Elise descended the staircase in heavy silence.

This was the bitter taste of being despised by someone you cherished. For a moment, she feared her composure would shatter completely.

Midway down, a shadow fell beside her. She didn't need to look to recognize Ethan's presence. His deep voice reached her ears, soft as a whisper.

"Let me walk you out." He spoke cautiously, as if handling fragile glass.

"No." Her reply was sharp and final. He was the last person she wanted comfort from.

"Elise..." he breathed out.

"Ethan."

Nancy's icy voice sliced through the tension from the top of the staircase. Ethan's outstretched hand froze mid-air.

Elise let out a bitter laugh.

Thankfully, she had never placed any hope in him. Just like when he vanished from the hospital after she sent him away. He never failed to meet her non-existent expectations.

"Remember why you're permitted to remain here," Nancy continued her cold warning.

Elise didn't bother glancing back at Ethan's reaction. "Focus on your own situation, Ethan Parker. Don't overestimate your capabilities when they're clearly limited."

Ethan's fingers curled into tight fists. Elise continued her steady descent. Every step felt like a monumental effort. She felt so drained she might simply fade from existence.

A wry smile touched her lips as she stepped out of Levine Manor. She had to admire her own strength in that moment.

To walk away with such dignity under these circumstances, without collapsing, was its own kind of victory.

But her body eventually betrayed her. Her knees buckled on the rain-slicked pavement.

'At least,' she thought as darkness claimed her, 'I made it far enough from that house.'