While Cassidy only continues to take pleasure in the early morning setting of the beach, Cecile walks up from behind her with breakfast in hand - a tray of freshly-baked pastries and a coffee pot.

Sensing her presence, the redhead turns around to face her. She's delighted to see her frowning at her first thing in the morning, looking offended. It's like she was reading her thoughts the whole time.

​​

"Did you do what you did last night to set an example?" the head maid asked, grimacing in mortification as she recalled the humiliation she received from the other maids that time.

"Well, there's that, but I also did it to get rid of the unnecessary variables. Those maids would just get in the way, and I had no need of them," the redhead replied coolly while leaning on the balustrades.

"You should be wary, though. Ma'am Irish would learn that you're the one who fired her workers. She will be provoked for sure, especially since she's one to hate people who acts behind her back and takes away what she considers as her possessions."

Despite Cecile's peeved tone, Cassidy can tell that she is now more willing to cooperate.

She did not ask for that detail about Irish, but she still went ahead and told her to be wary. Then again, what she experienced last night must be truly appalling. Her husband and the other maids had even focused on her at one point, making her the center of attention and star of the night.

If Cassidy hadn't stepped in and saved Cecile - reasoning to Adrian that she wanted to keep her since she believed in her innocence, she would've buckled under the pressure and tore up on the spot right then.

Convincing her husband wasn't that easy, though. He didn't buy it for a while. Still, in the end, everything went according to her plan.

Regarding the dismissal of the other maids, it's not like Cassidy is not expecting a reaction from Irish. In fact, she's quite ecstatic to see her personally. What Cecile said about her character and how she'd treat people as her possessions was quite an interesting information.

'At any rate, I'm only prolonging Cecilia's remaining time here. She has to be fired and sent to jail with all the thefts that she did for who knows how long...' Cassidy silently pondered as she began to eat her breakfast, looking at the head maid who's serving her a cup of coffee all the while.

'Though it would be nicer if she'd get to turn over a new leaf and redeem herself.'

---

After having her breakfast, Cassidy secretly sneaks out of the mansion while Adrian is still asleep.

She's determined to spend the whole day for herself. With all the commotion yesterday, she really didn't get to do what she mainly went here for, and that was to play at the beach.

Since she did not want any more interruptions, she decided not to tell anyone about it, including Cecile. Instead, she just sends a message to Seven and her other bodyguards, telling them to inform Adrian about where she is if and only if he comes looking all around the mansion for her.

After witnessing his actions last night and learning how far he can get when it comes to her, he might end up flipping the whole mansion over just to find her.

'Because it's still not safe to go too far, I'll just settle at an empty spot around here. Too bad I can't go to crowded places, though. I really wanted to see lots of things.'

Eventually, Cassidy got her happy corner under the shade of a palm tree.

She set up her picnic blanket there along with her bottles of water and towels. Taking a swim is definitely a must-do on her list, but right now, she wants to behold the sun-kissed beauty of the beach for a while longer.

"They said that the plane I was riding on crashed on a body of water, and it's where I lost my memories..." Cassidy thought out loud with a solemn look on her face.

"I always think that the ocean is a symbol of freedom for me. Maybe, that plane crash was destiny's way of freeing me from something? It sure was deadly, though, and I wasn't grateful for that part."

She knew that there's a long road ahead of her if she really wanted to live independently again.

Everything that happened so far had barely went past the tip of the iceberg. She also knows that it's still dangerous to part ways with Adrian this early since there are threats with unknown sources around her. Departing recklessly and leaving traces might lead her pursuers to her new home, and by then, she will be unprotected since her husband will no longer be around.

For now or at least as long as she's here, she has to deal with threats that have been existing long before - threats from his own relatives, that is.

'I feel like I'm becoming more dependent on bossman, especially in the security and finances department. I also don't feel like spending his money like that. I want my own job. Sure, he has an obligation to look after me, but I still don't want end up owing him so much that I'll feel bad for leaving without a word.'

For the following minutes, Cassidy only proceeds to think deeply.

That's until she finally had enough of all the heavy pondering and got bored with just sitting. With that, she decided to continue her sight-seeing while building a sand castle near the shoreline.

As this is her first time making a sand castle, Cassidy soon finds herself enjoying it like a toddler and getting too absorbed that she forgets about her surroundings.

"Big brother, who is that red-haired lady?"

Little did the oblivious redhead know that three young boys were about to take a swim nearby.

Hugo tugged Damien by the sleeve of his hoodie jacket and called his attention the moment he spotted a woman from a distance. Joshua was about to rush all the way to the ocean when he also noticed her sitting on the sand all by herself.

For now, what's clear to them is that she's a redhead wearing a sheer black dress with floral designs and a white floppy hat with a black ribbon. What isn't clear to them is how an outsider manages to get inside their private properties.

This part of the beach is owned by the Millicent family. The security guards at the gates did not inform them that someone else would be here.

A stranger's presence could be a bad news, especially when they're all by themselves. Their father strictly told them not to get close with people they're not familiar with.

That was why Edward didn't allow his children to play in a public place. He could not come with them because of work, and since they preferred having no attendants around, only a couple of bodyguards went there with them.

"Wait here for me, guys. I'll talk to the lady," Damien told his brothers, planning to have the redhead kicked out of there as soon as possible.

"What if it's a baddie?!" Hugo bolted out as he only continued gripping his sleeve.

"It's fine. I'll keep my distance. Besides, she can just be one of my guests at the party or an employee around here."

"But she looks suspicious! And she's wearing black!"

"Hugo, what did Aunt Cassidy told you about judging people by their appearances?" Joshua chided, making his brother perk up a little in surprise.

Recalling their aunt's words the other night, Hugo slowly lets go of Damien and lowers his head as if ashamed. His elder brother only smiles and pats his head reassuringly. He then spares them one last look before making his way to the other direction.

'She doesn't seem to be suspicious at all...' Damien silently thought as he walked nearer and nearer to the redhead.

'What in the world is she exactly doing with the sand, by the way? At her age, she can't be possibly doing something as childish as building a sand castle.'

But then, that's exactly what Cassidy is doing.

In fact, she's really into it that she fails to notice him coming. Even when he's finally standing right beside her, she's still focused on finishing her sand castle. He also fails to recognize her since her floppy hat is blocking her face the whole time.

"Excuse me, Ma'am. Who are you?" Damien started while staring down at her with a guarded look.

Right at that very second, though, the ocean water suddenly went all the way to where they were, consequently wiping her sand castle out. Seeing her hard work get washed off of the face of the earth, Cassidy jumped and screeched out loud in surprise, nearly cursing underneath her breath.

"Noooooo...! My glorious castle...! she cried out with a shell-shocked expression.

"I still need to take a pic of that, you insolent body of water!"

Dumbfounded by how Cassidy suddenly exclaimed that while kicking the water in vex, Damien could only stand there and watch her incredulously, unsure of how take in this adult's childish fit of pique over a mere sand castle.