so evil, Isabel?" "What has Winnie done to make you hate her so? Why do you keep picking on her? Do you want to kill her?" Linda screeched. As the verbal assault rained down on Isabel, she hung her head just like she always had. She didn't dare fight back, nor did she have the strength to. Linda almost stabbed her eye out as she pointed at her, and Gordon was absolutely furious. "You ingrate!" he snapped. That wasn't enough to vent his anger, so he kicked Isabel in the waist, making her fall into the pool. The pool was of standard length and depth. She couldn't swim, so she thrashed in the water, trying to stay afloat. However, her body grew heavy, and she slowly sank. She watched as Gordon, Linda, and Winifred happily headed inside the house. As they left, she even heard them laugh and say, "It's just a pool—she won't drown. Since she wanted to push Winnie in, she can get a taste of what it's like to be dunked in cold water in the middle of winter!" Isabel slowly became submerged in the water as anguish and regret washed over her. It was a shame to die just like this—she'd yet to even meet her birth parents. She wondered whether they would dote on her unconditionally as the Courts did to Winifred. Suddenly, a figure jumped into the water and saved Isabel. She spat out a mouthful of water and slowly opened her eyes to see a familiar face. "Kendall…" Her heart warmed slightly. It turned out he still cared about her. In the next second, he flung her onto the ground, making pain shoot through her from the impact. He growled, "When will you stop this, Isabel? Wasn't getting Winnie into an accident enough for you? How could you try to make her drown this time?" Kendall lost his cool whenever Winifred was involved. Isabel gaped at him, taken aback by his outburst. Before she could explain what had happened, Winifred ran out and clung to his arm, tears instantly streaming down her face. "Don't be mad at Izzy, Kenny. Maybe she didn't mean to do it…" Kendall held her close and rubbed her back soothingly. "Don't bother speaking up for her, Winnie. This is just what she's like, and she won't ever change." He turned back to look at Isabel frostily. "I saved you this once because of how long we've known each other, but I won't go easy on you if you pull something like this again!" Isabel went limp on the ground. Her soaked clothes made her feel cold to the bone, but they were no match for the iciness in her heart. This was how things always turned out. Everyone always believed Winifred over her, and they always thought of her as an irredeemable sinner. Yet Winifred was the one who always got away without so much as a scratch. Isabel was the one who ended up hurt and broken.