Margaret stood frozen, staring at Benjamin. Her own son had never raised his voice at her like this before!

He always followed her commands without question. But now he was publicly reprimanding her in front of all these medical staff!

The humiliation burned through her. At her age and status, this was utterly unacceptable!

She couldn't bear such disrespect. Her eyes reddened as she pointed a trembling finger back at him. "How dare you speak to me that way—"

But Benjamin was too consumed by rage to care about her wounded pride.

He was terrified that Elise would escalate this situation and ruin Scott Enterprise's reputation, along with his own standing as Crestwood's most prominent heir.

Otherwise, he wouldn't care if Margaret ended up in prison, let alone have to endure Elise's temper!

"Do whatever you want!" he snapped harshly before turning on his heel and storming away.

Margaret's blood pressure spiked watching her own son abandon her at the hospital without a backward glance.

Victoria, who had accompanied them and witnessed the entire confrontation, quickly stepped forward to soothe her. "Margaret, you need to understand Benjamin's position right now. Scott Enterprise is facing serious challenges, yet he still arranged your bail and legal counsel despite his overwhelming workload. Elise has solid evidence against you. If this goes to trial, you could face three years for intentional harm. At your age, you wouldn't survive a month in prison!"

"It can't be that serious," Margaret protested in disbelief.

She had always viewed Elise as insignificant. Having dominated the girl for most of her life, she never imagined Elise would ever fight back effectively.

"It absolutely is that serious!" Victoria insisted firmly. "Just listen to Benjamin—apologize to Elise. She's still your granddaughter. She won't completely disregard family ties."

Margaret still huffed indignantly. The mere thought of yielding to Elise made her stomach churn.

"Think of it this way," Victoria continued persuasively. "Once this blows over, we just need to be more careful not to give her leverage against us. She's still just a young woman—she can't possibly outmaneuver you forever. You'll have plenty of opportunities to settle the score later."

Victoria's words provided some comfort, and Margaret refused to believe she couldn't eventually put Elise in her place!

Meanwhile, Elise found herself unable to fall back asleep after being awakened. Out of habit, she got out of bed and picked up her phone to check the news.

The internet continued to rage against Samuel and Sophia, with the scandal showing no signs of dying down—if anything, it was gaining more momentum.

Elise checked the stock performance of Mitchell Corp and Scott Enterprise, noting both companies' market values had been dropping since the market opened.

Given their substantial market capitalizations, this translated to losses of hundreds of thousands per day. A sense of satisfaction warmed Elise, and she set aside her phone, rising to begin her morning routine.

There was no denying William's crucial role in her complete victory.

She remembered how he had taken the initiative to help her, only for her to dismiss him as a womanizer who treated relationships carelessly. Yesterday had been his birthday, and she hadn't even considered wishing him well...

Except for that kiss.

Elise's cheeks warmed again at the memory.

She and William weren't even dating, yet he had already acquired numerous boyfriend privileges!

What surprised her more? She didn't feel upset about it at all!

In contrast, her relationship with Samuel had been practically chaste.

Probably because they were both young back then, and he would always respect her boundaries.

But by the time they were older, he was already cheating on her with Sophia.

Why would he endure Elise's reluctance when someone else was readily satisfying his physical desires?

Even now, thinking about that man still stirred complicated emotions within her.

She released a deep sigh and picked up her phone to text William.

[Are you free tonight?]

[Yes.]

Another immediate reply.

Elise couldn't help smiling. Despite the single-word response, she could vividly imagine what was happening on the other end.

[Dinner tonight. My place.]

[Okay.]