Chapter 2156

Chelsea Rainsworth stepped out of the front gates of Rainsworth Manor and headed for the sedan she always drove. She had just reached for the door handle when the family driver jogged over, breath misting in the cold. “Ms. Chelsea, your father has ordered that none of the household vehicles are to be at your disposal anymore.”

His words spilled out in one apologetic rush, but Chelsea did not scold him. Instead, she slipped the cool metal key from her purse, placed it in his work-worn hand, and closed his fingers around it with quiet finality.

“Here you go. Please return this to him for me.”

“Certainly.”

The driver accepted the key, then watched as Chelsea walked away, her slim figure swallowed by the drifting haze.

At the curb, Chelsea flagged down a taxi, gave the driver the address of Jason’s rented apartment, and sank into the back seat.

Inside the car, exhaustion pressed on her eyelids. She let them fall and, in the muffled engine hum, her mind slipped backward through a single tumbling year.