The Killer Queen (Noella Briony)

Malvina paused for a moment, her mind racing.

Did she like Ulrich?

Tucking a curl behind her ear, Malvina's laughter was laced with allure. "You don't get it, sometimes liking someone just isn't enough. And besides, I like you too, Dr. Lowry."

Malvina was the kind of stunning, bold beauty one would expect to see on the silver screen, not in real life. Her vivacious personality and exotic charm were irresistible.

Dr. Lowry blushed a deep shade of crimson at her teasing proclamation – something she’d only seen in movies!

"If Dr. Schnabel and I were in school, he'd be the teacher's pet, and I'd be the teacher's headache. We're not exactly compatible." Malvina's fleeting sadness was quickly masked. "Besides, he deserves better, certainly not me."

After all, she was the rebel with a cause, and Ulrich, with his gleaming reputation as a medical prodigy, was out of her league!

Patting Dr. Lowry's head, Malvina smirked, "I'll see you around. Next time, dinner's on me."

"Weren't you supposed to invite Dr. Schnabel for dinner?"

"I did say that, but he doesn’t know. What’s wrong with us beautiful women being a bit unpredictable?."

Malvina's whole body ached, and she had no desire to wait here for Ulrich. What if catching sight of Ulrich's face triggered some inappropriate thoughts again?

Sienna, Noella, and Elara had been nothing but kind to her.

"I need to be grateful," she murmured, her voice bitter.

The Schnabel family had been so good to her, yet she contemplated pulling Ulrich into her chaos. That was too cruel!

Frustrated, Malvina decisively brushed her hair back. "No more visits to this hospital. I'll find another. Take care, I'll treat you next time!"

"Ms. Gruber... Goodbye."

With her bag in tow, Malvina stormed out as if being chased by shadows.

...

In Calvin's office, the atmosphere was different.

Lavinia Richardson, dressed in a vintage lace-trimmed dress with a string of pearls around her neck, exuded a timeless grace, as soothing as a gentle spring breeze.

Calvin greeted her with a warm smile. "Ms. Richardson, welcome back. No need to be nervous. Ms. Schnabel has been shadowing me in medical training; think of her as my intern."

Under the table, Noella's foot found Calvin's with a swift kick. He really thought of himself as her mentor.

The pretext was a convenient one, albeit Calvin's skills were hardly a match for Noella's.

Lavinia's eyes softened as she looked at Noella, radiating maternal warmth. "If I had a daughter as smart and beautiful as Ms. Schnabel, I'd be the happiest woman alive. Though, I do have a lovely daughter."

Noella was taken aback. "You have a daughter?"

Lavinia nodded, her voice tender, her brows knitted with faint sorrow. "Yes, but I don't know where she is. I've looked everywhere at home. I fear they'll think she's a figment of my imagination. Ms. Schnabel, my mental health isn't great; I don't want to worry my father."

Noella looked at Lavinia and suddenly asked, "Lavinia, do you remember what my sister ate when we last visited?"

"Last time? Ms. Elara had a walnut pastry. That was our first meeting."

Noella nodded, her expression complex.

"Do you remember Jacob?" Noella asked, veering the conversation.

Lavinia, surprised, pondered before responding. "Yes, but it's been years since we parted. Ms. Schnabel, you’re engaged to Palmer Pollack, so you might have met Jacob. Is he well?"

"He's fine." RêAd lat𝙚St chapters at Novel(D)ra/ma.Org Only

"That's good to hear," Lavinia sighed, a shadow of melancholy crossing her features.

"Previously, you showed me pictures of Grandpa Lucian in his youth. He looked quite dashing."

"Did I? I seem to have forgotten."

The first time Noella and Elara visited the Richardson Manor, Elara didn't eat walnut pastry. It was evident that Lavinia had forgotten about it.

Noella decided not to press further, handing Calvin a special request for medical tests.

"Just follow this list for the examination, Lavinia. Goodbye."

Lavinia expressed her gratitude politely, took the list, draped a lace shawl over her shoulders, and departed the office with elegance.

Calvin asked, "Why did you request a special examination?"

"We need to run these tests for dissociative phenomena."

Calvin was momentarily astonished, and exclaimed, "You suspect... she has dissociative identity disorder? But after all these years, I haven't noticed anything!"

Noella spoke with seriousness, "Her two personalities are very similar, but their accents and cognitive abilities are completely different, showing significant disparities."

Noella recollected every encounter she had with Lavinia.

She produced a piece of paper, "Let’s temporarily assume she has two personalities. One speaks with a southern accent, while the other has an Imperial City accent. One prefers tailored business wear, while the other favors vintage dresses. Their personalities are so similar that it's understandable you haven't noticed."

Lavinia's memory showed discrepancies.

"The medical records state that she suffers from severe forgetfulness, dizziness, and ringing in the ears, with instances of fainting and hospitalization during severe episodes. But she always recovers after a few days in the hospital. I believe it's because one personality falls ill while the other remains unaffected."

Calvin remained somewhat shocked.

"Dissociative Identity Disorder, it usually kicks in after some heavy trauma, right? Ms. Richardson didn't have a shot at something like that!"

From what Calvin knew about Lavinia, the Richardson family kept her under such tight wraps that something so drastic couldn’t possibly have happened to cause a split personality.

Noella spoke up, her tone light, "There was something. She mentioned she had a daughter."

"And what's that supposed to prove? Couldn't that just be a figment of one of her alternate personalities?"

"No, she actually had a daughter. So, it's likely that the trauma occurred during childbirth, leading to the split."

Noella let out a sigh.

"I suppose her primary personality is aware she had a child but lost her. That's probably why there's a second personality telling her to forget it all."

Calvin was all questions.

"You're saying she really has a daughter? How come I never knew about this!"

Noella shot back, "Well, you're not her dad, why would you know?"

Calvin's eyes widened. "And you're not either! How do you know about it?"

"Is it so strange I know more than you?"

Noella packed up her things and walked away, with Calvin calling after her.

"Hey, make sure you fill me in on the treatment plan, alright? Where are you off to?"

There was a hint of cheer in Noella's voice. "Off to grab a bite with a friend, and to check if Lorne is really gone for good."

Calvin was even more puzzled. Wasn't Palmer Noella's fiancé? How did he become just a friend?

"Is that what the young folks are calling their significant others these days?"