SCORNED EX WIFE Queen Of Ashes (Camille and Stefan)

The common room of Bellevue's psychiatric ward smelled of disinfectant and despair. Rose Lewis sat alone in the corner, her back straight despite the shapeless hospital gown that hung from her once-elegant frame. The other inmates gave her space, something in her eyes warned them away, even here among the damaged and dangerous.

"Television time," a guard announced, switching on the small set mounted high on the wall.

Rose barely glanced up until the words "Kane Industries" caught her attention. Her head snapped toward the screen, body suddenly rigid.

"We're live at Kane Industries headquarters," the reporter said, "where Victoria Kane is about to make what sources call a 'game-changing announcement' regarding the future of her company."

Rose leaned forward, hands gripping the plastic arms of her chair. For weeks, she'd been cut off from news of the outside world, part of her treatment, the doctors said. Part of her punishment, she knew.

The camera panned across a packed press conference. Journalists clutched recorders and notebooks, their faces eager for the story about to break. Behind them, Kane Industries executives stood in a neat row, their expressions carefully neutral.

And then Victoria Kane appeared at the podium.

Rose's breath caught. Even through the grainy television image, Victoria's presence commanded attention. Her silver hair gleamed under the lights, her slim figure wrapped in an impeccable white suit that made her look more like an avenging angel than a cancer patient.

"For thirty-five years," Victoria's voice rang clear through the television speakers, "I have guided this company from a small investment firm to a global power. Today, that chapter ends."

An inmate shuffled past, blocking Rose's view momentarily. She hissed, a sound so feral the woman hurried away without comment.

"My doctors inform me that my cancer has responded remarkably well to treatment," Victoria continued. "I have been given the gift of time I did not expect. And I intend to use it."

Rose's fingers dug into the chair arms. She had celebrated when news of Victoria's cancer leaked to the press months ago. Had smiled at the thought of the formidable woman reduced to weakness, to dependency. To ending.

Now that victory, like all her others, was being ripped away.

"Effective immediately, I am stepping down as Chief Executive Officer of Kane Industries."

Murmurs rippled through the hospital common room as other patients tuned in to the broadcast. Someone whispered about stock prices. Someone else bet on who would take over. Rose heard none of it, her focus absolute, her entire body tensed like a predator about to strike.

On screen, Victoria raised her hand, commanding silence from the press corps with that simple gesture.

"The board has approved my successor. Someone who understands not just the business of Kane Industries, but its soul. Someone who has faced destruction and chosen to build instead."

Rose's heartbeat quickened. A terrible suspicion formed in her mind.

"Ladies and gentlemen, I present to you the new CEO of Kane Industries... Camille Kane."

The world stopped.

Rose didn't breathe, didn't blink, didn't move as the camera shifted and her sister, her victim, her obsession, her prey, walked into frame.

Camille approached the podium with measured steps, her navy suit perfect against her skin, her hair pulled back in a simple knot. Confidence radiated from her, the assurance of a woman who knew exactly where she belonged.

Nothing like the broken, devastated creature who had signed divorce papers from Stefan three years ago. Nothing like the sister Rose had tried to destroy.

"No," Rose whispered, her voice a thread of sound in the suddenly too-loud room. "No, no, no."

But the image didn't change. Camille stood at the podium, her smile composed as she began to speak.

"Thank you, Victoria. And thank you to the board for their confidence."

Rose's hands began to shake. The voice coming from the television belonged to Camille, but not the Camille she knew. This woman was poised, authoritative, commanding. Her words measured and precise as she outlined her vision for Kane Industries.

"Look at her," Rose hissed, too quietly for anyone to hear. "Playing dress-up in Victoria's clothes."

But even as the words left her lips, Rose knew they were false. The woman on screen wasn't playing at anything. This was real. While Rose had rotted in hospital rooms and court hearings, Camille had been rising. Building. Becoming.

"I come to this position with full awareness of what Kane Industries represents," Camille was saying, her voice strong and clear. "Not just assets and revenues, but lives and livelihoods. The responsibility is enormous, and I do not take it lightly."

An older woman shuffling by paused, looking at the screen then at Rose's white- knuckled grip on her chair. "You okay there, honey?"

Rose didn't answer, her eyes never leaving the television.

"She looks important," the woman persisted, nodding toward Camille. "Someone famous?"

"She's nobody," Rose snapped, the words burning her throat. "A fake. A placeholder. Victoria Kane's pet project."

The woman squinted at the screen, then at Rose, taking in her hollow cheeks and burning eyes. Recognition dawned slowly. "Wait, isn't that...."

"Leave me alone," Rose snarled, and something in her face made the woman step back quickly.

On television, Camille continued fielding questions from the press. Someone asked about her background, about her seemingly sudden appearance in business circles.

"Many of you are wondering who I am," Camille acknowledged. "Where I came from. That story is longer than we have time for today."

"Liar!" Rose shouted at the screen, loud enough that heads turned throughout the common room. "Tell them who you really are! Tell them how you stole my life, my future!"

A guard looked over, brow furrowed. Rose forced her face into blankness, years of practice making it second nature, but inside, acid burned through her veins.

