At eleven-thirty in the morning, Ondine headed to the hospital to see her mother, an insulated container in hand.The car was stuck in a long line of traffic near the Mansfield Hotel, inching forward at a snail's pace. For over ten minutes, Ondine's car crawled along the stretch of road by the hotel, where a traffic cop was now trying to direct the gridlock."Ma'am," the Thorne family driver said, turning to her, "there's an engagement party at the Mansfield Hotel today. The guest list must be huge. It's shut down the whole street."Ondine glanced at the time on her phone. "I'll just get out and walk. The hospital's not far from here.""You're right, Ma'am," the driver agreed. "At this rate, you'll get there faster on foot.""Alright, I'll get out here then."The car was gridlocked anyway, so Ondine opened the door and stepped out, moving onto the sidewalk after a few steps. Lustrous Medical Center was only a five- or six-hundred-meter walk from where she stood.She wore a cream-colored trench coat over a short woolen dress, and her long, fair legs disappeared into a pair of soft leather boots. She was so striking that passersby couldn't help but turn their heads.At that very moment, Melvin Ford sat stewing in the same traffic jam, his expression a mask of impatience as he vented to a friend on the phone. “I'm completely stuck. I should've had my driver take me. Now I can't even get out of the car. Damn it." ᴛʜɪs ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀ ɪs ᴜᴘᴅᴀᴛᴇ ʙʏ FιndＮovel.netHis friend jeered from the other end of the line. "You should've seen this coming. I was smart enough not to drive myself. Have fun sitting there, buddy, ha!""Shit, I'm losing my mind," Melvin grumbled, slamming a hand against the steering wheel. As he looked up, his gaze suddenly froze.He stared at a slender figure walking toward him on the sidewalk and rubbed his eyes. "Holy shit! Am I hallucinating from skipping breakfast?""What is it?" his friend asked."I think I just saw Ondine!""Who?""Ondine!" Melvin's voice was a mix of shock and excitement as he fumbled for his phone and started recording. "The girl Ellis was playing poor for back at Riverdale University!""No way! Are you sure you're not seeing things?""I don't think so. There can't be two people in the world who look that much alike, unless she has a tv sister. But I think Ellis mentioned she was an only child." fo "Send me the video! I gotta see this.""Done," Melvin said, sending the clip he'd just recorded.A few seconds later, three exclamation points popped up in their chat."!!!""Holy crap! It's really her! Ellis has been going crazy looking for her, and she's been in Boreal this whole time!"noveldramaOndine was walking in the opposite direction, so the video captured her head-on. Melvin had even zoomed in three times, making her face perfectly clear.Melvin typed: "Should I tell Ellis?""Probably not. It's his engagement day. What's he gonna do, ditch the party to go find her?"Melvin considered it for a moment. "Good point.""I can't believe she's in Boreal.""Me neither, man! I'm still in shock. If I weren't alone in this car, I'd get out and follow her."By afternoon, the tedious engagement ceremony was finally over.In the ballroom, glasses clinked and the air buzzed with cheerful conversation. Garland seized the opportunity to mingle with influential figures who outranked him, while Shania, a social butterfly in her own right, charmed the wives of wealthy businessmen and officials. Chantal, however, was no longer the sought-after heiress she once was. Now, she was merely a disgraced daughter dependent on the Sheppard family No one bothered to flatter her anymore, and she was too proud to lower herself to curry favor with the other socialites.