"Ms. Lewis," the guard called from across the room. "Everything all right over there?"

"Fine," Rose answered, her voice honey-sweet. "Just caught up in the news."

The guard studied her a moment longer, then returned to his conversation with another staff member. Rose's attention snapped back to the screen where Camille was answering a question about her plans for the company.

"I can confirm that Kane Industries will be realigning certain holdings," Camille was saying. "Details will be released tomorrow."

Rose sat forward, suddenly alert. The hospital gown gaped at her neck, revealing collar bones that had grown sharp during her weeks in custody. "Realigning holdings," she repeated, eyes narrowed. "What does that mean?"

A terrible suspicion formed. The Rodriguez Shipping assets, the ones Kane Industries had acquired during Camille's revenge campaign against Stefan. Was she giving them back to him? After everything he'd done?

The thought made Rose's stomach twist with fresh fury. Of course Camille would forgive Stefan. She had always been weak that way, always ready to excuse betrayal, to offer second chances.

Not like Rose. Rose never forgave. Never forgot.

Questions continued from journalists about the company's direction, about Victoria's health, about Camille's own background. With each smooth, articulate answer, Rose's rage grew hotter, brighter, consuming her from within.

"Look at her," she said to no one. "So polished. So perfect. Fooling them all."

But the woman on screen wasn't fooling anyone. She radiated authentic authority, answering each question with thoughtful precision. Not a trace remained of the naïve, trusting woman Rose had so easily manipulated. This was someone else entirely. Someone stronger.

Someone Rose had failed to destroy.

The final question came from a reporter in the back row, his tone insinuating.

"Ms. Kane, many observers have noted your meteoric rise. Just three years ago, you were unknown in business circles. How do you respond to allegations that your connection to Victoria Kane is... personal rather than professional?" Rose leaned forward, suddenly hungry for Camille's discomfort. This was it, the question that would expose the fraud, that would make her stumble.

Instead, Camille's voice remained clear and direct.

"Victoria Kane rescued me when I had nothing. She saw potential when others saw only brokenness. She taught me to transform pain into power. So yes, our connection is deeply personal."

Rose's hands curled into fists as Camille continued.

"But make no mistake.... I stand here today not because of sentiment, but because of proven ability. My record at Kane Industries speaks for itself. The Phoenix Grid. The Green Harbor Initiative. The expansion into Asian markets that increased revenues by twenty-two percent last quarter."

The numbers meant nothing to Rose. All she heard was victory in Camille's voice.

All she saw was the quiet confidence of a woman who had not just survived, but

triumphed.noveldrama

"I didn't inherit this position," Camille stated firmly. "I earned it. And I intend to prove that every day going forward."

Victoria stepped forward then, placing a hand on Camille's shoulder, a public gesture of support never before seen from the notoriously cold businesswoman.

"Ladies and gentlemen, Camille Kane," Victoria announced, and the room erupted

in applause.

In the prison ward, Rose stared at the screen as Camille and Victoria stood together, the older woman's hand on the younger's shoulder. The image burned

into her mind, each pixel a separate agony.

"That should be me," she whispered.

For years, Rose had plotted and schemed. Had manipulated everyone around

her. Had dedicated her life to claiming what she believed should have been hers, family, love, success, recognition.

And now here was Camille, her sister, her enemy, her obsession, receiving all of

it. Not just surviving Rose's attempts to destroy her, but thriving. Rising higher than Rose had even imagined possible.

The television cut to a commercial break. Rose remained motionless, seeing not the advertisement but Camille's face. The confidence. The poise. The absolute certainty that she belonged exactly where she was.

Something cracked inside Rose's chest. A dam breaking, flooding her with rage so pure it felt almost like clarity.

"Camille," she breathed, fingers curling into claws against her thighs. "I should have killed you when I had the chance."

A guard passing by paused, hearing the venom in her voice. "Everything okay

here, Lewis?"

Rose smoothed her expression, the mask slipping back into place with practiced ease. "Just watching the news," she said, voice dripping sweetness. "Isn't it interesting how some people just seem to have all the luck?"

The guard nodded warily and moved on. Rose's gaze returned to the television, waiting for Camille to reappear.

In her mind, she was no longer in the hospital ward. She was back at the cabin,

holding a gun to Camille's head. Only this time, she didn't hesitate. This time, she pulled the trigger.

"Next time," she promised the empty air. "Next time, I won't make the same mistake."

The newscast returned, showing footage of Camille leaving the podium, Victoria

at her side. The two women walked together, powerful, unified. Untouchable.

For now.

Rose's lips curved in a smile that never reached her eyes. Her fingers found the thin scar at her wrist, tracing its outline. The doctors. thought her progress was remarkable. The medication was working. The therapy was helping. Soon, they'd recommend moving her

to a less restrictive facility.

She would be patient. Would play their game. Would say all the right things.

And when the moment came, and it would come, she would be ready.

The camera zoomed in on Camille's face one last time. Confident. Serene.

Unaware that miles away, behind secure walls, her sister watched and waited and planned.

Rose's whisper was barely audible, lost in the ambient noise of the ward. But the

promise in it was absolute.

"This isn't over, sister dear.."